Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Seattle, WA and San Juan

For one person, living is cheaper in San Juan: $1,684 a month against $3,800 in Seattle, WA, rent and utilities included – about $25,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

185

Cost of Living Index in Seattle, WA
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Seattle, WA Living Index
84

Cost of Living Index in San Juan
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San Juan Living Index

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Seattle, WA

🇺🇸 United States

$3,800

/mo nomad

San Juan

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,684

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Seattle, WA and in San Juan

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Seattle, WA and in San Juan actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,800 in Seattle, WA versus $1,684 in San Juan.

Seattle, WA $3,800
San Juan $1,684

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,702 in Seattle, WA versus $2,772 in San Juan.

Seattle, WA $5,702
San Juan $2,772

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,603 in Seattle, WA versus $3,861 in San Juan.

Seattle, WA $7,603
San Juan $3,861

Living in Seattle, WA is roughly 126% more expensive than in San Juan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Seattle, WA 182% above, San Juan 25% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.32 $25.32

$12.36 ₡5,541

104.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$101 $101

$61.3 ₡27.5K

65.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.85 $14.85

$11.46 ₡5,139

29.58%

Cappuccino

$6.59 $6.59

$4.42 ₡1,982

49.10%

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

$3.22 $3.22

$2.77 ₡1,240

16.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.14 $3.14

$1.94 ₡870

61.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.18 $8.18

$3.31 ₡1,483

147.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.03 $8.03

$4.45 ₡1,996

80.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 $1.21

$2.34 ₡1,052

-48.29%

White Bread (500g)

$5.12 $5.12

$3.18 ₡1,425

61.01%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$6.30 $6.30

$2.51 ₡1,125

151.00%

Eggs

$4.90 $4.90

$3.46 ₡1,551

41.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.10 $19.10

$10.66 ₡4,782

79.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$18.50 $18.50

$10.33 ₡4,633

79.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$23.03 $23.03

$13.90 ₡6,233

65.68%

Apples (1kg)

$5.81 $5.81

$4.97 ₡2,230

16.90%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 $1.95

$1.59 ₡714

22.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.29 $5.29

$4.64 ₡2,079

14.01%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.48 $6.48

$3.95 ₡1,771

64.05%

Potato (1kg)

$3.57 $3.57

$3.86 ₡1,731

-7.51%

Onion (1kg)

$3.15 $3.15

$3.75 ₡1,684

-16.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.85 $2.85

$1.07 ₡479

166.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.42 $2.42

$3.08 ₡1,379

-21.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.75 $12.75

$6.00 ₡2,691

112.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.99 $14.99

$19.72 ₡8,844

-23.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.17 $4.17

$2.76 ₡1,236

51.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.99 $5.99

$3.69 ₡1,654

62.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 $3.04

$1.37 ₡614

121.90%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$110 $110

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.55 $2.55

$2.41 ₡1,079

5.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.64 $1.64

$1.54 ₡693

6.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.58 $29.58

$8.58 ₡3,849

244.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 $1.42

$1.55 ₡695

-8.39%

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

$35.7K $35.7K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

65.24%

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

$25.6K $25.6K

$34.9K ₡15.6M

-26.69%

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

$299 $299

$96.4 ₡43.2K

210.27%

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

$70.8 $70.8

$35.06 ₡15.7K

102.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$88.3 $88.3

$59.3 ₡26.6K

48.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$79.5 $79.5

$66.9 ₡30.0K

18.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.37 $35.37

Cinema Ticket

$17.12 $17.12

$7.50 ₡3,362

128.27%

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

$3,013 $3,013

$1,001 ₡449.1K

200.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$31.6K $31.6K

$16.9K ₡7.6M

87.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$77.2 $77.2

$70.9 ₡31.8K

8.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.1 $55.1

$55.3 ₡24.8K

-0.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$126 $126

$126 ₡56.6K

-0.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$163 $163

$134 ₡60.2K

21.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,464 $2,464

$717 ₡321.3K

243.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,956 $1,956

$593 ₡266.1K

229.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,711 $4,711

$1,850 ₡829.6K

154.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,550 $3,550

$1,386 ₡621.4K

156.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,346 $7,346

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,048 $5,048

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,286 $6,286

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.85

8.62

-20.53%

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

Last update for Seattle, WA: October 13, 2026

Last update for San Juan: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Seattle, WA

$2K 51.5%

San Juan

$593 35.2% 69.7% $1.4K

Groceries & Markets

Seattle, WA

$542 14.3%

San Juan

$398 23.6% 26.5% $144

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Seattle, WA

$458 12.1%

San Juan

$191 11.3% 58.4% $267

Eating Out

Seattle, WA

$409 10.8%

San Juan

$231 13.7% 43.6% $178

Clothing & Footwear

Seattle, WA

$189 5%

San Juan

$174 10.3% 8.1% $15

Getting Around

Seattle, WA

$133 3.5%

San Juan

$16 * 0.9% 88.3% $117

Sport & Entertainment

Seattle, WA

$114 3%

San Juan

$82 4.9% 28% $32

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 $2,464 in Seattle, WA and $717 in San Juan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $101 in Seattle, WA vs $61.0 in San Juan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $542 vs $398 per month, with San Juan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Seattle, WA

🇨🇷 San Juan

🕒 Local time

07:47 7:47 AM

08:47 8:47 AM

1 h ahead of Seattle, WA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

737,015

27,000

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

CRC to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Seattle, WA San Juan 5,510 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Seattle, WA
San Juan

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

Seattle, WA vs San Juan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Seattle, WA and San Juan differ by about 126% in total monthly costs ($3,800 vs $1,684 including rent). San Juan is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $5,701 in Seattle, WA and $2,526 in San Juan 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: $2,464 in Seattle, WA versus $717 in San Juan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $3,013 in Seattle, WA versus $1,001 in San Juan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in San Juan – a meal for two runs $61.0 versus $101 in Seattle, WA. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,684 in San Juan versus $3,800 in Seattle, WA, a $3,000 budget is realistic in San Juan but tight or insufficient in Seattle, WA. The gap between the two cities makes San Juan 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.

Safety-wise, Seattle, WA and San Juan are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find San Juan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 126% less than in Seattle, WA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.