Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Jose and Mandeville

For one person, living is cheaper in Mandeville: $804 a month against $1,938 in San Jose, rent and utilities included – about $13,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

94

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in Mandeville
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Mandeville Living Index

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San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,938

/mo nomad

Mandeville

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$804

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,938 in San Jose versus $804 in Mandeville.

San Jose $1,938
Mandeville $804

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,936 in San Jose versus $1,386 in Mandeville.

San Jose $2,936
Mandeville $1,386

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,934 in San Jose versus $1,969 in Mandeville.

San Jose $3,934
Mandeville $1,969

Living in San Jose is roughly 141% more expensive than in Mandeville, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: San Jose is 44% above, Mandeville is 40% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.38 ₡5,551

$6.40 JMD 1,011

93.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.9 ₡27.3K

$73.5 JMD 11.6K

-17.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.45 ₡5,135

$8.22 JMD 1,298

39.29%

Cappuccino

$4.39 ₡1,967

$2.25 JMD 355

95.11%

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

$2.70 ₡1,211

$1.08 JMD 171

150.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 ₡864

$0.73 JMD 115

164.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.20 ₡1,433

$2.17 JMD 344

47.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 ₡1,979

$2.77 JMD 437

59.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.44 ₡1,093

$4.11 JMD 649

-40.63%

White Bread (500g)

$3.05 ₡1,369

$1.85 JMD 292

64.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.41 ₡1,081

$1.57 JMD 248

53.50%

Eggs

$3.40 ₡1,523

$3.59 JMD 568

-5.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.75 ₡4,823

$11.32 JMD 1,788

-5.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.43 ₡4,679

$6.38 JMD 1,007

63.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 ₡6,273

$10.10 JMD 1,596

38.51%

Apples (1kg)

$5.25 ₡2,353

$5.87 JMD 927

-10.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 ₡712

$3.80 JMD 600

-58.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.69 ₡2,103

$7.25 JMD 1,146

-35.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.95 ₡1,770

$3.10 JMD 490

27.42%

Potato (1kg)

$3.92 ₡1,760

$3.28 JMD 519

19.51%

Onion (1kg)

$3.68 ₡1,651

$2.63 JMD 415

39.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ₡503

$3.08 JMD 487

-63.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.19 ₡1,429

$1.44 JMD 228

121.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.00 ₡2,692

$9.35 JMD 1,477

-35.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.56 ₡8,771

$11.47 JMD 1,811

70.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.82 ₡1,263

$2.87 JMD 453

-1.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.59 ₡1,611

$3.95 JMD 625

-9.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡503

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.8 ₡30.0K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.50 ₡1,119

$1.16 JMD 183

115.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 ₡733

$3.07 JMD 484

-46.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.50 ₡3,812

$6.33 JMD 1,001

34.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$1.46 JMD 230

6.85%

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

$22.4K ₡10.0M

$44.1K JMD 7.0M

-49.20%

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

$35.6K ₡16.0M

$32.4K JMD 5.1M

9.91%

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

$95.2 ₡42.7K

$93.3 JMD 14.7K

2.06%

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

$35.58 ₡16.0K

$21.72 JMD 3,432

63.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$58.6 ₡26.3K

$50.5 JMD 7,983

16.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$72.7 ₡32.6K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.85 ₡11.1K

Cinema Ticket

$7.58 ₡3,401

$13.35 JMD 2,109

-43.22%

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

$1,001 ₡449.0K

$356 JMD 56.3K

181.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K ₡7.7M

$8,288 JMD 1.3M

106.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.5 ₡31.6K

$23.13 JMD 3,655

204.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.8 ₡25.0K

$31.52 JMD 4,981

77.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$130 ₡58.2K

$77.4 JMD 12.2K

67.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 ₡58.7K

$103 JMD 16.3K

27.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$927 ₡415.8K

$473 JMD 74.7K

96.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$774 ₡347.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,967 ₡882.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,288 ₡577.6K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,274 ₡1.0M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,831 ₡821.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,016 ₡455.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

9.45

-8.78%

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

Last update for San Jose: October 11, 2026

Last update for Mandeville: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Jose

$774 40%

Mandeville

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

San Jose

$401 20.7%

Mandeville

$363 45.2% 9.5% $38

Eating Out

San Jose

$229 11.8%

Mandeville

$126 15.7% 44.8% $103

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Jose

$189 9.8%

Mandeville

$166 20.6% 12.6% $24

Clothing & Footwear

San Jose

$174 9%

Mandeville

$106 13.2% 39.2% $68

Sport & Entertainment

San Jose

$88 4.5%

Mandeville

$27 * 3.3% 69.6% $61

Getting Around

San Jose

$82 4.2%

Mandeville

$16 * 2.1% 79.9% $65

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $927 in San Jose and $473 in Mandeville. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61.0 in San Jose vs $73.0 in Mandeville. Groceries flip the comparison at $401 vs $363, with Mandeville cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇷 San Jose

🇯🇲 Mandeville

🕒 Local time

20:52 8:52 PM

21:52 9:52 PM

1 h ahead of San Jose

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

342,188 Capital

47,115

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.63 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

San Jose Mandeville 1,150 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

San Jose
Mandeville

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 Mandeville: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mandeville is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 141% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $2,907 in San Jose and $1,206 in Mandeville to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $927 in San Jose versus $473 in Mandeville. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,001 in San Jose versus $356 in Mandeville. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Mandeville – a meal for two runs $73.0 versus $61.0 in San Jose. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $804 in Mandeville versus $1,938 in San Jose, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Mandeville but tight or insufficient in San Jose. The gap between the two cities makes Mandeville the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Mandeville is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in San Jose, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, San Jose and Mandeville are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Mandeville gentler on the wallet – expenses run 141% less than in San Jose. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.