Cost of Living in San Jose, 🇺🇸 United States - For Locals, Nomads, and Tourists

AI estimate Updated Jun 10, 2026 About costs

Cost breakdown

Digital nomad: short-term stay (1-3 months). Furnished Airbnb or coliving near center, coworking, eating out ~3x/day, travel health insurance.

Expat: long-term resident (1+ years). Renting apartment in center, mix of cooking and dining out, local health insurance, settled lifestyle.

Family: middle-class 4-person family. 2-3 bedroom in suburbs, groceries for 4, international school, car/transport, family health plan.

Local: budget-conscious local resident. Renting outside center, cooking at home, public transport, local phone plan.

Tourist: short-stay visitor (1-14 days). Hotel/Airbnb nightly, all meals at restaurants, taxis, sightseeing.

CategoryCost

Utilities — $200 $250 $150 —

Internet & Mobile $60 $110 $130 $90 $5

Groceries $200 $700 $1,000 $600 —

Transportation $300 $200 $300 $70 $20

Dining Out $2,000 $300 $250 $200 $60

Leisure Activities $400 $200 $300 $100 $15

Health Insurance $70 $400 $800 $150 $3

Visa & Legal Fees — — — — —

Housing $3,000 $2,600 $3,200 $1,800 $150

Total $6,030 $4,710 $6,230 $3,160 $253

Itemized prices

Local prices converted to the selected currency.

Housing

Apartment (1 bedroom) $2,400.00 per month

Coworking Space $400.00 per month

Airbnb (1 month) $2,500.00 per month

Coliving Space $1,500.00 per month

Food & Dining

Beer $7.00 per pint

Meal (Inexpensive) $15.00 per meal

Fast Food Combo $11.00 per meal

Apples $4.50 per kg

Bread $4.00 per loaf

Milk $1.20 per liter

Rice $2.50 per kg

Chicken Fillets $12.00 per kg

Beef $15.00 per kg

Wine (Mid-range) $18.00 per bottle

Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) $80.00 per meal

Water (1.5L bottle) $1.50 per bottle

Coffee $4.50 per cup

Transportation

Taxi Start $4.50 per trip

Taxi per km $2.50 per km

Monthly Transport Pass $90.00 per month

Gasoline $1.30 per liter

Ride-hailing (5km) $12.00 per trip

Scooter Rental $30.00 per month

Services

Mobile Plan $50.00 per month

Internet (60 Mbps+) $70.00 per month

Gym Membership $60.00 per month

Tennis Court (Weekend) $25.00 per hour

SIM Card (Tourist, prepaid) $30.00 one-time

Entertainment

Cinema Ticket $15.00 per ticket

Clothing

Jeans $60.00 per pair

Summer Dress $45.00 per dress

Running Shoes $100.00 per pair

Personal Care

Haircut $40.00 per visit

Laundry $8.00 per kg

Healthcare

Doctor Visit (GP) $175.00 per visit

Pharmacy (basic meds) $12.00 per purchase

About these costs

Method: AI estimate
Last updated: Jun 10, 2026
Generated by: deepseek-v4-flash · cost run 44
Last changed: None yet

Generated by an AI model without cited sources and not yet checked by research. A research pass replaces these values with sourced ones, compared with similar cities.

San Jose cost of living