Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Jose and Artemisa

For one person, living is cheaper in Artemisa: $574 a month against $2,107 in San Jose, rent and utilities included – about $18,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index
27

Cost of Living Index in Artemisa
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Artemisa Living Index

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San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Artemisa

🇨🇺 Cuba

$574

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in San Jose and in Artemisa

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in San Jose and in Artemisa actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,107 per month in San Jose vs $574 in Artemisa, rent included.

San Jose $2,107
Artemisa $574

A couple spends around $3,081 per month in San Jose vs $908 in Artemisa, rent included.

San Jose $3,081
Artemisa $908

A family of three spends $4,054 per month in San Jose vs $1,242 in Artemisa, rent included.

San Jose $4,054
Artemisa $1,242

San Jose costs about 267% more than Artemisa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

San Jose sits 56% above the global median, while Artemisa is 58% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.37 ₡5,563

$3.71 CUP 89.0

233.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.4 ₡28.0K

$25.21 CUP 605

147.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.71 ₡5,264

$5.10 CUP 122

129.61%

Cappuccino

$4.54 ₡2,040

$1.01 CUP 24.16

349.50%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 ₡1,238

$1.54 CUP 36.90

78.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 ₡837

$0.99 CUP 23.87

87.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 ₡1,505

$1.18 CUP 28.22

183.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.32 ₡1,944

$1.96 CUP 47.06

120.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.36 ₡1,061

$2.70 CUP 64.7

-12.59%

White Bread (500g)

$3.07 ₡1,379

$1.41 CUP 33.77

117.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,128

$1.76 CUP 42.26

42.61%

Eggs

$3.53 ₡1,585

$3.60 CUP 86.3

-1.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.54 ₡4,738

$4.49 CUP 108

134.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.57 ₡4,754

$4.62 CUP 111

128.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.92 ₡6,261

$8.35 CUP 200

66.71%

Apples (1kg)

$5.20 ₡2,338

$6.13 CUP 147

-15.17%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 ₡740

$1.05 CUP 25.25

57.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.89 ₡2,198

$3.83 CUP 91.8

27.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.84 ₡1,728

$2.34 CUP 56.2

64.10%

Potato (1kg)

$3.91 ₡1,757

$2.81 CUP 67.3

39.15%

Onion (1kg)

$3.76 ₡1,692

$2.83 CUP 67.9

32.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ₡504

$0.79 CUP 18.89

41.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.22 ₡1,447

$0.56 CUP 13.50

475.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.02 ₡2,706

$1.67 CUP 40.19

260.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.84 ₡8,919

$5.32 CUP 128

272.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.81 ₡1,264

$1.71 CUP 41.04

64.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.65 ₡1,643

$2.09 CUP 50.1

74.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.08 ₡487

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.2 ₡29.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.26 ₡1,018

$2.53 CUP 60.7

-10.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.78 ₡799

$0.34 CUP 8.06

423.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ₡3,551

$20.14 CUP 483

-60.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ₡673

$1.27 CUP 30.56

18.11%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$33.5K ₡15.1M

$61.0K CUP 1.5M

-45.15%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$42.3K ₡19.0M

$59.3K CUP 1.4M

-28.66%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$93.2 ₡41.9K

$47.54 CUP 1,141

96.02%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$36.13 ₡16.2K

$39.30 CUP 943

-8.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.6 ₡27.2K

$89.6 CUP 2,149

-32.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.9 ₡31.0K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.94 ₡11.2K

Cinema Ticket

$7.67 ₡3,449

$0.86 CUP 20.64

791.86%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$972 ₡436.9K

$159 CUP 3,815

511.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.9K ₡8.5M

$12.7K CUP 304.3K

48.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.6 ₡31.8K

$19.60 CUP 471

260.31%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.7 ₡25.5K

$10.14 CUP 243

458.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$129 ₡57.8K

$79.5 CUP 1,908

61.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 ₡58.8K

$67.8 CUP 1,626

93.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,170 ₡525.9K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$943 ₡424.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,984 ₡892.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,400 ₡629.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,681 ₡1.2M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,037 ₡915.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$987 ₡443.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

9.1

-5.27%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for San Jose: November 2, 2026

Last update for Artemisa: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

San Jose

$943 44.8%

Artemisa

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

San Jose

$403 19.1%

Artemisa

$235 41% 41.5% $167

Eating Out

San Jose

$232 11%

Artemisa

$77 13.4% 66.9% $155

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Jose

$190 9%

Artemisa

$176 30.7% 7.1% $14

Clothing & Footwear

San Jose

$174 8.3%

Artemisa

$80 13.9% 54.2% $94

Sport & Entertainment

San Jose

$84 4%

Artemisa

$1.7 * 0.3% 98% $83

Getting Around

San Jose

$81 3.8%

Artemisa

$4.2 * 0.7% 94.8% $77

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $62 in San Jose versus $25 in Artemisa. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $403 vs $235 – making Artemisa the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇷 San Jose

🇨🇺 Artemisa

🕒 Local time

10:15 10:15 AM

11:15 11:15 AM

1 h ahead of San Jose

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

342,188 Capital

48,897

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Cuban Peso CUP $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100 CUP = 4.17 USD

100 CUP = 3.71 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CUP, USD, EUR to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 505 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Cuban Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 24 CUP (100 CUP = 4.17 USD). 1 EUR = 26.95 CUP (100 CUP = 3.71 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

San Jose Artemisa 1,440 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

San Jose
Artemisa

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

San Jose vs Artemisa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,107 in San Jose, $574 in Artemisa – Artemisa comes out roughly 73% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,161 per month in San Jose and $861 in Artemisa. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,107 in San Jose and $574 in Artemisa. That makes Artemisa about 73% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $972 per month in San Jose and $159 in Artemisa. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Artemisa, where all-in costs run around $574, than in San Jose at $2,107. In Artemisa it covers expenses comfortably, while in San Jose it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. San Jose has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $574 in Artemisa to $2,107 in San Jose. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.