Cost of Living Comparison Between Los Angeles, CA and San Francisco, CA 

Indices DifferenceInfo
Cost of Living in San Francisco, CA is 17.4% higher than in Los Angeles, CA (without rent)
Cost of Living Including Rent in San Francisco, CA is 20.3% higher than in Los Angeles, CA
Rent Prices in San Francisco, CA are 24.7% higher than in Los Angeles, CA
Restaurant Prices in San Francisco, CA are 1.2% higher than in Los Angeles, CA
Groceries Prices in San Francisco, CA are 26.1% higher than in Los Angeles, CA
Local Purchasing Power in San Francisco, CA is 26.8% higher than in Los Angeles, CA
Currency: Sticky Currency      Switch to metric measurement units
Restaurants
Los Angeles, CA Edit San Francisco, CA Edit Difference
Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant 25.00 $ 25.00 $      0.0 %
Meal for 2 People, Mid-range Restaurant, Three-course 110.00 $ 120.00 $      +9.1 %
McMeal at McDonalds (or Equivalent Combo Meal) 13.00 $ 12.00 $      -7.7 %
Domestic Beer (1 pint draught) 9.00 $ 8.00 $      -11.1 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 10.00 $ 8.00 $      -20.0 %
Cappuccino (regular) 5.56 $ 5.81 $      +4.4 %
Coke/Pepsi (12 oz small bottle) 2.80 $ 2.92 $      +4.1 %
Water (12 oz small bottle) 2.40 $ 2.21 $      -8.0 %
Markets
Los Angeles, CA Edit San Francisco, CA Edit
Milk (regular), (1 gallon) 4.59 $ 5.65 $      +23.2 %
Loaf of Fresh White Bread (1 lb) 4.48 $ 4.66 $      +3.9 %
Rice (white), (1 lb) 2.45 $ 3.32 $      +35.4 %
Eggs (regular) (12) 4.84 $ 5.44 $      +12.4 %
Local Cheese (1 lb) 5.98 $ 11.82 $      +97.5 %
Chicken Fillets (1 lb) 7.44 $ 6.30 $      -15.3 %
Beef Round (1 lb) (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) 7.75 $ 10.16 $      +31.1 %
Apples (1 lb) 2.69 $ 3.32 $      +23.2 %
Banana (1 lb) 1.13 $ 1.35 $      +19.7 %
Oranges (1 lb) 1.81 $ 2.54 $      +40.2 %
Tomato (1 lb) 2.33 $ 3.64 $      +56.7 %
Potato (1 lb) 1.50 $ 1.89 $      +25.8 %
Onion (1 lb) 1.11 $ 1.93 $      +73.4 %
Lettuce (1 head) 2.08 $ 3.05 $      +46.4 %
Water (1.5 liter bottle) 2.30 $ 2.54 $      +10.8 %
Bottle of Wine (Mid-Range) 14.99 $ 19.00 $      +26.8 %
Domestic Beer (0.5 liter bottle) 2.63 $ 2.50 $      -4.6 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 4.06 $ 2.96 $      -27.1 %
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro) 12.00 $ 14.00 $      +16.7 %
Transportation
Los Angeles, CA Edit San Francisco, CA Edit
One-way Ticket (Local Transport) 1.88 $ 2.88 $      +53.3 %
Monthly Pass (Regular Price) 80.00 $ 90.00 $      +12.5 %
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff) 3.10 $ 4.15 $      +33.9 %
Taxi 1 mile (Normal Tariff) 2.70 $ 3.25 $      +20.4 %
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff) 29.19 $ 39.00 $      +33.6 %
Gasoline (1 gallon) 4.84 $ 5.22 $      +7.9 %
Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (Or Equivalent New Car) 29,000.00 $ 34,376.95 $      +18.5 %
Toyota Corolla Sedan 1.6l 97kW Comfort (Or Equivalent New Car) 26,891.57 $ 25,743.91 $      -4.3 %
Utilities (Monthly)
Los Angeles, CA Edit San Francisco, CA Edit
Basic (Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Water, Garbage) for 915 sq ft Apartment 184.84 $ 235.29 $      +27.3 %
Mobile Phone Monthly Plan with Calls and 10GB+ Data 64.51 $ 58.64 $      -9.1 %
Internet (60 Mbps or More, Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL) 73.61 $ 66.33 $      -9.9 %
Sports And Leisure
Los Angeles, CA Edit San Francisco, CA Edit
Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult 51.67 $ 97.10 $      +87.9 %
Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour on Weekend) 9.17 $ 15.17 $      +65.5 %
Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat 18.25 $ 17.00 $      -6.8 %
Childcare
Los Angeles, CA Edit San Francisco, CA Edit
Preschool (or Kindergarten), Full Day, Private, Monthly for 1 Child 1,731.25 $ 2,829.63 $      +63.4 %
International Primary School, Yearly for 1 Child 28,750.00 $ 38,000.00 $      +32.2 %
Clothing And Shoes
Los Angeles, CA Edit San Francisco, CA Edit
1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar) 60.63 $ 60.71 $      +0.1 %
1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, H&M, ...) 44.42 $ 43.83 $      -1.3 %
1 Pair of Nike Running Shoes (Mid-Range) 100.66 $ 105.00 $      +4.3 %
1 Pair of Men Leather Business Shoes 150.19 $ 144.85 $      -3.6 %
Rent Per Month
Los Angeles, CA Edit San Francisco, CA Edit
Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre 2,447.24 $ 3,208.68 $      +31.1 %
Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Centre 2,067.27 $ 2,813.64 $      +36.1 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre 4,616.14 $ 5,634.31 $      +22.1 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of Centre 3,902.29 $ 4,595.00 $      +17.8 %
Buy Apartment Price
Los Angeles, CA Edit San Francisco, CA Edit
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment in City Centre 731.80 $ 1,028.21 $      +40.5 %
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment Outside of Centre 643.39 $ 945.17 $      +46.9 %
Salaries And Financing
Los Angeles, CA Edit San Francisco, CA Edit
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax) 4,861.73 $ 7,413.26 $      +52.5 %
Mortgage Interest Rate in Percentages (%), Yearly, for 20 Years Fixed-Rate 6.62 6.57      -0.6 %
Last update: January 2025January 2025
Contributors in the past 12 months:165144