Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Toronto and San Pedro

For one person, living is cheaper in San Pedro: $1,707 a month against $2,561 in Toronto, rent and utilities included – about $10,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Toronto
🇨🇦 Canada
$2,561
/mo nomad
San Pedro
🇨🇷 Costa Rica
$1,707
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Toronto and in San Pedro

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,561 in Toronto versus $1,707 in San Pedro.

  • Toronto $2,561
  • San Pedro $1,707

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,694 in Toronto versus $2,825 in San Pedro.

  • Toronto $3,694
  • San Pedro $2,825

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,826 in Toronto versus $3,943 in San Pedro.

  • Toronto $4,826
  • San Pedro $3,943

Living in Toronto is roughly 50% more expensive than in San Pedro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Toronto 90% above, San Pedro 26% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Toronto
San Pedro
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$17.18 CA$24.29
$12.40 ₡5,563
38.55%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$76.0 CA$107
$62.5 ₡28.0K
21.65%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.54 CA$14.89
$11.85 ₡5,314
-11.05%
Cappuccino
$4.02 CA$5.68
$4.38 ₡1,964
-8.22%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.12 CA$3.00
$2.73 ₡1,226
-22.34%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.75 CA$2.48
$1.85 ₡829
-5.41%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$6.24 CA$8.83
$3.27 ₡1,467
90.83%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$7.09 CA$10.02
$4.42 ₡1,984
60.41%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Toronto
San Pedro
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.44 CA$3.45
$2.39 ₡1,074
2.09%
White Bread (500g)
$2.68 CA$3.78
$3.04 ₡1,363
-11.84%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.24 CA$3.17
$2.50 ₡1,123
-10.40%
Eggs
$3.56 CA$5.03
$3.48 ₡1,560
2.30%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$9.09 CA$12.85
$10.84 ₡4,862
-16.14%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$11.33 CA$16.01
$10.52 ₡4,718
7.70%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$14.53 CA$20.55
$14.17 ₡6,355
2.54%
Apples (1kg)
$3.62 CA$5.12
$5.11 ₡2,291
-29.16%
Banana (1kg)
$1.21 CA$1.72
$1.57 ₡705
-22.93%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.60 CA$5.09
$4.80 ₡2,153
-25.00%
Tomato (1kg)
$4.21 CA$5.96
$3.79 ₡1,699
11.08%
Potato (1kg)
$1.79 CA$2.53
$3.86 ₡1,732
-53.63%
Onion (1kg)
$1.59 CA$2.25
$3.73 ₡1,674
-57.37%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.27 CA$3.21
$1.09 ₡487
108.26%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.25 CA$1.77
$3.10 ₡1,388
-59.68%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$13.82 CA$19.53
$5.97 ₡2,677
131.49%
Wine (Bottle)
$14.27 CA$20.18
$19.99 ₡8,963
-28.61%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.20 CA$3.10
$2.75 ₡1,235
-20.00%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.43 CA$3.44
$3.55 ₡1,590
-31.55%
🚌 Getting Around
Toronto
San Pedro
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.39 CA$3.38
$1.47 ₡661
62.59%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$111 CA$157
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.91 CA$4.12
$2.49 ₡1,119
16.87%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.20 CA$1.69
$1.56 ₡698
-23.08%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$21.38 CA$30.23
$8.84 ₡3,964
141.86%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.21 CA$1.71
$1.51 ₡676
-19.87%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$28.2K CA$39.8K
$21.7K ₡9.7M
30.00%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$20.3K CA$28.6K
$35.6K ₡16.0M
-43.09%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Toronto
San Pedro
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$120 CA$170
$94.6 ₡42.4K
27.17%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$32.26 CA$45.60
$35.67 ₡16.0K
-9.56%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$47.93 CA$67.8
$60.3 ₡27.0K
-20.47%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Toronto
San Pedro
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$38.48 CA$54.4
$69.6 ₡31.2K
-44.70%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$22.96 CA$32.46
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$12.38 CA$17.50
$7.62 ₡3,417
62.47%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Toronto
San Pedro
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$830 CA$1,173
$985 ₡441.6K
-15.71%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$23.1K CA$32.6K
$17.3K ₡7.8M
33.54%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Toronto
San Pedro
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$50.7 CA$71.7
$71.4 ₡32.0K
-28.99%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$40.02 CA$56.6
$55.2 ₡24.8K
-27.54%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$98.0 CA$139
$129 ₡57.9K
-24.08%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$121 CA$171
$131 ₡58.9K
-8.11%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Toronto
San Pedro
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,592 CA$2,251
$818 ₡366.9K
94.61%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,410 CA$1,994
$610 ₡273.6K
131.17%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,670 CA$3,775
$1,985 ₡890.2K
34.51%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$2,152 CA$3,042
$1,447 ₡649.1K
48.65%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$7,945 CA$11.2K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,542 CA$9,249
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Toronto
San Pedro
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$3,727 CA$5,269
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
4.47
8.62
-48.14%

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

Last update for Toronto: October 12, 2026

Last update for San Pedro: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Toronto
$1.4K
San Pedro
$610 56.7% $800
Groceries & Markets
Toronto
$340
San Pedro
$400 17.9% $61
Eating Out
Toronto
$278
San Pedro
$231 17% $47
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Toronto
$201
San Pedro
$191 5% $9.9
Clothing & Footwear
Toronto
$139
San Pedro
$174 25.1% $35
Getting Around
Toronto
$129
San Pedro
$16 * 87.5% $113
Sport & Entertainment
Toronto
$63
San Pedro
$85 34.2% $22

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 $1,592 in Toronto and $818 in San Pedro. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $76.0 in Toronto vs $62.0 in San Pedro. Groceries flip the comparison at $340 vs $400, with Toronto cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know
🇨🇦 Toronto
🇨🇷 San Pedro
🕒 Local time
01:24 1:24 AM
23:24 11:24 PM
2 h behind Toronto
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
2,731,571
27,477
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 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).

On the map
Between locations
  • Toronto San Pedro 3,790 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Toronto
  • San Pedro

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
Toronto vs San Pedro: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is San Pedro cheaper than Toronto?
San Pedro is cheaper overall, especially in eating out and transport. The 50% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
What income do you need for each city?
You'd need roughly $3,841 in Toronto and $2,561 in San Pedro 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.
What is the rent difference between Toronto and San Pedro?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,592 in Toronto versus $818 in San Pedro. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
Which city has cheaper kindergarten?
Childcare runs $830 in Toronto versus $985 in San Pedro. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Is eating out cheaper in Toronto or in San Pedro?
Dining out is cheaper in San Pedro – a meal for two runs $62.0 versus $76.0 in Toronto. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
Is $2,500 a realistic budget for living in Toronto or in San Pedro?
At $1,707 in San Pedro versus $2,561 in Toronto, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Pedro but tight or insufficient in Toronto. The gap between the two cities makes San Pedro the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is it better to live in Toronto or in San Pedro?
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.
Which city is easier to live in as a foreigner?
Expats usually find San Pedro gentler on the wallet – expenses run 50% less than in Toronto. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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