Cost of living: Bogotá vs. New Jersey
Thinking of moving to the US? Compare the cost of living in any city with your hometown.
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Pick your hometown and the US city you're comparing it with.
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At a glance
Trains and the PATH get you into New York City without owning a car. Sending money home? Ria makes it fast and secure.
Life in New Jersey
New Jersey is the most densely populated US state, and its northern cities are closely tied to New York, with PATH trains running around the clock from Newark, Jersey City and Hoboken into Manhattan. Pharmaceuticals, finance and logistics drive much of its economy. The Jersey Shore lines about 141 miles of Atlantic coast, and Paterson's Little Lima is the largest Peruvian enclave outside South America.
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Known as the diner capital of the world.
Monthly breakdown
What everyday life costs in each city, side by side.
| Total |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Housing | $490 | $1,556 |
| Healthcare | $70 | $373 |
| Groceries | $150 | $487 |
| Utilities | $105 | $343 |
| Transit | $55 | $71 |
| Other | $395 | $535 |
Estimated monthly costs for one adult: typical rent across the metro area, USDA's moderate-cost food plan and U.S. government spending data — a typical budget, not a minimum.
Sources, updated September 2026: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (Regional Price Parities, 2024); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (Consumer Expenditure Surveys, 2024; Consumer Price Index); U.S. Department of Agriculture (Food Plans, July 2026); Federal Communications Commission (Urban Rate Survey, 2026); U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (Fair Market Rents, FY2026); U.S. Energy Information Administration (weekly retail gasoline prices); official fare pages of each city's transit agency; Latin America: crowdsourced cost-of-living platforms, used for reference.
Bogotá figures are collected from online sources.
Cost of living by US city
15 cities, ranked by monthly cost for one person
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Frequently asked questions
Is New Jersey more expensive than Bogotá?
For one adult, New Jersey is 2.7× more expensive than Bogotá: about $3,365 a month, compared with about $1,265 in Bogotá.
What is the monthly cost difference between Bogotá and New Jersey?
About $2,100 a month for one adult: $3,365 in New Jersey versus $1,265 in Bogotá. Change the number of adults above to see your household's figures.
Which costs change the most between Bogotá and New Jersey?
Healthcare shows the biggest jump: it costs 5.3× as much in New Jersey as in Bogotá.
How does rent compare between Bogotá and New Jersey?
A one-bedroom apartment rents for about $1,556 a month in New Jersey and about $490 in Bogotá. Rents exclude utilities.
Can a minimum-wage job cover the costs in New Jersey?
A full-time minimum-wage job in New Jersey ($15.92 an hour) pays about $2,759 a month before taxes. Typical costs for one adult there are about $3,365 a month. Add your income above to see what would be left each month.
How is the cost of living measured?
We add up typical monthly costs for one adult in six categories: housing, healthcare, groceries, utilities, transit and other everyday spending. U.S. figures are calculated from government data (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Bureau of Economic Analysis, HUD and the Energy Information Administration) plus transit agencies' published fares. Latin American figures come from crowdsourced cost-of-living platforms, and their healthcare costs are a modeled estimate. Minimum wages are each city's local rate where it has one, otherwise the state rate published by the U.S. Department of Labor. Both cities' figures were last updated in 2026.
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