Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Jose and Nogales

For one person, living is cheaper in Nogales: $1,138 a month against $1,949 in San Jose, rent and utilities included – about $9,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

93

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index
56

Cost of Living Index in Nogales
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Nogales Living Index

Jump to prices

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,949

/mo nomad

Nogales

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,138

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,949 in San Jose versus $1,138 in Nogales.

San Jose $1,949
Nogales $1,138

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,903 in San Jose versus $1,854 in Nogales.

San Jose $2,903
Nogales $1,854

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,857 in San Jose versus $2,570 in Nogales.

San Jose $3,857
Nogales $2,570

Living in San Jose is roughly 71% more expensive than in Nogales, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: San Jose is 45% above, Nogales is 15% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.22 ₡5,510

$10.96 MX$201

11.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.1 ₡27.1K

$45.05 MX$827

33.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.77 ₡5,305

$8.37 MX$154

40.62%

Cappuccino

$4.30 ₡1,939

$3.62 MX$66.4

18.78%

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

$2.72 ₡1,226

$1.35 MX$24.79

101.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.84 ₡830

$1.04 MX$19.01

76.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,480

$2.58 MX$47.30

27.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 ₡1,966

$4.10 MX$75.3

6.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.38 ₡1,074

$1.58 MX$29.09

50.63%

White Bread (500g)

$3.12 ₡1,408

$2.63 MX$48.22

18.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.41 ₡1,086

$1.73 MX$31.85

39.31%

Eggs

$3.47 ₡1,564

$2.55 MX$46.77

36.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.57 ₡4,767

$8.49 MX$156

24.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.56 ₡4,758

$8.51 MX$156

24.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.75 ₡6,196

$11.84 MX$217

16.13%

Apples (1kg)

$5.04 ₡2,274

$2.73 MX$50.0

84.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡727

$1.59 MX$29.16

1.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.59 ₡2,069

$1.91 MX$35.16

140.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.84 ₡1,731

$1.85 MX$34.05

107.57%

Potato (1kg)

$3.77 ₡1,700

$1.96 MX$36.01

92.35%

Onion (1kg)

$3.76 ₡1,693

$1.92 MX$35.19

95.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ₡506

$1.45 MX$26.54

-22.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.20 ₡1,441

$1.11 MX$20.31

188.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.84 ₡2,632

$4.33 MX$79.5

34.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.73 ₡8,897

$10.64 MX$195

85.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.75 ₡1,240

$1.84 MX$33.71

49.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ₡1,650

$3.25 MX$59.8

12.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡503

$0.69 MX$12.66

62.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.1 ₡29.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.46 ₡1,110

$2.58 MX$47.44

-4.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.54 ₡692

$2.06 MX$37.79

-25.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.46 ₡3,815

$11.28 MX$207

-25.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 ₡699

$1.48 MX$27.14

4.73%

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

$21.7K ₡9.8M

$21.2K MX$389.4K

2.32%

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

$34.9K ₡15.7M

$24.9K MX$456.6K

40.23%

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

$94.7 ₡42.7K

$62.4 MX$1,146

51.63%

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

$35.11 ₡15.8K

$22.44 MX$412

56.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$58.6 ₡26.4K

$30.41 MX$558

92.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$72.2 ₡32.5K

$34.79 MX$639

107.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.19 ₡11.4K

$20.65 MX$379

21.99%

Cinema Ticket

$7.83 ₡3,532

$5.22 MX$95.8

50.00%

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

$971 ₡437.9K

$224 MX$4,105

334.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.0K ₡7.7M

$4,654 MX$85.5K

265.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.6 ₡32.3K

$55.1 MX$1,012

29.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.9 ₡24.7K

$42.38 MX$778

29.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$129 ₡58.2K

$103 MX$1,891

25.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 ₡60.0K

$92.4 MX$1,697

44.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$934 ₡420.9K

$614 MX$11.3K

51.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$770 ₡347.2K

$400 MX$7,341

92.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,945 ₡876.7K

$1,072 MX$19.7K

81.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,316 ₡593.5K

$786 MX$14.4K

67.51%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,277 ₡1.0M

$1,927 MX$35.4K

18.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,795 ₡809.1K

$1,151 MX$21.1K

55.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,006 ₡453.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

11.3

-23.72%

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

Last update for San Jose: October 3, 2026

Last update for Nogales: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Jose

$770 39.9%

Nogales

$400 34.4% 48.1% $370

Groceries & Markets

San Jose

$399 20.7%

Nogales

$269 23.1% 32.7% $130

Eating Out

San Jose

$228 11.8%

Nogales

$187 16.1% 18.1% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Jose

$188 9.8%

Nogales

$115 9.9% 38.8% $73

Clothing & Footwear

San Jose

$175 9.1%

Nogales

$132 11.3% 24.6% $43

Sport & Entertainment

San Jose

$88 4.6%

Nogales

$45 3.9% 48.5% $43

Getting Around

San Jose

$80 4.1%

Nogales

$16 * 1.3% 80.4% $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 $934 in San Jose and $614 in Nogales. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $60.0 in San Jose vs $45.00 in Nogales for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $399 vs $269 per month, with Nogales cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 San Jose

🇲🇽 Nogales

🕒 Local time

06:21 6:21 AM

05:21 5:21 AM

1 h behind San Jose

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

342,188 Capital

261,137

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 505 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.57 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

San Jose Nogales 3,650 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

San Jose
Nogales

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 Nogales: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Jose and Nogales differ by about 71% in total monthly costs ($1,949 vs $1,138 including rent). Nogales is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,924 in San Jose and $1,707 in Nogales 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: $934 in San Jose versus $614 in Nogales. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $971 in San Jose versus $224 in Nogales. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Nogales – a meal for two runs $45.00 versus $60.0 in San Jose. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,138 in Nogales versus $1,949 in San Jose, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Nogales but tight or insufficient in San Jose. The gap between the two cities makes Nogales 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.

Expats usually find Nogales gentler on the wallet – expenses run 71% less than in San Jose. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.