San Diego vs Seattle - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

San Diego Seattle
🚶 Cost of living one person
$3428
$3015
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$7974
$7449
🏠 One person rent
$2311
$1896
🏘️ Family rent
$4175
$3549
🍽️ Food expenses
$743
$746
🚐 Transport expenses
$180
$160
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$5531
$6742
😷 Air quality
Excellent
Excellent
✈️ Airport proximity
3 km
9 km
🎓 Higher education
87
80
😀 Quality of life
91
91
🏙️ Population
1.39M
737K

The cost of living in San Diego is 14% more expensive than in Seattle. Cities ranked 36th and 158th ($3428 vs $3015) in the list of the most expensive cities in the world and ranked 32nd and 140th in the United States.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.6 months in San Diego compared to 2.2 months in Seattle. Ranked 13th vs 15th best cities to live in the United States, and 95th vs 98th among the best cities to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in San Diego vs Seattle infographic

Share this infographic!

Prices in San Diego vs Seattle

Prices for goods and services in San Diego and Seattle are partly crowdsourced by our visitors, just like yourself. Please consider telling us about your city.

San Diego Seattle
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$22.1
$21.9
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$83.1
$90.4
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$15
$13.6
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$8.3
$7.98
 Cappuccino
$6.04
$5.55
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$2.96
$2.97
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$2424
$2086
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1978
$1567
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$4583
$3947
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$3654
$3067
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$177
$157
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$269
$237
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$66.3
$68.8
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
6.42%
6.44%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$9086
$6966
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$7072
$5351
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$2.51
$2.73
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$72.1
$96.7
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$19.4
$18
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.33
$1.16
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.23
$1.18
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$3.95
$4.03
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.13
$4.44
🥚 Eggs, x12
$5.2
$4.89
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$15.6
$20.3
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$13.3
$14.6
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$18.4
$20.4
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.75
$5.19
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.71
$2.38
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.32
$5.37
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.97
$5.76
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.75
$2.64
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.44
$3.47
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.69
$1.56
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$3.7
$2.91
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$17.6
$17.8
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.85
$3.15
🚬 Cigarette pack
$12.1
$12
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$17.4
$10.4
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$13.1
$5.95
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$5.87
$6.98
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.99
$2.49
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$75
$65.6
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$17
$16
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$130
$183
💇 Haircut, simple
$31.9
$25.9
👖 Brand Jeans
$59.6
$68.9
👟 Brand Sneakers
$98.3
$101
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$1785
$2185
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$28706
$29407

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

More cities to compare

Cost of Living in the nearest cities

Cities near San Diego

Distance City Cost of living
4.2 km or 2.6 mi Coronado
$3065
7.2 km or 4.5 mi National
$2962
13 km or 7.8 mi Lemon Grove
$2914
14 km or 9 mi Chula Vista
$3017
14 km or 9 mi La Mesa
$2916
16 km or 9.8 mi Imperial Beach
$2911
18 km or 11 mi La Jolla
$2964
21 km or 13 mi El Cajon
$3043
24 km or 15 mi Tijuana
$1047
25 km or 15 mi Santee
$2898
30 km or 19 mi Poway
$2930
38 km or 24 mi Encinitas
$3124
40 km or 25 mi Las Delicias
$912
43 km or 26 mi Rosarito Beach
$910
46 km or 29 mi Escondido
$3279
47 km or 30 mi San Marcos
$2917
52 km or 33 mi Carlsbad
$3273
54 km or 33 mi Vista
$2834
57 km or 36 mi Oceanside
$3199
73 km or 46 mi Fallbrook
$2907
88 km or 55 mi Temecula
$2637
91 km or 57 mi San Clemente
$2945
95 km or 59 mi Murrieta
$3109
97 km or 61 mi Dana Point
$2936
98 km or 61 mi French Valley
$2732
99 km or 61 mi San Juan Capistrano
$2950
99 km or 61 mi Wildomar
$2763
104 km or 65 mi Laguna Niguel
$3188
107 km or 66 mi Laguna Beach
$2996
107 km or 67 mi Menifee
$2578
109 km or 68 mi Ensenada
$880
109 km or 68 mi Lake Elsinore
$2694
110 km or 68 mi Mission Viejo
$3496
110 km or 69 mi Laguna Hills
$3082
111 km or 69 mi Rancho Santa Margarita
$2971
114 km or 71 mi Aliso Viejo
$3326
114 km or 71 mi Lake Forest
$3020
115 km or 72 mi Hemet
$2764
119 km or 74 mi Perris
$2682
119 km or 74 mi Temescal Valley
$2759

Cities near Seattle

Distance City Cost of living
9.1 km or 5.7 mi Mercer Island
$2826
11 km or 6.5 mi Bellevue
$3273
14 km or 8.5 mi Kirkland
$2882
15 km or 9.2 mi Tukwila
$2624
15 km or 9.5 mi Burien
$2642
16 km or 10 mi Bainbridge Island
$2810
17 km or 10 mi Shoreline
$2973
17 km or 10 mi Renton
$2595
17 km or 11 mi Redmond
$3239
17 km or 11 mi Kenmore
$2718
19 km or 12 mi SeaTac
$2741
21 km or 13 mi Bothell
$2625
22 km or 14 mi Sammamish
$2759
22 km or 14 mi Edmonds
$2785
23 km or 14 mi Issaquah
$2606
24 km or 15 mi Des Moines
$2623
24 km or 15 mi Lynnwood
$2726
24 km or 15 mi Bremerton
$2462
26 km or 16 mi Kent
$2784
30 km or 19 mi Mill Creek
$2642
33 km or 20 mi Federal Way
$2532
34 km or 21 mi Maple Valley
$2579
35 km or 21 mi Mukilteo
$2637
35 km or 22 mi Auburn
$2338
41 km or 25 mi Everett
$2589
42 km or 26 mi Tacoma
$2517
46 km or 28 mi University Place
$2604
48 km or 30 mi Puyallup
$2644
50 km or 31 mi Lake Stevens
$2604
51 km or 32 mi Lakewood
$2449
52 km or 33 mi Marysville
$2598
57 km or 35 mi Spanaway
$2460
74 km or 46 mi Lacey
$2571
76 km or 47 mi Olympia
$2406
78 km or 48 mi Sequim
$2692
80 km or 50 mi Oak Harbor
$2751
90 km or 56 mi Mount Vernon
$2542
100 km or 62 mi Port Angeles
$2527
109 km or 68 mi Centralia
$2523
119 km or 74 mi Victoria
$2093