Median rent is 7% lower in San Francisco ($2,476/mo vs $2,669/mo). Buying is cheaper in San Jose, where the median home runs $1,233,200 versus $1,394,500. Households earn more in San Jose ($146,427 vs $140,970 a year).
City A
San Francisco, CA
City B
San Jose, CA
How much would you need to earn in San Jose, CA to maintain your standard of living from San Francisco, CA?
A cost-of-living index isn't available for one of these cities yet, so we can't compute an equivalent salary.
Based on BEA Regional Price Parity (cost index) for each metro area. This estimates overall purchasing power; it does not account for taxes or take-home pay differences.
Metric
San Francisco
California
San Jose
California
Population
Median Household Income
Annual
Median Gross Rent
Per month
Median Home Value
Cost of Living Index
US avg = 100
1BR Fair Market Rent
HUD FMR
2BR Fair Market Rent
HUD FMR
3BR Fair Market Rent
HUD FMR
Air Quality Index
Lower = cleaner
Top State Income Tax
Top marginal rate
State Sales Tax
Statewide base rate
Median Age
Years
✓ = better value · Sources: Census ACS, BEA, HUD Fair Market Rents, EPA AirNow, Tax Foundation
Median rent is modestly lower in San Francisco at $2,476/mo compared to $2,669/mo in San Jose (7% gap). Median home values are within 12% of each other: $1,394,500 in San Francisco and $1,233,200 in San Jose.
Metric
San Francisco
San Jose
Software Developer
Registered Nurse
Elementary Teacher
Electrician
Accountant
Higher wage highlighted · BLS OEWS 2023 (metro-level data)
State tax data is not yet available for these cities.
San Francisco
Income tax: N/A
Sales tax: N/A
San Jose
Income tax: N/A
Sales tax: N/A
Air quality data is available for San Jose (avg AQI 65.0) but not yet for San Francisco.
Cost of living index data is not yet available for one or both cities.
Median rent is $2,476/mo in San Francisco, CA and $2,669/mo in San Jose, CA. San Francisco, CA has the lower rent by about 7%.
Median household income is $140,970 in San Francisco, CA and $146,427 in San Jose, CA. San Jose, CA has the higher median income. Note that BLS occupational wages in the table above show wages for specific jobs.
Air quality data is not yet available for one or both cities.
State tax data is not yet available for one or both cities.
RPP data needed for salary equivalence calculation is not yet available.
Data last updated: June 1, 2026 · Sources: US Census ACS, BEA RPP, BLS OEWS, HUD FMR, EPA AirNow, Tax Foundation · Methodology
