Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Jose and Oakville

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $2,839 in Oakville, rent and utilities included – about $8,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
Learn more

San Jose Living Index
135

Cost of Living Index in Oakville
Learn more

Oakville Living Index

Jump to prices

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Oakville

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,107 in San Jose versus $2,839 in Oakville.

San Jose $2,107
Oakville $2,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,081 in San Jose versus $3,938 in Oakville.

San Jose $3,081
Oakville $3,938

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,054 in San Jose versus $5,037 in Oakville.

San Jose $4,054
Oakville $5,037

Living in San Jose costs roughly 26% less than in Oakville, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: San Jose 56% above, Oakville 110% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.37 ₡5,563

$14.19 CA$19.89

-12.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.4 ₡28.0K

$72.5 CA$102

-13.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.71 ₡5,264

$9.35 CA$13.11

25.24%

Cappuccino

$4.54 ₡2,040

$3.83 CA$5.37

18.54%

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

$2.75 ₡1,238

$2.18 CA$3.06

26.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 ₡837

$1.76 CA$2.47

5.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 ₡1,505

$5.85 CA$8.20

-42.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.32 ₡1,944

$6.35 CA$8.90

-31.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.36 ₡1,061

$2.68 CA$3.75

-11.94%

White Bread (500g)

$3.07 ₡1,379

$3.30 CA$4.63

-6.97%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,128

$3.51 CA$4.91

-28.49%

Eggs

$3.53 ₡1,585

$4.22 CA$5.91

-16.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.54 ₡4,738

$10.67 CA$14.96

-1.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.57 ₡4,754

$11.93 CA$16.73

-11.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.92 ₡6,261

$19.68 CA$27.59

-29.27%

Apples (1kg)

$5.20 ₡2,338

$3.48 CA$4.87

49.43%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 ₡740

$1.86 CA$2.61

-11.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.89 ₡2,198

$3.19 CA$4.47

53.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.84 ₡1,728

$3.01 CA$4.22

27.57%

Potato (1kg)

$3.91 ₡1,757

$2.38 CA$3.33

64.29%

Onion (1kg)

$3.76 ₡1,692

$2.75 CA$3.86

36.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ₡504

$2.17 CA$3.05

-48.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.22 ₡1,447

$1.77 CA$2.48

81.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.02 ₡2,706

$14.23 CA$19.95

-57.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.84 ₡8,919

$13.69 CA$19.20

44.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.81 ₡1,264

$3.26 CA$4.57

-13.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.65 ₡1,643

$2.53 CA$3.55

44.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.08 ₡487

$2.82 CA$3.95

-61.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.2 ₡29.3K

$104 CA$145

-37.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.26 ₡1,018

$3.32 CA$4.65

-31.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.78 ₡799

$1.35 CA$1.90

31.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ₡3,551

$21.42 CA$30.03

-63.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ₡673

$1.20 CA$1.68

25.00%

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

$33.5K ₡15.1M

$28.1K CA$39.4K

19.15%

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

$42.3K ₡19.0M

$21.3K CA$29.8K

98.91%

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

$93.2 ₡41.9K

$90.4 CA$127

3.07%

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

$36.13 ₡16.2K

$29.28 CA$41.04

23.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.6 ₡27.2K

$47.56 CA$66.7

27.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.9 ₡31.0K

$41.94 CA$58.8

64.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.94 ₡11.2K

Cinema Ticket

$7.67 ₡3,449

$10.05 CA$14.08

-23.68%

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

$972 ₡436.9K

$1,081 CA$1,515

-10.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.9K ₡8.5M

$26.0K CA$36.5K

-27.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.6 ₡31.8K

$67.3 CA$94.4

4.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.7 ₡25.5K

$93.0 CA$130

-39.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$129 ₡57.8K

$130 CA$182

-0.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 ₡58.8K

$107 CA$151

21.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,170 ₡525.9K

$1,872 CA$2,623

-37.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$943 ₡424.1K

$1,672 CA$2,343

-43.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,984 ₡892.0K

$2,581 CA$3,619

-23.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,400 ₡629.5K

$2,317 CA$3,248

-39.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,681 ₡1.2M

$4,871 CA$6,828

-44.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,037 ₡915.8K

$6,011 CA$8,426

-66.12%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$987 ₡443.6K

$3,160 CA$4,429

-68.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

5.26

63.88%

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

Last update for San Jose: November 2, 2026

Last update for Oakville: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Jose

$943 44.8%

Oakville

$1.7K 58.9% 77.2% $728

Groceries & Markets

San Jose

$403 19.1%

Oakville

$389 13.7% 3.4% $14

Eating Out

San Jose

$232 11%

Oakville

$245 8.6% 5.5% $13

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Jose

$190 9%

Oakville

$167 5.9% 11.9% $23

Clothing & Footwear

San Jose

$174 8.3%

Oakville

$179 6.3% 2.7% $4.7

Sport & Entertainment

San Jose

$84 4%

Oakville

$62 2.2% 26.4% $22

Getting Around

San Jose

$81 3.8%

Oakville

$125 4.4% 54.8% $44

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,170 in San Jose and $1,872 in Oakville. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Oakville 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 $72 in Oakville. Groceries flip the comparison at $403 vs $389, with Oakville cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇷 San Jose

🇨🇦 Oakville

🕒 Local time

09:32 9:32 AM

10:32 10:32 AM

1 h ahead of San Jose

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

342,188 Capital

193,832

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1 CAD = 0.713 USD

1 CAD = 0.635 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 = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.713 USD). 1 EUR = 1.57 CAD (1 CAD = 0.635 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

San Jose Oakville 3,750 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

San Jose
Oakville

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 Oakville: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Jose wins on cost – living expenses run 26% lower than in Oakville. 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 $1,872 in Oakville. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in San Jose runs roughly 37% less than in Oakville. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $972 in San Jose versus $1,081 in Oakville. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $2,107 in San Jose versus $2,839 in Oakville, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Jose but tight or insufficient in Oakville. The gap between the two cities makes San Jose the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but San Jose delivers better value at $2,107 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes San Jose hard to pass up.

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