Job Discussion Forums

[james_tesol]

Just wondering what kind of lifestyle a salary of $775 (not including accomodation) would give me in San Jose ? I have tried to find info on prices but so far no luck. How far would that salary go?

Thanks

[rpbagwell]

Below is a sample monthly budget from

http://www.costarica.com/Home/Retirement/Cost_of_Living/Monthly_Family_Budget

It appears to be on the low side, especially the rent. But hopefully this will provide you with a general baseline to work with. You can also take a look at www.realcostarica.com. I've found lots of useful and practical info there.

Three bedroom house $260.00
Maid $2.17
House Cleaning (once a week) $26.00
Food (per person) $44.00
Water $7.00
Electricity $26.00
Telephone (base rate) $13.00
Cable TV $26.00
Transportation (per person) $26.00
Insurance $26.00
Miscellaneous $26.00
Entertainment (per person) $104.00
Total $584.00

[OleLarssen]

I'm fairly low maintenance and get by on 80 dollars a week excluding rent, and I could go lower if I had to. Approx 800 bucks is gonna carry you a long way here. Decent place to stay in a suburb is maybe 3-400 dollars, and you can go down to 150-250 bucks a month and still get something fairly nice, even if you have to compromise a bit on other things (buses, access to entertainment etc).

[davechile]