Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Todos Santos and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in Todos Santos: $1,398 a month against $1,924 in San Jose, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

68

Cost of Living Index in Todos Santos
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Todos Santos Living Index
93

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
Learn more

San Jose Living Index

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Todos Santos

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,398

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,924

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Todos Santos and in San Jose

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

A single person spends $1,398 per month in Todos Santos vs $1,924 in San Jose, rent included.

Todos Santos $1,398
San Jose $1,924

A couple spends around $2,069 per month in Todos Santos vs $2,926 in San Jose, rent included.

Todos Santos $2,069
San Jose $2,926

A family of three spends $2,741 per month in Todos Santos vs $3,929 in San Jose, rent included.

Todos Santos $2,741
San Jose $3,929

Todos Santos is about 27% cheaper than San Jose, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Todos Santos and San Jose sit above the global median – Todos Santos by 3%, San Jose by 42%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.97 MX$203

$12.29 ₡5,513

-10.74%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.57 MX$824

$62.3 ₡27.9K

-28.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.31 MX$154

$11.53 ₡5,171

-27.93%

Cappuccino

$3.54 MX$65.3

$4.35 ₡1,953

-18.62%

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

$1.41 MX$26.01

$2.64 ₡1,183

-46.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.06 MX$19.67

$1.86 ₡836

-43.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.44 MX$45.14

$3.32 ₡1,490

-26.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.13 MX$76.3

$4.52 ₡2,026

-8.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.60 MX$29.60

$2.39 ₡1,073

-33.05%

White Bread (500g)

$2.68 MX$49.48

$3.08 ₡1,381

-12.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.65 MX$30.44

$2.50 ₡1,119

-34.00%

Eggs

$2.53 MX$46.72

$3.48 ₡1,562

-27.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.01 MX$148

$10.74 ₡4,815

-25.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.20 MX$151

$10.32 ₡4,629

-20.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.37 MX$210

$14.10 ₡6,325

-19.36%

Apples (1kg)

$2.82 MX$52.1

$5.03 ₡2,256

-43.94%

Banana (1kg)

$1.57 MX$28.97

$1.59 ₡714

-1.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.91 MX$35.22

$4.84 ₡2,171

-60.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.83 MX$33.86

$3.96 ₡1,776

-53.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.92 MX$35.53

$3.76 ₡1,684

-48.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.30

$3.73 ₡1,674

-51.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 MX$26.92

$1.08 ₡485

35.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 MX$20.97

$3.25 ₡1,456

-65.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.34 MX$80.3

$5.86 ₡2,627

-25.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.44 MX$193

$20.28 ₡9,095

-48.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.75 MX$32.31

$2.90 ₡1,300

-39.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.23 MX$59.8

$3.73 ₡1,673

-13.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.63 MX$11.61

$1.08 ₡486

-41.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.5 ₡29.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.58 MX$47.63

$2.50 ₡1,123

3.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.95 MX$35.96

$1.63 ₡732

19.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.14 MX$206

$8.71 ₡3,904

27.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.32

$1.58 ₡709

-6.33%

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

$20.9K MX$386.6K

$33.6K ₡15.1M

-37.75%

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

$23.7K MX$437.5K

$41.7K ₡18.7M

-43.19%

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

$58.6 MX$1,082

$93.7 ₡42.0K

-37.48%

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

$23.08 MX$426

$35.42 ₡15.9K

-34.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.66 MX$548

$60.0 ₡26.9K

-50.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.43 MX$636

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-52.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.26 MX$374

$25.83 ₡11.6K

-21.56%

Cinema Ticket

$5.05 MX$93.4

$7.74 ₡3,471

-34.75%

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

$217 MX$4,006

$1,005 ₡450.9K

-78.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,567 MX$84.4K

$16.9K ₡7.6M

-73.00%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.0 MX$997

$73.1 ₡32.8K

-26.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.53 MX$749

$55.4 ₡24.9K

-26.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 MX$1,853

$128 ₡57.5K

-21.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.2 MX$1,666

$130 ₡58.5K

-30.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$993 MX$18.3K

$932 ₡418.0K

6.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$650 MX$12.0K

$760 ₡340.8K

-14.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,880 MX$34.7K

$1,922 ₡862.0K

-2.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$979 MX$18.1K

$1,276 ₡572.1K

-23.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,910 MX$35.3K

$2,301 ₡1.0M

-17.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,134 MX$20.9K

$1,833 ₡821.9K

-38.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,029 ₡461.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

8.62

31.09%

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

Last update for Todos Santos: October 19, 2026

Last update for San Jose: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Todos Santos

$650 46.5%

San Jose

$760 39.5% 17% $110

Groceries & Markets

Todos Santos

$264 18.9%

San Jose

$403 21% 52.8% $139

Eating Out

Todos Santos

$185 13.3%

San Jose

$229 11.9% 23.4% $43

Clothing & Footwear

Todos Santos

$128 9.2%

San Jose

$174 9.1% 35.9% $46

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Todos Santos

$111 8%

San Jose

$189 9.8% 69.9% $78

Sport & Entertainment

Todos Santos

$45 3.2%

San Jose

$88 4.6% 97.8% $44

Getting Around

Todos Santos

$15 * 1.1%

San Jose

$80 4.2% 443% $66

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $993 in Todos Santos versus $932 in San Jose. 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 $45.00 in Todos Santos versus $62.0 in San Jose. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $264 vs $403 – making Todos Santos the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Todos Santos

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

11:52 11:52 AM

12:52 12:52 PM

1 h ahead of Todos Santos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,148

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Todos Santos San Jose 3,160 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Todos Santos
San Jose

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

Todos Santos vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – San Jose is pricier by about 38%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,097 per month in Todos Santos and $2,886 in San Jose. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Todos Santos, 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 $1,398 in Todos Santos and $1,924 in San Jose. That's a gap of about 38%.

Kindergarten costs $217 per month in Todos Santos and $1,005 in San Jose. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Todos Santos, where all-in costs run around $1,398, than in San Jose at $1,924. In Todos Santos it covers expenses comfortably, while in San Jose it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Todos Santos – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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 Todos Santos. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, San Jose makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.