Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arima and Couva

For one person, living is cheaper in Couva: $1,158 a month against $1,273 in Arima, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

61

Cost of Living Index in Arima
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Arima Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Couva
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Couva Living Index

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Arima

🇹🇹 Trinidad And Tobago

$1,273

/mo nomad

Couva

🇹🇹 Trinidad And Tobago

$1,158

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Arima and in Couva

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

A single person spends $1,273 per month in Arima vs $1,158 in Couva, rent included.

Arima $1,273
Couva $1,158

A couple spends around $2,161 per month in Arima vs $1,754 in Couva, rent included.

Arima $2,161
Couva $1,754

A family of three spends $3,049 per month in Arima vs $2,350 in Couva, rent included.

Arima $3,049
Couva $2,350

Arima costs about 10% more than Couva, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both Arima and Couva are more affordable than the global median – Arima 6% lower, Couva 15% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.24 TTD 68.8

$10.52 TTD 70.6

-2.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$74.8 TTD 502

$59.4 TTD 398

25.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.91 TTD 59.8

$8.17 TTD 54.8

9.06%

Cappuccino

$3.63 TTD 24.35

$3.82 TTD 25.66

-4.97%

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

$1.04 TTD 6.96

$1.04 TTD 6.97

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.72 TTD 4.84

$0.73 TTD 4.88

-1.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.81 TTD 12.15

$1.82 TTD 12.19

-0.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.91 TTD 19.54

$2.51 TTD 16.88

15.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.39 TTD 16.06

$2.04 TTD 13.66

17.16%

White Bread (500g)

$2.44 TTD 16.41

$2.28 TTD 15.28

7.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 TTD 18.79

$2.89 TTD 19.42

-3.11%

Eggs

$4.41 TTD 29.57

$3.76 TTD 25.23

17.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.49 TTD 43.54

$6.81 TTD 45.71

-4.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.67 TTD 44.78

$9.93 TTD 66.7

-32.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.20 TTD 61.8

$8.92 TTD 59.9

3.14%

Apples (1kg)

$5.38 TTD 36.10

$5.68 TTD 38.12

-5.28%

Banana (1kg)

$2.24 TTD 15.07

$2.45 TTD 16.45

-8.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.61 TTD 24.24

$3.60 TTD 24.20

0.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.77 TTD 32.03

$4.25 TTD 28.52

12.24%

Potato (1kg)

$1.34 TTD 8.96

$0.76 TTD 5.09

76.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 TTD 6.90

$0.76 TTD 5.09

35.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 TTD 9.15

$1.52 TTD 10.18

-10.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 TTD 6.48

$1.21 TTD 8.10

-20.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.76 TTD 31.97

$5.52 TTD 37.05

-13.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.44 TTD 130

$17.54 TTD 118

10.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 TTD 12.28

$1.55 TTD 10.42

18.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.10 TTD 20.80

$3.01 TTD 20.19

2.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.04 TTD 6.99

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.72 TTD 4.84

$0.86 TTD 5.77

-16.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 TTD 4.73

$0.91 TTD 6.13

-21.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.02 TTD 101

$14.85 TTD 99.7

1.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.13 TTD 7.57

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

$27.4K TTD 184.0K

$36.8K TTD 246.8K

-25.43%

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

$36.4K TTD 244.2K

$40.6K TTD 272.5K

-10.39%

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

$91.2 TTD 613

$44.53 TTD 299

104.90%

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

$44.14 TTD 296

$42.99 TTD 289

2.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.5 TTD 373

$46.38 TTD 311

19.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 TTD 346

Cinema Ticket

$8.61 TTD 57.8

$8.83 TTD 59.3

-2.49%

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

$180 TTD 1,212

$401 TTD 2,692

-54.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.7K TTD 72.1K

$11.0K TTD 73.8K

-2.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.5 TTD 419

$54.0 TTD 362

15.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.47 TTD 292

$36.41 TTD 244

19.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$144 TTD 970

$87.6 TTD 588

64.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.7 TTD 488

$87.7 TTD 589

-17.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$510 TTD 3,424

$416 TTD 2,790

22.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$372 TTD 2,496

$387 TTD 2,601

-4.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,048 TTD 7,034

$522 TTD 3,506

100.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$895 TTD 6,010

$481 TTD 3,228

86.16%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,200 TTD 8,056

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.75

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

Last update for Arima: October 25, 2026

Last update for Couva: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Arima

$372 29.2%

Couva

$387 33.5% 4.2% $16

Groceries & Markets

Arima

$314 24.6%

Couva

$319 27.5% 1.6% $4.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arima

$191 15%

Couva

$134 11.6% 29.9% $57

Eating Out

Arima

$174 13.7%

Couva

$176 15.2% 0.9% $1.6

Clothing & Footwear

Arima

$145 11.4%

Couva

$120 10.3% 17.8% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Arima

$69 5.4%

Couva

$18 * 1.5% 74.3% $51

Getting Around

Arima

$8.4 * 0.7%

Couva

$5.4 * 0.5% 35.4% $3

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $510 in Arima versus $416 in Couva. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $75 in Arima versus $59 in Couva. Groceries tell a different story – $314 in Arima vs $319 in Couva – so Arima wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇹 Arima

🇹🇹 Couva

🕒 Local time

07:04 7:04 AM

Same time as Arima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

35,000

48,858

💱 Currency

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar TTD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 TTD = 0.149 USD

1 TTD = 0.134 EUR

1 TTD = 0.149 USD

1 TTD = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Arima Couva 31 km

From you

Arima
Couva

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

Arima vs Couva: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Arima costs about 10% more than Couva, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from leisure. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,909 per month in Arima and $1,737 in Couva. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Couva, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $416 there versus $510 in Arima.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,273 in Arima and $1,158 in Couva. That’s a gap of about 10%.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $75 in Arima and $59 in Couva. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,273 in Arima and $1,158 in Couva, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Couva has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,158 in Couva to $1,273 in Arima. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.