Cost of Living Comparison Between San Francisco, CA and Philadelphia, PA 

Indices DifferenceInfo
Cost of Living in Philadelphia, PA is 18.2% lower than in San Francisco, CA (excluding rent)
Cost of Living Including Rent in Philadelphia, PA is 29.9% lower than in San Francisco, CA
Rent Prices in Philadelphia, PA are 47.1% lower than in San Francisco, CA
Restaurant Prices in Philadelphia, PA are 21.6% lower than in San Francisco, CA
Groceries Prices in Philadelphia, PA are 13.7% lower than in San Francisco, CA
Local Purchasing Power in Philadelphia, PA is 14.8% lower than in San Francisco, CA
Currency: Sticky Currency      Switch to metric measurement units
Restaurants
San Francisco, CA Edit Philadelphia, PA Edit Difference
Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant 25.00 $ 20.00 $      -20.0 %
Meal for 2 People, Mid-range Restaurant, Three-course 125.00 $ 90.00 $      -28.0 %
McMeal at McDonalds (or Equivalent Combo Meal) 14.00 $ 12.00 $      -14.3 %
Domestic Beer (1 pint draught) 8.00 $ 6.00 $      -25.0 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 8.15 $ 7.00 $      -14.1 %
Cappuccino (regular) 5.86 $ 4.91 $      -16.3 %
Coke/Pepsi (12 oz small bottle) 3.18 $ 2.67 $      -16.1 %
Water (12 oz small bottle) 2.43 $ 1.97 $      -19.0 %
Markets
San Francisco, CA Edit Philadelphia, PA Edit
Milk (regular), (1 gallon) 5.72 $ 5.23 $      -8.5 %
Loaf of Fresh White Bread (1 lb) 4.59 $ 3.76 $      -18.0 %
Rice (white), (1 lb) 3.05 $ 4.60 $      +50.8 %
Eggs (regular) (12) 5.91 $ 4.30 $      -27.2 %
Local Cheese (1 lb) 10.76 $ 6.87 $      -36.2 %
Chicken Fillets (1 lb) 6.68 $ 6.26 $      -6.4 %
Beef Round (1 lb) (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) 10.59 $ 9.17 $      -13.5 %
Apples (1 lb) 3.24 $ 2.77 $      -14.5 %
Banana (1 lb) 1.30 $ 0.99 $      -23.8 %
Oranges (1 lb) 2.37 $ 2.32 $      -2.3 %
Tomato (1 lb) 3.42 $ 2.42 $      -29.3 %
Potato (1 lb) 1.73 $ 1.53 $      -11.7 %
Onion (1 lb) 1.77 $ 1.30 $      -27.0 %
Lettuce (1 head) 2.87 $ 3.01 $      +5.2 %
Water (1.5 liter bottle) 2.78 $ 2.49 $      -10.7 %
Bottle of Wine (Mid-Range) 18.00 $ 15.00 $      -16.7 %
Domestic Beer (0.5 liter bottle) 2.57 $ 1.92 $      -25.4 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 3.27 $ 4.17 $      +27.4 %
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro) 14.00 $ 12.88 $      -8.0 %
Transportation
San Francisco, CA Edit Philadelphia, PA Edit
One-way Ticket (Local Transport) 3.00 $ 2.50 $      -16.7 %
Monthly Pass (Regular Price) 92.50 $ 96.00 $      +3.8 %
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff) 4.15 $ 3.00 $      -27.7 %
Taxi 1 mile (Normal Tariff) 3.25 $ 2.50 $      -23.1 %
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff) 39.00 $ 22.00 $      -43.6 %
Gasoline (1 gallon) 5.15 $ 3.40 $      -34.0 %
Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (Or Equivalent New Car) 35,000.00 $ 27,000.00 $      -22.9 %
Toyota Corolla Sedan 1.6l 97kW Comfort (Or Equivalent New Car) 25,954.72 $ 25,891.56 $      -0.2 %
Utilities (Monthly)
San Francisco, CA Edit Philadelphia, PA Edit
Basic (Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Water, Garbage) for 915 sq ft Apartment 229.35 $ 269.29 $      +17.4 %
Mobile Phone Monthly Plan with Calls and 10GB+ Data 62.91 $ 61.40 $      -2.4 %
Internet (60 Mbps or More, Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL) 67.40 $ 73.28 $      +8.7 %
Sports And Leisure
San Francisco, CA Edit Philadelphia, PA Edit
Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult 99.96 $ 48.67 $      -51.3 %
Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour on Weekend) 12.67 $ 32.50 $      +156.6 %
Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat 17.00 $ 14.64 $      -13.9 %
Childcare
San Francisco, CA Edit Philadelphia, PA Edit
Preschool (or Kindergarten), Full Day, Private, Monthly for 1 Child 2,870.83 $ 2,076.67 $      -27.7 %
International Primary School, Yearly for 1 Child 38,000.00 $ 43,200.00 $      +13.7 %
Clothing And Shoes
San Francisco, CA Edit Philadelphia, PA Edit
1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar) 64.76 $ 52.07 $      -19.6 %
1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, H&M, ...) 43.79 $ 42.00 $      -4.1 %
1 Pair of Nike Running Shoes (Mid-Range) 102.60 $ 93.93 $      -8.5 %
1 Pair of Men Leather Business Shoes 145.62 $ 143.33 $      -1.6 %
Rent Per Month
San Francisco, CA Edit Philadelphia, PA Edit
Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre 3,258.76 $ 1,790.76 $      -45.0 %
Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Centre 2,784.00 $ 1,375.16 $      -50.6 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre 5,475.00 $ 3,115.69 $      -43.1 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of Centre 4,555.00 $ 2,227.47 $      -51.1 %
Buy Apartment Price
San Francisco, CA Edit Philadelphia, PA Edit
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment in City Centre 1,026.28 $ 315.01 $      -69.3 %
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment Outside of Centre 923.92 $ 220.30 $      -76.2 %
Salaries And Financing
San Francisco, CA Edit Philadelphia, PA Edit
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax) 7,260.42 $ 4,340.28 $      -40.2 %
Mortgage Interest Rate in Percentages (%), Yearly, for 20 Years Fixed-Rate 6.36 6.67      +4.9 %
Last update: 16 May 20259 May 2025
Contributors in the past 12 months:176103