Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Jose and Negril

For one person, living is cheaper in Negril: $927 a month against $2,105 in San Jose, rent and utilities included – about $14,100 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
45

Cost of Living Index in Negril
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Negril Living Index

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San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,105

/mo nomad

Negril

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$927

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,105 in San Jose versus $927 in Negril.

San Jose $2,105
Negril $927

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,074 in San Jose versus $1,478 in Negril.

San Jose $3,074
Negril $1,478

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,043 in San Jose versus $2,029 in Negril.

San Jose $4,043
Negril $2,029

Living in San Jose is roughly 127% more expensive than in Negril, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: San Jose is 55% above, Negril is 32% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.43 ₡5,609

$9.68 JMD 1,526

28.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.9 ₡27.5K

$49.26 JMD 7,767

23.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.72 ₡5,288

$8.05 JMD 1,269

45.59%

Cappuccino

$4.47 ₡2,019

$2.05 JMD 323

118.05%

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

$2.75 ₡1,241

$1.15 JMD 181

139.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 ₡867

$0.74 JMD 117

159.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.26 ₡1,470

$2.16 JMD 341

50.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.45 ₡2,009

$3.19 JMD 503

39.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.36 ₡1,063

$4.02 JMD 634

-41.29%

White Bread (500g)

$3.09 ₡1,393

$3.37 JMD 532

-8.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.40 ₡1,083

$1.58 JMD 249

51.90%

Eggs

$3.44 ₡1,553

$3.51 JMD 554

-1.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.73 ₡4,841

$11.25 JMD 1,773

-4.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.36 ₡4,674

$6.33 JMD 998

63.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.84 ₡6,243

$10.19 JMD 1,606

35.82%

Apples (1kg)

$5.15 ₡2,323

$6.06 JMD 956

-15.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 ₡746

$3.96 JMD 624

-58.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.67 ₡2,109

$7.47 JMD 1,177

-37.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.98 ₡1,798

$2.99 JMD 471

33.11%

Potato (1kg)

$3.90 ₡1,761

$3.15 JMD 497

23.81%

Onion (1kg)

$3.65 ₡1,647

$2.58 JMD 406

41.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 ₡487

$2.99 JMD 472

-63.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.10 ₡1,398

$1.44 JMD 227

115.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.08 ₡2,745

$9.33 JMD 1,471

-34.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.05 ₡9,047

$11.27 JMD 1,776

77.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.77 ₡1,252

$2.92 JMD 460

-5.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 ₡1,666

$3.94 JMD 622

-6.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡503

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.7 ₡30.1K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.49 ₡1,122

$1.22 JMD 193

104.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 ₡735

$3.23 JMD 509

-49.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 ₡3,821

$6.36 JMD 1,002

33.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡708

$1.47 JMD 232

6.80%

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

$34.6K ₡15.6M

$43.7K JMD 6.9M

-20.90%

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

$42.3K ₡19.1M

$32.6K JMD 5.1M

29.80%

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

$93.2 ₡42.0K

$166 JMD 26.2K

-43.98%

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

$36.05 ₡16.3K

$29.95 JMD 4,722

20.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$59.1 ₡26.7K

$51.9 JMD 8,179

14.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$69.0 ₡31.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.80 ₡11.2K

Cinema Ticket

$7.85 ₡3,543

$13.26 JMD 2,090

-40.80%

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

$996 ₡449.4K

$362 JMD 57.0K

175.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.0K ₡7.7M

$8,121 JMD 1.3M

109.70%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.1 ₡31.6K

$23.75 JMD 3,745

195.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.2 ₡24.9K

$30.90 JMD 4,873

78.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$130 ₡58.5K

$76.9 JMD 12.1K

68.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 ₡59.2K

$104 JMD 16.4K

26.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,164 ₡525.2K

$1,005 JMD 158.5K

15.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$945 ₡426.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 ₡899.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,404 ₡633.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,727 ₡1.2M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,040 ₡920.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,011 ₡456.1K

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 26, 2026

Last update for Negril: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Jose

$945 44.9%

Negril

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

San Jose

$399 19%

Negril

$378 40.8% 5.4% $21

Eating Out

San Jose

$232 11%

Negril

$151 16.3% 35% $81

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Jose

$188 9%

Negril

$248 26.8% 31.7% $60

Clothing & Footwear

San Jose

$174 8.3%

Negril

$106 11.4% 39.1% $68

Sport & Entertainment

San Jose

$85 4%

Negril

$27 * 2.9% 68.7% $58

Getting Around

San Jose

$82 3.9%

Negril

$17 * 1.9% 78.8% $64

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 $1,164 in San Jose and $1,005 in Negril. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61 in San Jose vs $49 in Negril for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $399 vs $378 per month, with Negril cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 San Jose

🇯🇲 Negril

🕒 Local time

15:00 3:00 PM

16:00 4:00 PM

1 h ahead of San Jose

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

342,188 Capital

13,779

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

1,000 JMD = 6.34 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.7 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.34 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.7 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

San Jose Negril 1,110 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

San Jose
Negril

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 Negril: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,105 in San Jose and $927 in Negril, so Negril is about 56% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,158 in San Jose and $1,390 in Negril 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: $1,164 in San Jose versus $1,005 in Negril. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $996 in San Jose versus $362 in Negril. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Negril – a meal for two runs $49 versus $61 in San Jose. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $927 in Negril versus $2,105 in San Jose, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Negril but tight or insufficient in San Jose. The gap between the two cities makes Negril the clear choice for anyone on this 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.