Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Jose and Drummondville

For one person, living is cheaper in Drummondville: $1,516 a month against $2,107 in San Jose, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index
72

Cost of Living Index in Drummondville
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Drummondville Living Index

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San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Drummondville

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,516

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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 Drummondville actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,107 per month in San Jose vs $1,516 in Drummondville, rent included.

San Jose $2,107
Drummondville $1,516

A couple spends around $3,081 per month in San Jose vs $2,301 in Drummondville, rent included.

San Jose $3,081
Drummondville $2,301

A family of three spends $4,054 per month in San Jose vs $3,085 in Drummondville, rent included.

San Jose $4,054
Drummondville $3,085

San Jose costs about 39% more than Drummondville, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both San Jose and Drummondville sit above the global median – San Jose by 56%, Drummondville by 12%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.37 ₡5,563

$12.98 CA$18.25

-4.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.4 ₡28.0K

$65.4 CA$92.0

-4.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.71 ₡5,264

$9.52 CA$13.39

23.00%

Cappuccino

$4.54 ₡2,040

$3.06 CA$4.30

48.37%

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

$2.75 ₡1,238

$1.38 CA$1.94

99.28%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 ₡837

$1.08 CA$1.52

72.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 ₡1,505

$3.50 CA$4.93

-4.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.32 ₡1,944

$4.90 CA$6.89

-11.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.36 ₡1,061

$1.53 CA$2.15

54.25%

White Bread (500g)

$3.07 ₡1,379

$2.04 CA$2.87

50.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,128

$1.41 CA$1.98

78.01%

Eggs

$3.53 ₡1,585

$2.71 CA$3.82

30.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.54 ₡4,738

$8.97 CA$12.61

17.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.57 ₡4,754

$10.14 CA$14.26

4.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.92 ₡6,261

$11.07 CA$15.57

25.75%

Apples (1kg)

$5.20 ₡2,338

$3.16 CA$4.44

64.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 ₡740

$1.31 CA$1.85

25.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.89 ₡2,198

$3.60 CA$5.06

35.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.84 ₡1,728

$3.46 CA$4.86

10.98%

Potato (1kg)

$3.91 ₡1,757

$1.91 CA$2.69

104.71%

Onion (1kg)

$3.76 ₡1,692

$1.83 CA$2.58

105.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ₡504

$2.10 CA$2.96

-46.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.22 ₡1,447

$1.15 CA$1.62

180.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.02 ₡2,706

$12.39 CA$17.42

-51.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.84 ₡8,919

$10.77 CA$15.14

84.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.81 ₡1,264

$2.84 CA$3.99

-1.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.65 ₡1,643

$3.26 CA$4.59

11.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.08 ₡487

$1.99 CA$2.80

-45.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.2 ₡29.3K

$42.40 CA$59.6

53.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.26 ₡1,018

$3.38 CA$4.75

-33.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.78 ₡799

$2.01 CA$2.83

-11.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ₡3,551

$33.29 CA$46.82

-76.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ₡673

$1.20 CA$1.68

25.00%

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

$33.5K ₡15.1M

$28.6K CA$40.2K

17.02%

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

$42.3K ₡19.0M

$21.3K CA$29.9K

98.78%

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

$93.2 ₡41.9K

$54.5 CA$76.7

70.90%

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

$36.13 ₡16.2K

$30.95 CA$43.53

16.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.6 ₡27.2K

$45.55 CA$64.1

33.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.9 ₡31.0K

$32.48 CA$45.68

112.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.94 ₡11.2K

$13.03 CA$18.32

91.40%

Cinema Ticket

$7.67 ₡3,449

$8.68 CA$12.21

-11.64%

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

$972 ₡436.9K

$721 CA$1,013

34.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.9K ₡8.5M

$2,476 CA$3,482

662.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.6 ₡31.8K

$21.34 CA$30.01

230.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.7 ₡25.5K

$49.81 CA$70.1

13.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$129 ₡57.8K

$71.6 CA$101

79.76%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 ₡58.8K

$35.84 CA$50.4

265.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,170 ₡525.9K

$806 CA$1,133

45.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$943 ₡424.1K

$693 CA$974

36.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,984 ₡892.0K

$1,165 CA$1,638

70.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,400 ₡629.5K

$1,090 CA$1,532

28.49%

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

$2,663 CA$3,745

-62.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

4.64

85.78%

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

Last update for San Jose: November 2, 2026

Last update for Drummondville: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Jose

$943 44.8%

Drummondville

$693 45.7% 26.6% $251

Groceries & Markets

San Jose

$403 19.1%

Drummondville

$292 19.3% 27.4% $111

Eating Out

San Jose

$232 11%

Drummondville

$206 13.6% 11.2% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Jose

$190 9%

Drummondville

$131 8.6% 31% $59

Clothing & Footwear

San Jose

$174 8.3%

Drummondville

$80 5.3% 53.8% $94

Sport & Entertainment

San Jose

$84 4%

Drummondville

$50 3.3% 40.8% $34

Getting Around

San Jose

$81 3.8%

Drummondville

$64 4.2% 20.9% $17

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,170 in San Jose versus $806 in Drummondville. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Drummondville are about 2.7 times higher, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $62 in San Jose versus $65 in Drummondville. Groceries tell a different story – $403 in San Jose vs $292 in Drummondville – so Drummondville wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇷 San Jose

🇨🇦 Drummondville

🕒 Local time

15:14 3:14 PM

16:14 4:14 PM

1 h ahead of San Jose

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

342,188 Capital

72,089

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

1 CAD = 0.711 USD

1 CAD = 0.636 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, 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 = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.711 USD). 1 EUR = 1.57 CAD (1 CAD = 0.636 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

San Jose Drummondville 4,150 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

San Jose
Drummondville

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 Drummondville: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,107 in San Jose, $1,516 in Drummondville – Drummondville comes out roughly 28% 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 $2,274 in Drummondville. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Drummondville, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $806 there versus $1,170 in San Jose.

Groceries cost about 38% more in San Jose, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $62 in San Jose and $65 in Drummondville. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Drummondville, where all-in costs run around $1,516, than in San Jose at $2,107. In Drummondville it covers expenses comfortably, while in San Jose it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Drummondville – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.