Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Jose and Samara, Costa Rica

For one person, living is cheaper in Samara: $2,032 a month against $2,105 in San Jose, rent and utilities included – about $880 less a year. The total is higher in San Jose despite lower rent and utilities.

101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
Learn more

San Jose Living Index
97

Cost of Living Index in Samara
Learn more

Samara Living Index

Jump to prices

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,105

/mo nomad

Samara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,032

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,105 in San Jose versus $2,032 in Samara.

San Jose $2,105
Samara $2,032

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,074 in San Jose versus $3,533 in Samara.

San Jose $3,074
Samara $3,533

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,043 in San Jose versus $5,034 in Samara.

San Jose $4,043
Samara $5,034

Living in San Jose is roughly 4% more expensive than in Samara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: San Jose 55% above, Samara 49% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.43 ₡5,612

$11.07 ₡4,997

12.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.9 ₡27.5K

$62.2 ₡28.1K

-2.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.72 ₡5,291

$11.70 ₡5,282

0.17%

Cappuccino

$4.47 ₡2,020

$4.34 ₡1,960

3.00%

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

$2.75 ₡1,242

$2.72 ₡1,229

1.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 ₡867

$1.92 ₡866

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.26 ₡1,471

$3.32 ₡1,501

-1.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.45 ₡2,009

$4.51 ₡2,036

-1.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.36 ₡1,063

$2.42 ₡1,095

-2.48%

White Bread (500g)

$3.09 ₡1,393

$3.05 ₡1,376

1.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.40 ₡1,084

$2.50 ₡1,129

-4.00%

Eggs

$3.44 ₡1,554

$3.46 ₡1,561

-0.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.73 ₡4,843

$10.78 ₡4,868

-0.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.36 ₡4,676

$10.49 ₡4,736

-1.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.84 ₡6,246

$10.82 ₡4,885

27.91%

Apples (1kg)

$5.15 ₡2,324

$5.01 ₡2,263

2.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 ₡746

$1.65 ₡745

Oranges (1kg)

$4.67 ₡2,110

$4.72 ₡2,129

-1.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.98 ₡1,799

$3.82 ₡1,723

4.19%

Potato (1kg)

$3.90 ₡1,762

$3.72 ₡1,679

4.84%

Onion (1kg)

$3.65 ₡1,648

$3.69 ₡1,665

-1.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 ₡488

$1.08 ₡487

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.10 ₡1,399

$3.09 ₡1,397

0.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.08 ₡2,746

$5.57 ₡2,516

9.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.05 ₡9,051

$18.86 ₡8,513

6.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.77 ₡1,252

$2.78 ₡1,255

-0.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 ₡1,667

$2.48 ₡1,119

48.79%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡503

$1.40 ₡630

-20.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.7 ₡30.1K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.49 ₡1,123

$2.48 ₡1,118

0.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 ₡736

$1.57 ₡709

3.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 ₡3,823

$8.51 ₡3,843

-0.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡708

$1.52 ₡686

3.29%

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

$34.6K ₡15.6M

$34.3K ₡15.5M

0.76%

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

$42.3K ₡19.1M

$41.2K ₡18.6M

2.66%

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

$93.2 ₡42.1K

$94.0 ₡42.4K

-0.88%

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

$36.05 ₡16.3K

$35.45 ₡16.0K

1.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$59.1 ₡26.7K

$59.0 ₡26.6K

0.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$69.0 ₡31.2K

$66.9 ₡30.2K

3.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.80 ₡11.2K

Cinema Ticket

$7.85 ₡3,544

$7.88 ₡3,556

-0.38%

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

$996 ₡449.6K

$502 ₡226.4K

98.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.0K ₡7.7M

$6,013 ₡2.7M

183.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.1 ₡31.7K

$67.1 ₡30.3K

4.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.2 ₡24.9K

$55.5 ₡25.1K

-0.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$130 ₡58.6K

$129 ₡58.4K

0.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 ₡59.2K

$133 ₡60.0K

-1.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,164 ₡525.5K

$1,373 ₡619.7K

-15.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$945 ₡426.6K

$967 ₡436.4K

-2.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 ₡899.8K

$3,769 ₡1.7M

-47.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,404 ₡633.7K

$2,611 ₡1.2M

-46.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,727 ₡1.2M

$4,955 ₡2.2M

-44.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,040 ₡921.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,011 ₡456.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

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

Last update for San Jose: October 26, 2026

Last update for Samara: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Jose

$945 44.9%

Samara

$967 47.6% 2.3% $22

Groceries & Markets

San Jose

$399 19%

Samara

$385 19% 3.5% $14

Eating Out

San Jose

$232 11%

Samara

$220 10.8% 5.3% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Jose

$188 9%

Samara

$188 9.3% 0% $0.1

Clothing & Footwear

San Jose

$174 8.3%

Samara

$173 8.5% 0.4% $0.7

Sport & Entertainment

San Jose

$85 4%

Samara

$83 4.1% 2.5% $2.1

Getting Around

San Jose

$82 3.9%

Samara

$16 * 0.8% 80.6% $66

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 $1,373 in Samara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61 in San Jose vs $62 in Samara. Groceries flip the comparison at $399 vs $385, with Samara cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇷 San Jose

🇨🇷 Samara

🕒 Local time

22:51 10:51 PM

Same time as San Jose

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

342,188 Capital

1,071

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

San Jose Samara 160 km

From you

San Jose
Samara

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 Samara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,105 in San Jose and $2,032 in Samara, so Samara is about 3% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,158 in San Jose and $3,048 in Samara 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 $1,373 in Samara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $996 in San Jose versus $502 in Samara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

All in, you’ll spend $2,105 per month in San Jose versus $2,032 in Samara – Samara is about 3% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Samara gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.