Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Augusta, ME and Santiago

For one person, living is cheaper in Santiago: $1,163 a month against $2,388 in Augusta, ME, rent and utilities included – about $14,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

114

Cost of Living Index in Augusta, ME
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Augusta, ME Living Index
56

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
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Santiago Living Index

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Augusta, ME

🇺🇸 United States

$2,388

/mo nomad

Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,163

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,388 in Augusta, ME versus $1,163 in Santiago.

Augusta, ME $2,388
Santiago $1,163

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,317 in Augusta, ME versus $1,844 in Santiago.

Augusta, ME $3,317
Santiago $1,844

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,246 in Augusta, ME versus $2,525 in Santiago.

Augusta, ME $4,246
Santiago $2,525

Living in Augusta, ME is roughly 105% more expensive than in Santiago, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Augusta, ME is 75% above, Santiago is 15% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.90 $19.90

$9.93 CLP 9,705

100.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$53.1 $53.1

$49.88 CLP 48.7K

6.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 $10.39

$8.64 CLP 8,444

20.25%

Cappuccino

$5.40 $5.40

$3.16 CLP 3,089

70.89%

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

$2.36 $2.36

$1.65 CLP 1,615

43.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.59 $1.59

$1.24 CLP 1,215

28.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.02 $5.02

$4.12 CLP 4,024

21.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.72 $7.72

$4.60 CLP 4,499

67.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.14 $1.14

$1.22 CLP 1,194

-6.56%

White Bread (500g)

$4.56 $4.56

$1.82 CLP 1,774

150.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.45 $1.45

$1.58 CLP 1,546

-8.23%

Eggs

$3.96 $3.96

$4.04 CLP 3,949

-1.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.09 $15.09

$10.96 CLP 10.7K

37.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.12 $14.12

$6.66 CLP 6,508

112.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.52 $19.52

$10.32 CLP 10.1K

89.15%

Apples (1kg)

$7.48 $7.48

$2.02 CLP 1,969

270.30%

Banana (1kg)

$1.31 $1.31

$1.49 CLP 1,454

-12.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.09 $3.09

$1.58 CLP 1,542

95.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.59 $4.59

$1.72 CLP 1,676

166.86%

Potato (1kg)

$2.33 $2.33

$1.04 CLP 1,020

124.04%

Onion (1kg)

$2.86 $2.86

$1.51 CLP 1,475

89.40%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.08 $2.08

$1.22 CLP 1,190

70.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 $1.81

$1.10 CLP 1,075

64.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.98 $11.98

$5.10 CLP 4,980

134.90%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.99 $12.99

$5.93 CLP 5,794

119.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.56 $1.56

$1.48 CLP 1,446

5.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.55 $1.55

$2.25 CLP 2,196

-31.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.84 CLP 819

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.64 CLP 39.7K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.55 $2.55

$0.38 CLP 372

571.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.27 $1.27

$0.82 CLP 800

54.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.55 $28.55

$11.53 CLP 11.3K

147.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.90 $0.90

$1.52 CLP 1,490

-40.79%

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

$29.6K $29.6K

$16.8K CLP 16.4M

75.74%

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

$24.3K $24.3K

$24.9K CLP 24.4M

-2.61%

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

$243 $243

$146 CLP 142.4K

66.75%

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

$45.59 $45.59

$12.20 CLP 11.9K

273.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$61.0 $61.0

$18.80 CLP 18.4K

224.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$22.60 $22.60

$32.41 CLP 31.7K

-30.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.68 CLP 11.4K

Cinema Ticket

$14.13 $14.13

$7.58 CLP 7,410

86.41%

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

$2,656 $2,656

$440 CLP 429.7K

503.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.6K $36.6K

$10.7K CLP 10.4M

243.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$73.5 $73.5

$48.81 CLP 47.7K

50.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.9 $50.9

$28.87 CLP 28.2K

76.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 $113

$64.4 CLP 62.9K

75.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$154 $154

$80.9 CLP 79.1K

90.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,200 $1,200

$497 CLP 485.6K

141.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 $1,078

$373 CLP 364.9K

188.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,602 $1,602

$989 CLP 966.1K

62.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,473 $1,473

$750 CLP 732.8K

96.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,386 $2,386

$2,960 CLP 2.9M

-19.40%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,378 $2,378

$2,517 CLP 2.5M

-5.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,948 $1,948

$771 CLP 753.4K

152.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.3

5.39

16.88%

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

Last update for Augusta, ME: October 24, 2026

Last update for Santiago: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Augusta, ME

$1.1K 45.2%

Santiago

$373 32.1% 65.4% $705

Groceries & Markets

Augusta, ME

$413 17.3%

Santiago

$232 19.9% 43.9% $181

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Augusta, ME

$349 14.6%

Santiago

$177 15.2% 49.4% $173

Eating Out

Augusta, ME

$312 13%

Santiago

$185 15.9% 40.7% $127

Clothing & Footwear

Augusta, ME

$176 7.4%

Santiago

$100 8.6% 43.1% $76

Sport & Entertainment

Augusta, ME

$51 2.1%

Santiago

$48 4.1% 6.5% $3.3

Getting Around

Augusta, ME

$8.9 * 0.4%

Santiago

$48 4.2% 445% $40

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 $1,200 in Augusta, ME and $497 in Santiago. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Augusta, ME pays about 2.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $53 in Augusta, ME vs $50 in Santiago for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $413 vs $232 per month, with Santiago cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Augusta, ME

🇨🇱 Santiago

🕒 Local time

10:51 10:51 AM

11:51 11:51 AM

1 h ahead of Augusta, ME

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

194,343

6,139,087 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.899 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.23 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CLP, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇱 Chilean Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.899 EUR).

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 977 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,088 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.2 EUR).

CLP to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Augusta, ME Santiago 8,650 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Augusta, ME
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

Augusta, ME vs Santiago: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Augusta, ME and Santiago differ by about 105% in total monthly costs ($2,388 vs $1,163 including rent). Santiago is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Augusta, ME is about 2.5 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,200 in Augusta, ME versus $497 in Santiago. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,656 in Augusta, ME versus $440 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 $50 versus $53 in Augusta, ME. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,163 in Santiago versus $2,388 in Augusta, ME, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Santiago but tight or insufficient in Augusta, ME. 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.

It comes down to priorities – Santiago wins on affordability, Augusta, ME on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.