Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Seattle, WA and Santa Cruz

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Cruz: $1,758 a month against $3,800 in Seattle, WA, rent and utilities included – about $24,500 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 Santa Cruz
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Santa Cruz Living Index

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Seattle, WA

🇺🇸 United States

$3,800

/mo nomad

Santa Cruz

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,758

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Seattle, WA and in Santa Cruz

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

A single person spends $3,800 per month in Seattle, WA vs $1,758 in Santa Cruz, rent included.

Seattle, WA $3,800
Santa Cruz $1,758

A couple spends around $5,702 per month in Seattle, WA vs $2,778 in Santa Cruz, rent included.

Seattle, WA $5,702
Santa Cruz $2,778

A family of three spends $7,603 per month in Seattle, WA vs $3,798 in Santa Cruz, rent included.

Seattle, WA $7,603
Santa Cruz $3,798

Seattle, WA costs about 116% more than Santa Cruz, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Seattle, WA and Santa Cruz sit above the global median – Seattle, WA by 182%, Santa Cruz by 30%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.32 $25.32

$12.29 ₡5,523

106.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$101 $101

$62.6 ₡28.1K

62.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.85 $14.85

$10.81 ₡4,856

37.37%

Cappuccino

$6.59 $6.59

$4.58 ₡2,059

43.89%

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

$3.22 $3.22

$2.20 ₡989

46.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.14 $3.14

$1.90 ₡854

65.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.18 $8.18

$3.31 ₡1,489

147.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.03 $8.03

$4.36 ₡1,958

84.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 $1.21

$2.38 ₡1,070

-49.16%

White Bread (500g)

$5.12 $5.12

$3.16 ₡1,422

62.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$6.30 $6.30

$2.48 ₡1,113

154.03%

Eggs

$4.90 $4.90

$3.56 ₡1,599

37.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.10 $19.10

$10.50 ₡4,717

81.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$18.50 $18.50

$10.51 ₡4,722

76.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$23.03 $23.03

$14.15 ₡6,359

62.76%

Apples (1kg)

$5.81 $5.81

$5.20 ₡2,336

11.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 $1.95

$1.07 ₡482

82.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.29 $5.29

$4.83 ₡2,170

9.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.48 $6.48

$3.91 ₡1,758

65.73%

Potato (1kg)

$3.57 $3.57

$3.87 ₡1,741

-7.75%

Onion (1kg)

$3.15 $3.15

$3.64 ₡1,636

-13.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.85 $2.85

$1.13 ₡508

152.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.42 $2.42

$3.08 ₡1,383

-21.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.75 $12.75

$5.78 ₡2,596

120.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.99 $14.99

$20.18 ₡9,068

-25.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.17 $4.17

$2.88 ₡1,294

44.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.99 $5.99

$3.68 ₡1,654

62.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 $3.04

$1.29 ₡581

135.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$110 $110

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.55 $2.55

$2.50 ₡1,125

2.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.64 $1.64

$1.56 ₡701

5.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.58 $29.58

$8.60 ₡3,864

243.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 $1.42

$1.56 ₡702

-8.97%

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

$35.7K $35.7K

$22.1K ₡9.9M

62.05%

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

$25.6K $25.6K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-25.94%

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

$299 $299

$94.5 ₡42.4K

216.51%

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

$70.8 $70.8

$35.98 ₡16.2K

96.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$88.3 $88.3

$59.8 ₡26.9K

47.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$79.5 $79.5

$71.7 ₡32.2K

10.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.37 $35.37

Cinema Ticket

$17.12 $17.12

$6.75 ₡3,034

153.63%

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

$3,013 $3,013

$978 ₡439.3K

208.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$31.6K $31.6K

$17.2K ₡7.7M

84.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$77.2 $77.2

$72.2 ₡32.4K

7.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.1 $55.1

$56.1 ₡25.2K

-1.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$126 $126

$129 ₡58.0K

-2.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$163 $163

$132 ₡59.1K

23.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,464 $2,464

$912 ₡409.8K

170.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,956 $1,956

$665 ₡298.7K

194.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,711 $4,711

$1,689 ₡759.1K

178.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,550 $3,550

$1,310 ₡588.5K

171.06%

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 Santa Cruz: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Seattle, WA

$2K 51.5%

Santa Cruz

$665 37.8% 66% $1.3K

Groceries & Markets

Seattle, WA

$542 14.3%

Santa Cruz

$400 22.8% 26.2% $142

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Seattle, WA

$458 12.1%

Santa Cruz

$190 10.8% 58.5% $268

Eating Out

Seattle, WA

$409 10.8%

Santa Cruz

$227 12.9% 44.3% $181

Clothing & Footwear

Seattle, WA

$189 5%

Santa Cruz

$175 10% 7.5% $14

Getting Around

Seattle, WA

$133 3.5%

Santa Cruz

$15 * 0.9% 88.4% $118

Sport & Entertainment

Seattle, WA

$114 3%

Santa Cruz

$85 4.9% 25.1% $29

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,464 in Seattle, WA versus $912 in Santa Cruz. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $101 in Seattle, WA versus $63.0 in Santa Cruz. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $542 vs $400 – making Santa Cruz the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Seattle, WA

🇨🇷 Santa Cruz

🕒 Local time

05:00 5:00 AM

06:00 6:00 AM

1 h ahead of Seattle, WA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

737,015

1,665

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.893 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 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 15, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.893 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 449 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 503 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

CRC to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Seattle, WA Santa Cruz 5,390 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Seattle, WA
Santa Cruz

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 Santa Cruz: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,800 in Seattle, WA, $1,758 in Santa Cruz – roughly 116% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,701 per month in Seattle, WA and $2,637 in Santa Cruz. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Santa Cruz, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,800 in Seattle, WA and $1,758 in Santa Cruz. That's a gap of about 116%.

Kindergarten costs $3,013 per month in Seattle, WA and $978 in Santa Cruz. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Santa Cruz, where all-in costs run around $1,758, than in Seattle, WA at $3,800. In Santa Cruz it covers expenses comfortably, while in Seattle, WA it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Seattle, WA has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,758 in Santa Cruz to $3,800 in Seattle, WA. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Santa Cruz. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Seattle, WA makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.