Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arima and Santiago

For one person, living is cheaper in Santiago: $1,206 a month against $1,300 in Arima, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. The total is higher in Arima despite lower rent and utilities.

62

Cost of Living Index in Arima
Learn more

Arima Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
Learn more

Santiago Living Index

Jump to prices

Arima

🇹🇹 Trinidad And Tobago

$1,300

/mo nomad

Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,206

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Arima 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 Arima and in Santiago actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,300 per month in Arima vs $1,206 in Santiago, rent included.

Arima $1,300
Santiago $1,206

A couple spends around $2,187 per month in Arima vs $1,885 in Santiago, rent included.

Arima $2,187
Santiago $1,885

A family of three spends $3,075 per month in Arima vs $2,564 in Santiago, rent included.

Arima $3,075
Santiago $2,564

Arima costs about 8% more than Santiago, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Arima and Santiago are more affordable than the global median – Arima 3% lower, Santiago 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.39 TTD 69.9

$10.19 CLP 9,954

1.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$74.9 TTD 504

$52.2 CLP 51.0K

43.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.08 TTD 61.1

$8.54 CLP 8,342

6.32%

Cappuccino

$3.75 TTD 25.24

$3.19 CLP 3,122

17.55%

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

$1.04 TTD 6.98

$1.68 CLP 1,641

-38.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.71 TTD 4.81

$1.22 CLP 1,194

-41.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.89 TTD 12.70

$4.21 CLP 4,110

-55.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.98 TTD 20.05

$4.66 CLP 4,550

-36.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.46 TTD 16.56

$1.32 CLP 1,286

86.36%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 TTD 16.02

$1.80 CLP 1,760

32.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.92 TTD 19.64

$1.58 CLP 1,547

84.81%

Eggs

$4.41 TTD 29.69

$4.25 CLP 4,151

3.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.60 TTD 44.39

$11.19 CLP 10.9K

-41.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.60 TTD 44.43

$6.75 CLP 6,596

-2.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.03 TTD 60.7

$10.67 CLP 10.4K

-15.37%

Apples (1kg)

$5.57 TTD 37.46

$2.04 CLP 1,995

173.04%

Banana (1kg)

$2.26 TTD 15.17

$1.53 CLP 1,500

47.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.68 TTD 24.73

$1.59 CLP 1,553

131.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.83 TTD 32.50

$1.75 CLP 1,712

176.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.32 TTD 8.87

$1.08 CLP 1,054

22.22%

Onion (1kg)

$0.96 TTD 6.43

$1.51 CLP 1,480

-36.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 TTD 9.43

$1.17 CLP 1,148

19.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 TTD 6.36

$1.07 CLP 1,043

-12.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.62 TTD 31.09

$5.14 CLP 5,027

-10.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.38 TTD 130

$5.88 CLP 5,745

229.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.91 TTD 12.84

$1.55 CLP 1,516

23.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.01 TTD 20.23

$2.27 CLP 2,223

32.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.06 TTD 7.14

$0.85 CLP 831

24.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.50 CLP 40.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.71 TTD 4.75

$0.39 CLP 383

82.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.70 TTD 4.74

$0.84 CLP 822

-16.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.52 TTD 97.7

$11.94 CLP 11.7K

21.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.15 TTD 7.76

$1.50 CLP 1,470

-23.33%

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

$27.2K TTD 183.2K

$18.1K CLP 17.7M

50.44%

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

$36.4K TTD 244.9K

$21.6K CLP 21.1M

68.40%

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

$89.6 TTD 603

$151 CLP 147.7K

-40.68%

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

$44.50 TTD 299

$12.04 CLP 11.8K

269.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.0 TTD 377

$18.93 CLP 18.5K

195.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.5 TTD 353

$33.81 CLP 33.0K

55.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.72 CLP 11.5K

Cinema Ticket

$8.63 TTD 58.0

$7.37 CLP 7,202

17.10%

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

$177 TTD 1,194

$434 CLP 424.3K

-59.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K TTD 74.3K

$11.0K CLP 10.7M

0.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.3 TTD 426

$50.9 CLP 49.7K

24.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.48 TTD 299

$29.16 CLP 28.5K

52.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$148 TTD 994

$67.4 CLP 65.8K

119.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.3 TTD 493

$80.3 CLP 78.4K

-8.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$522 TTD 3,509

$555 CLP 542.0K

-5.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$364 TTD 2,448

$372 CLP 364.0K

-2.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,043 TTD 7,021

$1,009 CLP 986.6K

3.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$887 TTD 5,969

$779 CLP 760.9K

13.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,671 CLP 2.6M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,622 CLP 2.6M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,209 TTD 8,132

$791 CLP 773.5K

52.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.75

5.39

6.68%

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

Last update for Arima: October 4, 2026

Last update for Santiago: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Arima

$364 28.6%

Santiago

$372 31.6% 2.4% $8.6

Groceries & Markets

Arima

$315 24.8%

Santiago

$236 20% 25% $79

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arima

$190 14.9%

Santiago

$182 15.5% 4.2% $8.1

Eating Out

Arima

$178 14%

Santiago

$187 15.9% 5.4% $9.6

Clothing & Footwear

Arima

$148 11.6%

Santiago

$102 8.7% 30.8% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Arima

$70 5.5%

Santiago

$49 4.1% 30.4% $21

Getting Around

Arima

$8.5 * 0.7%

Santiago

$50 4.2% 484% $41

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $522 in Arima versus $555 in Santiago. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 53% higher in Arima, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $75.0 in Arima versus $52.0 in Santiago. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $315 vs $236 – making Santiago the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇹 Arima

🇨🇱 Santiago

🕒 Local time

22:08 10:08 PM

23:08 11:08 PM

1 h ahead of Arima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

35,000

6,139,087 Capital

💱 Currency

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar TTD $

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 TTD = 0.149 USD

1 TTD = 0.133 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.23 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.12 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CLP, USD, EUR to TTD – Trinidad and Tobago Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago Dollar ($)

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 6.73 TTD (1 TTD = 0.149 USD). 1 EUR = 7.55 TTD (1 TTD = 0.133 EUR).

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 977 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,096 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.12 EUR).

USD to TTD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Arima Santiago 5,000 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Arima
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

Arima vs Santiago: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Arima costs about 8% more than Santiago, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,949 per month in Arima and $1,809 in Santiago. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Santiago, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,300 in Arima and $1,206 in Santiago. That's a gap of about 8%.

Kindergarten costs $177 per month in Arima and $434 in Santiago. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Santiago, where all-in costs run around $1,206, than in Arima at $1,300. In Santiago it covers expenses comfortably, while in Arima it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Santiago – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Santiago. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Arima makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.