Cost of living comparison

compared to
San Francisco vs. Reykjavik Cost of Living Summary

San Francisco is 2.3 times more expensive than Reykjavik.

Restaurants
pay 4.5% less in San Francisco
Groceries
pay 48.3% more in San Francisco
Transportation
pay 9.1% less in San Francisco
Housing
pay 90.9% more in San Francisco
Childcare
pay 8.8 times more in San Francisco
Entertainment and Sports
pay 9.0% more in San Francisco
Clothing
pay 29.1% less in San Francisco

The cost of childcare, housing, groceries, and entertainment and sports in San Francisco are more expensive than in Reykjavik. Expenses including clothing, transportation, and restaurants are lower in San Francisco. Notably, childcare and housing are significantly more expensive in San Francisco.

San Francisco vs. Reykjavik Cost Breakdown

If you lived in San Francisco instead of Reykjavik, you would:

pay 4.5% less for restaurants

 
Reykjavik
San Francisco
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $20.00
ISK2,796
$25.00
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$18.02
ISK2,519
$12.00
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $3.15
ISK441
$2.83
 

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pay 48.3% more for groceries

 
Reykjavik
San Francisco
Bread
1 loaf
$3.61
ISK505
$4.86
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $7.76
ISK1,084
$11.38
 
Milk (1 gallon) $6.40
ISK895
$5.98
 

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pay 9.1% less for transportation

 
Reykjavik
San Francisco
Gasoline (1 gallon) $8.50
ISK1,188
$5.27
 
Monthly public transit pass $74.95
ISK10,477
$98.00
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $42,450.45
ISK5,933,724
$36,753.89
 

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pay 90.9% more for housing

 
Reykjavik
San Francisco
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$69.87
ISK9,766
$65.19
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,971.17
ISK275,530
$3,110.17
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,803.44
ISK252,085
$2,750.00
 

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pay 8.8 times more for childcare

 
Reykjavik
San Francisco
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $252.14
ISK35,244
$2,829.63
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $5,993.99
ISK837,840
$38,000.00
 

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pay 9.0% more for entertainment and sports

 
Reykjavik
San Francisco
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $10.81
ISK1,511
$8.00
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $5.31
ISK742
$5.64
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$12.25
ISK1,712
$14.00
 

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pay 29.1% less for clothing

 
Reykjavik
San Francisco
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$108.97
ISK15,232
$61.43
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$49.72
ISK6,950
$45.08
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$151.85
ISK21,226
$104.32
 

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: January 2025
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