Cost of Living Comparison Between San Diego, CA and Boston, MA 

Indices DifferenceInfo
Consumer Prices in Boston, MA are 1.2% lower than in San Diego, CA (without rent)
Consumer Prices Including Rent in Boston, MA are 3.7% lower than in San Diego, CA
Rent Prices in Boston, MA are 6.9% lower than in San Diego, CA
Restaurant Prices in Boston, MA are 1.4% higher than in San Diego, CA
Groceries Prices in Boston, MA are 10.2% higher than in San Diego, CA
Local Purchasing Power in Boston, MA is 11.0% higher than in San Diego, CA
Currency: Sticky Currency      Switch to metric measurement units
Restaurants
San Diego, CA Edit Boston, MA Edit Difference
Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant 25.00 $ 24.00 $      -4.0 %
Meal for 2 People, Mid-range Restaurant, Three-course 90.00 $ 100.00 $      +11.1 %
McMeal at McDonalds (or Equivalent Combo Meal) 12.00 $ 11.75 $      -2.1 %
Domestic Beer (1 pint draught) 8.00 $ 8.00 $      0.0 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 9.00 $ 9.80 $      +8.9 %
Cappuccino (regular) 5.39 $ 5.12 $      -5.0 %
Coke/Pepsi (12 oz small bottle) 2.90 $ 2.43 $      -16.3 %
Water (12 oz small bottle) 2.45 $ 2.30 $      -6.1 %
Markets
San Diego, CA Edit Boston, MA Edit
Milk (regular), (1 gallon) 4.36 $ 4.39 $      +0.8 %
Loaf of Fresh White Bread (1 lb) 3.62 $ 4.03 $      +11.4 %
Rice (white), (1 lb) 2.34 $ 2.67 $      +13.7 %
Eggs (regular) (12) 4.85 $ 5.04 $      +3.8 %
Local Cheese (1 lb) 6.57 $ 8.29 $      +26.1 %
Chicken Fillets (1 lb) 7.18 $ 6.74 $      -6.2 %
Beef Round (1 lb) (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) 8.86 $ 8.45 $      -4.6 %
Apples (1 lb) 2.21 $ 2.45 $      +10.8 %
Banana (1 lb) 0.93 $ 0.84 $      -9.4 %
Oranges (1 lb) 1.66 $ 2.65 $      +59.8 %
Tomato (1 lb) 2.24 $ 2.68 $      +19.9 %
Potato (1 lb) 1.83 $ 1.48 $      -19.1 %
Onion (1 lb) 1.34 $ 1.68 $      +24.7 %
Lettuce (1 head) 2.21 $ 2.66 $      +20.4 %
Water (1.5 liter bottle) 2.29 $ 2.40 $      +4.9 %
Bottle of Wine (Mid-Range) 13.50 $ 17.00 $      +26.0 %
Domestic Beer (0.5 liter bottle) 2.37 $ 1.90 $      -19.9 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 3.35 $ 3.64 $      +8.6 %
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro) 10.39 $ 13.00 $      +25.1 %
Transportation
San Diego, CA Edit Boston, MA Edit
One-way Ticket (Local Transport) 2.62 $ 2.40 $      -8.6 %
Monthly Pass (Regular Price) 75.00 $ 90.00 $      +20.0 %
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff) 3.70 $ 3.05 $      -17.6 %
Taxi 1 mile (Normal Tariff) 2.88 $ 3.00 $      +4.3 %
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff) 37.50 $ 20.00 $      -46.7 %
Gasoline (1 gallon) 5.32 $ 3.68 $      -31.0 %
Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (Or Equivalent New Car) 27,000.00 $ 24,934.50 $      -7.6 %
Toyota Corolla Sedan 1.6l 97kW Comfort (Or Equivalent New Car) 25,111.11 $ 22,066.40 $      -12.1 %
Utilities (Monthly)
San Diego, CA Edit Boston, MA Edit
Basic (Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Water, Garbage) for 915 sq ft Apartment 332.72 $ 192.64 $      -42.1 %
Mobile Phone Monthly Plan with Calls and 10GB+ Data 77.08 $ 52.00 $      -32.5 %
Internet (60 Mbps or More, Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL) 81.99 $ 64.68 $      -21.1 %
Sports And Leisure
San Diego, CA Edit Boston, MA Edit
Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult 66.94 $ 95.10 $      +42.1 %
Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour on Weekend) 30.39 $ 24.00 $      -21.0 %
Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat 16.00 $ 16.00 $      0.0 %
Childcare
San Diego, CA Edit Boston, MA Edit
Preschool (or Kindergarten), Full Day, Private, Monthly for 1 Child 1,331.25 $ 2,345.83 $      +76.2 %
International Primary School, Yearly for 1 Child 18,570.71 $ 32,166.67 $      +73.2 %
Clothing And Shoes
San Diego, CA Edit Boston, MA Edit
1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar) 62.39 $ 58.88 $      -5.6 %
1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, H&M, ...) 67.12 $ 44.31 $      -34.0 %
1 Pair of Nike Running Shoes (Mid-Range) 96.24 $ 92.22 $      -4.2 %
1 Pair of Men Leather Business Shoes 140.21 $ 137.00 $      -2.3 %
Rent Per Month
San Diego, CA Edit Boston, MA Edit
Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre 2,973.35 $ 3,078.10 $      +3.5 %
Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Centre 2,291.13 $ 2,103.91 $      -8.2 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre 5,318.16 $ 5,269.22 $      -0.9 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of Centre 4,330.56 $ 3,429.41 $      -20.8 %
Buy Apartment Price
San Diego, CA Edit Boston, MA Edit
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment in City Centre 1,057.67 $ 1,153.17 $      +9.0 %
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment Outside of Centre 948.84 $ 648.22 $      -31.7 %
Salaries And Financing
San Diego, CA Edit Boston, MA Edit
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax) 5,570.86 $ 5,953.58 $      +6.9 %
Mortgage Interest Rate in Percentages (%), Yearly, for 20 Years Fixed-Rate 6.47 6.69      +3.4 %
Last update: September 2023September 2023
Contributors in the past 12 months:222224