Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Jose and Quebec City

For one person, living is cheaper in Quebec City: $1,951 a month against $2,107 in San Jose, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 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
94

Cost of Living Index in Quebec City
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Quebec City Living Index

Jump to prices

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Quebec City

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,951

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in San Jose and in Quebec City

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,107 in San Jose versus $1,951 in Quebec City.

San Jose $2,107
Quebec City $1,951

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,081 in San Jose versus $2,942 in Quebec City.

San Jose $3,081
Quebec City $2,942

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,054 in San Jose versus $3,933 in Quebec City.

San Jose $4,054
Quebec City $3,933

Living in San Jose is roughly 8% more expensive than in Quebec City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: San Jose 56% above, Quebec City 44% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.37 ₡5,563

$21.23 CA$29.76

-41.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.4 ₡28.0K

$67.1 CA$94.1

-7.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.71 ₡5,264

$11.24 CA$15.76

4.18%

Cappuccino

$4.54 ₡2,040

$3.86 CA$5.41

17.62%

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

$2.75 ₡1,238

$2.16 CA$3.03

27.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 ₡837

$1.47 CA$2.06

26.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 ₡1,505

$5.87 CA$8.23

-42.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.32 ₡1,944

$5.88 CA$8.24

-26.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.36 ₡1,061

$2.08 CA$2.92

13.46%

White Bread (500g)

$3.07 ₡1,379

$2.78 CA$3.89

10.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,128

$4.18 CA$5.86

-39.95%

Eggs

$3.53 ₡1,585

$3.05 CA$4.28

15.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.54 ₡4,738

$8.73 CA$12.23

20.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.57 ₡4,754

$10.73 CA$15.03

-1.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.92 ₡6,261

$10.53 CA$14.76

32.19%

Apples (1kg)

$5.20 ₡2,338

$4.10 CA$5.75

26.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 ₡740

$1.58 CA$2.22

4.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.89 ₡2,198

$3.77 CA$5.28

29.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.84 ₡1,728

$4.11 CA$5.77

-6.57%

Potato (1kg)

$3.91 ₡1,757

$2.85 CA$3.99

37.19%

Onion (1kg)

$3.76 ₡1,692

$2.82 CA$3.95

33.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ₡504

$2.80 CA$3.92

-60.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.22 ₡1,447

$1.46 CA$2.05

120.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.02 ₡2,706

$15.10 CA$21.16

-60.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.84 ₡8,919

$11.40 CA$15.98

74.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.81 ₡1,264

$3.17 CA$4.44

-11.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.65 ₡1,643

$3.39 CA$4.75

7.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.08 ₡487

$2.79 CA$3.92

-61.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.2 ₡29.3K

$70.9 CA$99.3

-7.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.26 ₡1,018

$3.00 CA$4.20

-24.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.78 ₡799

$1.44 CA$2.02

23.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ₡3,551

$34.67 CA$48.60

-77.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ₡673

$1.35 CA$1.89

11.11%

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

$33.5K ₡15.1M

$28.5K CA$39.9K

17.53%

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

$42.3K ₡19.0M

$22.7K CA$31.9K

86.05%

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

$93.2 ₡41.9K

$100 CA$141

-7.19%

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

$36.13 ₡16.2K

$31.38 CA$43.98

15.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.6 ₡27.2K

$45.42 CA$63.7

33.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.9 ₡31.0K

$34.73 CA$48.68

98.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.94 ₡11.2K

$15.31 CA$21.46

62.90%

Cinema Ticket

$7.67 ₡3,449

$10.86 CA$15.23

-29.37%

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

$972 ₡436.9K

$701 CA$982

38.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.9K ₡8.5M

$5,407 CA$7,579

249.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.6 ₡31.8K

$58.9 CA$82.5

19.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.7 ₡25.5K

$52.3 CA$73.3

8.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$129 ₡57.8K

$92.4 CA$129

39.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 ₡58.8K

$109 CA$153

19.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,170 ₡525.9K

$1,050 CA$1,472

11.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$943 ₡424.1K

$836 CA$1,172

12.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,984 ₡892.0K

$1,699 CA$2,382

16.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,400 ₡629.5K

$1,358 CA$1,903

3.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,681 ₡1.2M

$4,809 CA$6,741

-44.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,037 ₡915.8K

$2,811 CA$3,940

-27.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$987 ₡443.6K

$2,975 CA$4,170

-66.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

4.45

93.71%

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

Last update for San Jose: November 2, 2026

Last update for Quebec City: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Jose

$943 44.8%

Quebec City

$836 42.9% 11.4% $107

Groceries & Markets

San Jose

$403 19.1%

Quebec City

$343 17.6% 14.9% $60

Eating Out

San Jose

$232 11%

Quebec City

$306 15.7% 31.5% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Jose

$190 9%

Quebec City

$177 9.1% 6.7% $13

Clothing & Footwear

San Jose

$174 8.3%

Quebec City

$141 7.2% 19.2% $33

Sport & Entertainment

San Jose

$84 4%

Quebec City

$56 2.9% 33% $28

Getting Around

San Jose

$81 3.8%

Quebec City

$92 4.7% 14.3% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,170 in San Jose and $1,050 in Quebec City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Quebec City pays about 3 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $62 in San Jose vs $67 in Quebec City. Groceries flip the comparison at $403 vs $343, with Quebec City cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇷 San Jose

🇨🇦 Quebec City

🕒 Local time

06:36 6:36 AM

07:36 7:36 AM

1 h ahead of San Jose

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

342,188 Capital

530,168

💱 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

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Between locations

San Jose Quebec City 4,280 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

San Jose
Quebec City

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 Quebec City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Quebec City wins on cost – living expenses run 7% lower than in San Jose. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Quebec City the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 67% 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 $1,050 in Quebec City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $2,107 per month in San Jose versus $1,951 in Quebec City – Quebec City is about 7% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in San Jose runs roughly 8% less than in Quebec City. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your 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.