Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Jose and London, Canada

Name: London
Address: London, CA

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $2,343 in London, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in London outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index
112

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index

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San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

London

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,343

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,107 in San Jose versus $2,343 in London.

San Jose $2,107
London $2,343

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,081 in San Jose versus $3,375 in London.

San Jose $3,081
London $3,375

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,054 in San Jose versus $4,408 in London.

San Jose $4,054
London $4,408

Living in San Jose costs roughly 10% less than in London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: San Jose 56% above, London 73% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.37 ₡5,563

$21.71 CA$30.53

-43.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.4 ₡28.0K

$65.0 CA$91.4

-3.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.71 ₡5,264

$12.49 CA$17.56

-6.24%

Cappuccino

$4.54 ₡2,040

$3.90 CA$5.49

16.41%

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

$2.75 ₡1,238

$2.20 CA$3.09

25.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 ₡837

$2.21 CA$3.11

-15.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 ₡1,505

$6.26 CA$8.81

-46.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.32 ₡1,944

$6.30 CA$8.86

-31.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.36 ₡1,061

$1.98 CA$2.79

19.19%

White Bread (500g)

$3.07 ₡1,379

$2.65 CA$3.73

15.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,128

$3.93 CA$5.53

-36.13%

Eggs

$3.53 ₡1,585

$3.71 CA$5.21

-4.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.54 ₡4,738

$9.97 CA$14.02

5.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.57 ₡4,754

$11.71 CA$16.46

-9.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.92 ₡6,261

$15.44 CA$21.72

-9.84%

Apples (1kg)

$5.20 ₡2,338

$4.38 CA$6.16

18.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 ₡740

$1.26 CA$1.77

30.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.89 ₡2,198

$3.89 CA$5.48

25.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.84 ₡1,728

$4.15 CA$5.84

-7.47%

Potato (1kg)

$3.91 ₡1,757

$3.11 CA$4.37

25.72%

Onion (1kg)

$3.76 ₡1,692

$3.24 CA$4.56

16.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ₡504

$2.51 CA$3.53

-55.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.22 ₡1,447

$1.55 CA$2.18

107.74%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.02 ₡2,706

$12.12 CA$17.05

-50.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.84 ₡8,919

$12.85 CA$18.08

54.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.81 ₡1,264

$2.53 CA$3.55

11.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.65 ₡1,643

$2.93 CA$4.12

24.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.08 ₡487

$2.47 CA$3.48

-56.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.2 ₡29.3K

$80.0 CA$113

-18.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.26 ₡1,018

$2.57 CA$3.61

-12.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.78 ₡799

$1.64 CA$2.31

8.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ₡3,551

$22.18 CA$31.19

-64.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ₡673

$1.19 CA$1.67

26.05%

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

$33.5K ₡15.1M

$27.1K CA$38.1K

23.71%

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

$42.3K ₡19.0M

$23.0K CA$32.4K

83.83%

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

$93.2 ₡41.9K

$141 CA$198

-33.81%

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

$36.13 ₡16.2K

$40.31 CA$56.7

-10.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.6 ₡27.2K

$57.3 CA$80.7

5.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.9 ₡31.0K

$35.84 CA$50.4

92.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.94 ₡11.2K

$29.49 CA$41.47

-15.43%

Cinema Ticket

$7.67 ₡3,449

$10.68 CA$15.01

-28.18%

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

$972 ₡436.9K

$424 CA$596

129.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.9K ₡8.5M

$21.6K CA$30.4K

-12.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.6 ₡31.8K

$54.7 CA$77.0

29.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.7 ₡25.5K

$39.35 CA$55.3

44.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$129 ₡57.8K

$82.6 CA$116

55.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 ₡58.8K

$91.5 CA$129

42.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,170 ₡525.9K

$1,293 CA$1,818

-9.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$943 ₡424.1K

$1,140 CA$1,604

-17.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,984 ₡892.0K

$2,100 CA$2,953

-5.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,400 ₡629.5K

$1,696 CA$2,385

-17.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,681 ₡1.2M

$4,121 CA$5,795

-34.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,037 ₡915.8K

$3,416 CA$4,804

-40.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$987 ₡443.6K

$3,116 CA$4,382

-68.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

4.72

82.63%

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

Last update for San Jose: November 2, 2026

Last update for London: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Jose

$943 44.8%

London

$1.1K 48.7% 20.9% $197

Groceries & Markets

San Jose

$403 19.1%

London

$366 15.6% 9.1% $37

Eating Out

San Jose

$232 11%

London

$320 13.6% 37.5% $87

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Jose

$190 9%

London

$238 10.2% 25.6% $49

Clothing & Footwear

San Jose

$174 8.3%

London

$121 5.2% 30.6% $53

Sport & Entertainment

San Jose

$84 4%

London

$57 2.4% 32.1% $27

Getting Around

San Jose

$81 3.8%

London

$101 4.3% 24.7% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,170 in San Jose and $1,293 in London. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays about 3.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in San Jose vs $65 in London. Groceries flip the comparison at $403 vs $366, with London cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇷 San Jose

🇨🇦 London

🕒 Local time

08:19 8:19 AM

09:19 9:19 AM

1 h ahead of San Jose

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

342,188 Capital

383,822

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1 CAD = 0.711 USD

1 CAD = 0.633 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 = 505 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.711 USD). 1 EUR = 1.58 CAD (1 CAD = 0.633 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

San Jose London 3,690 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

San Jose
London

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 London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Jose is about 10% cheaper overall, especially in eating out and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 68% lower in San Jose. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,170 in San Jose versus $1,293 in London. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $2,107 per month in San Jose versus $2,343 in London – San Jose is about 10% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in San Jose runs roughly 18% less than in London. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

It comes down to priorities – San Jose wins on affordability, London on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.