Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Jose and Markham

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $2,405 in Markham, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Markham outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Markham
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Markham Living Index

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San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Markham

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,405

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,107 in San Jose versus $2,405 in Markham.

San Jose $2,107
Markham $2,405

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,081 in San Jose versus $3,496 in Markham.

San Jose $3,081
Markham $3,496

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,054 in San Jose versus $4,587 in Markham.

San Jose $4,054
Markham $4,587

Living in San Jose costs roughly 12% less than in Markham, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: San Jose 56% above, Markham 78% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.37 ₡5,572

$17.69 CA$24.69

-30.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.4 ₡28.1K

$52.9 CA$73.9

17.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.71 ₡5,272

$10.79 CA$15.06

8.53%

Cappuccino

$4.54 ₡2,043

$3.70 CA$5.16

22.70%

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

$2.75 ₡1,239

$1.81 CA$2.53

51.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 ₡839

$1.24 CA$1.73

50.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 ₡1,508

$3.65 CA$5.10

-8.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.32 ₡1,947

$5.63 CA$7.85

-23.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.36 ₡1,062

$1.94 CA$2.70

21.65%

White Bread (500g)

$3.07 ₡1,381

$2.23 CA$3.11

37.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,129

$2.00 CA$2.79

25.50%

Eggs

$3.53 ₡1,588

$3.17 CA$4.42

11.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.54 ₡4,746

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.57 ₡4,761

$12.22 CA$17.06

-13.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.92 ₡6,270

$7.30 CA$10.19

90.68%

Apples (1kg)

$5.20 ₡2,341

$3.65 CA$5.09

42.47%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 ₡742

$1.29 CA$1.80

27.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.89 ₡2,201

$2.28 CA$3.18

114.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.84 ₡1,730

$3.40 CA$4.75

12.94%

Potato (1kg)

$3.91 ₡1,760

$2.10 CA$2.93

86.19%

Onion (1kg)

$3.76 ₡1,694

$2.00 CA$2.79

88.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ₡505

$2.78 CA$3.88

-59.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.22 ₡1,449

$1.51 CA$2.11

113.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.02 ₡2,711

$13.75 CA$19.19

-56.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.84 ₡8,932

$14.76 CA$20.60

34.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.81 ₡1,266

$2.43 CA$3.40

15.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.65 ₡1,646

$3.17 CA$4.42

15.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.08 ₡488

$2.96 CA$4.13

-63.51%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.2 ₡29.4K

$99.7 CA$139

-34.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.26 ₡1,019

$3.31 CA$4.62

-31.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.78 ₡800

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ₡3,557

$19.16 CA$26.75

-58.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ₡674

$1.19 CA$1.67

26.05%

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

$33.5K ₡15.1M

$28.6K CA$39.9K

17.10%

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

$42.3K ₡19.0M

$21.5K CA$30.1K

96.38%

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

$93.2 ₡42.0K

$130 CA$182

-28.55%

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

$36.13 ₡16.3K

$26.54 CA$37.05

36.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.6 ₡27.3K

$45.84 CA$64.0

32.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.9 ₡31.0K

$37.81 CA$52.8

82.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.94 ₡11.2K

$21.33 CA$29.77

16.92%

Cinema Ticket

$7.67 ₡3,454

$10.35 CA$14.45

-25.89%

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

$972 ₡437.6K

$525 CA$732

85.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.9K ₡8.5M

$24.0K CA$33.5K

-21.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.6 ₡31.8K

$43.38 CA$60.6

62.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.7 ₡25.5K

$37.49 CA$52.3

51.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$129 ₡57.9K

$94.3 CA$132

36.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 ₡58.9K

$107 CA$149

22.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,170 ₡526.7K

$1,640 CA$2,290

-28.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$943 ₡424.7K

$1,357 CA$1,894

-30.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,984 ₡893.3K

$2,685 CA$3,748

-26.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,400 ₡630.5K

$2,267 CA$3,165

-38.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,681 ₡1.2M

$6,308 CA$8,805

-57.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,037 ₡917.1K

$5,199 CA$7,258

-60.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$987 ₡444.3K

$3,198 CA$4,465

-69.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

4.56

89.04%

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

Last update for San Jose: November 2, 2026

Last update for Markham: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Jose

$943 44.8%

Markham

$1.4K 56.4% 43.8% $414

Groceries & Markets

San Jose

$403 19.1%

Markham

$285 * 11.9% 29.2% $118

Eating Out

San Jose

$232 11%

Markham

$260 10.8% 11.9% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Jose

$190 9%

Markham

$203 8.4% 6.8% $13

Clothing & Footwear

San Jose

$174 8.3%

Markham

$127 5.3% 27.2% $47

Sport & Entertainment

San Jose

$84 4%

Markham

$59 2.4% 30.6% $26

Getting Around

San Jose

$81 3.8%

Markham

$115 * 4.8% 42.3% $34

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 $1,170 in San Jose and $1,640 in Markham. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Markham 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 $53 in Markham for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $403 vs $285 per month, with Markham cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 San Jose

🇨🇦 Markham

🕒 Local time

16:35 4:35 PM

17:35 5:35 PM

1 h ahead of San Jose

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

342,188 Capital

338,503

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1 CAD = 0.716 USD

1 CAD = 0.638 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 5, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 506 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.716 USD). 1 EUR = 1.57 CAD (1 CAD = 0.638 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

San Jose Markham 3,800 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

San Jose
Markham

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 Markham: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Jose wins on cost – living expenses run 12% lower than in Markham. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making San Jose the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 69% 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 $1,640 in Markham. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $972 in San Jose versus $525 in Markham. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Markham pay roughly 29% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

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, Markham on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.