Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Antigua Guatemala and Santiago

For one person, living is cheaper in Santiago: $1,190 a month against $1,267 in Antigua Guatemala, rent and utilities included – about $920 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

61

Cost of Living Index in Antigua Guatemala
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Antigua Guatemala Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
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Santiago Living Index

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Antigua Guatemala

🇬🇹 Guatemala

$1,267

/mo nomad

Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,190

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Antigua Guatemala and in Santiago

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Antigua Guatemala and in Santiago actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,267 in Antigua Guatemala versus $1,190 in Santiago.

Antigua Guatemala $1,267
Santiago $1,190

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,106 in Antigua Guatemala versus $1,892 in Santiago.

Antigua Guatemala $2,106
Santiago $1,892

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,945 in Antigua Guatemala versus $2,595 in Santiago.

Antigua Guatemala $2,945
Santiago $2,595

Living in Antigua Guatemala is roughly 6% more expensive than in Santiago, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities sit below the global median: Antigua Guatemala 6% lower, Santiago 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.60 Q 50.4

$10.37 CLP 10.2K

-36.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$51.4 Q 393

$51.7 CLP 50.9K

-0.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.91 Q 60.5

$8.94 CLP 8,805

-11.52%

Cappuccino

$3.24 Q 24.80

$3.26 CLP 3,211

-0.61%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.16 Q 8.84

$1.67 CLP 1,640

-30.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.92 Q 7.00

$1.23 CLP 1,212

-25.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 Q 24.35

$3.98 CLP 3,914

-20.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.67 Q 35.68

$4.54 CLP 4,465

2.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.10 Q 16.02

$1.28 CLP 1,263

64.06%

White Bread (500g)

$3.14 Q 24.00

$1.85 CLP 1,817

69.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.96 Q 15.00

$1.59 CLP 1,567

23.27%

Eggs

$2.32 Q 17.74

$4.10 CLP 4,031

-43.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.42 Q 41.44

$11.41 CLP 11.2K

-52.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.21 Q 70.4

$6.69 CLP 6,586

37.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.21 Q 78.0

$10.81 CLP 10.6K

-5.55%

Apples (1kg)

$3.86 Q 29.55

$1.94 CLP 1,905

98.97%

Banana (1kg)

$1.64 Q 12.57

$1.52 CLP 1,497

7.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.81 Q 21.50

$1.60 CLP 1,577

75.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 Q 12.66

$1.69 CLP 1,668

-1.78%

Potato (1kg)

$1.47 Q 11.24

$1.10 CLP 1,084

33.64%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 Q 13.23

$1.52 CLP 1,500

13.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.69 Q 5.31

$1.18 CLP 1,164

-41.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 Q 9.29

$1.08 CLP 1,061

12.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.84 Q 29.36

$5.07 CLP 4,995

-24.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.69 Q 58.8

$5.95 CLP 5,858

29.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 Q 13.67

$1.49 CLP 1,470

20.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 Q 20.76

$2.38 CLP 2,342

13.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.58 Q 19.76

$0.83 CLP 821

210.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.14 CLP 39.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.69 Q 35.84

$0.40 CLP 393

1072.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.91 CLP 897

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.63 Q 81.2

$11.63 CLP 11.5K

-8.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 Q 10.16

$1.51 CLP 1,486

-11.92%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$22.7K Q 173.6K

$17.6K CLP 17.3M

29.22%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$21.8K Q 166.8K

$22.0K CLP 21.6M

-0.77%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$57.4 Q 439

$151 CLP 149.0K

-62.10%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$29.74 Q 227

$12.34 CLP 12.1K

141.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.70 Q 349

$18.73 CLP 18.4K

143.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.50 Q 317

$33.71 CLP 33.2K

23.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.20 Q 216

$11.80 CLP 11.6K

138.98%

Cinema Ticket

$6.39 Q 48.83

$7.45 CLP 7,334

-14.23%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$346 Q 2,645

$430 CLP 423.7K

-19.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,755 Q 51.6K

$10.8K CLP 10.6M

-37.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.31 Q 339

$49.65 CLP 48.9K

-10.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.03 Q 367

$28.94 CLP 28.5K

65.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.1 Q 704

$65.7 CLP 64.6K

40.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.0 Q 611

$80.7 CLP 79.4K

-0.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$865 Q 6,610

$559 CLP 550.4K

54.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$531 Q 4,059

$384 CLP 377.8K

38.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,864 Q 14.3K

$1,004 CLP 988.4K

85.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,180 Q 9,024

$780 CLP 767.9K

51.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,064 Q 23.4K

$2,640 CLP 2.6M

16.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,227 Q 9,385

$2,546 CLP 2.5M

-51.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$626 Q 4,786

$804 CLP 791.0K

-22.10%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.62

5.39

115.58%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Antigua Guatemala: October 12, 2026

Last update for Santiago: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Antigua Guatemala

$531 41.9%

Santiago

$384 32.3% 27.7% $147

Groceries & Markets

Antigua Guatemala

$266 21%

Santiago

$236 19.8% 11.3% $30

Eating Out

Antigua Guatemala

$149 11.8%

Santiago

$189 15.9% 27.2% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Antigua Guatemala

$133 10.5%

Santiago

$182 15.3% 37.4% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Antigua Guatemala

$119 9.4%

Santiago

$101 8.5% 14.9% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Antigua Guatemala

$54 4.3%

Santiago

$49 4.1% 10.4% $5.7

Getting Around

Antigua Guatemala

$15 * 1.2%

Santiago

$48 4.1% 222% $33

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $865 in Antigua Guatemala and $559 in Santiago. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Santiago pays 28% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $51.0 in Antigua Guatemala vs $52.0 in Santiago. Groceries flip the comparison at $266 vs $236, with Santiago cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇹 Antigua Guatemala

🇨🇱 Santiago

🕒 Local time

04:07 4:07 AM

07:07 7:07 AM

3 h ahead of Antigua Guatemala

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

46,054

6,139,087 Capital

💱 Currency

Guatemalan Quetzal GTQ Q

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GTQ = 0.131 USD

1 GTQ = 0.116 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.16 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CLP, USD, EUR to GTQ – Guatemalan Quetzal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇹 Guatemalan Quetzal (Q)

Guatemalan Quetzal exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 7.65 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.131 USD). 1 EUR = 8.6 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.116 EUR).

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 984 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,107 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR).

USD to GTQ in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Antigua Guatemala Santiago 5,750 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Antigua Guatemala
Santiago

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Antigua Guatemala vs Santiago: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Antigua Guatemala and Santiago differ by about 6% in total monthly costs ($1,267 vs $1,190 including rent). Santiago is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 28% lower in Santiago. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $865 in Antigua Guatemala versus $559 in Santiago. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $346 in Antigua Guatemala versus $430 in Santiago. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Santiago – a meal for two runs $52.0 versus $51.0 in Antigua Guatemala. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,190 in Santiago versus $1,267 in Antigua Guatemala, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Santiago but tight or insufficient in Antigua Guatemala. The gap between the two cities makes Santiago the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Antigua Guatemala and Santiago are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Santiago gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Antigua Guatemala. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.