Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chimaltenango and Santiago

For one person, living is cheaper in Chimaltenango: $745 a month against $1,206 in Santiago, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Santiago outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

37

Cost of Living Index in Chimaltenango
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Chimaltenango Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
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Santiago Living Index

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Chimaltenango

🇬🇹 Guatemala

$745

/mo nomad

Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,206

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $745 per month in Chimaltenango vs $1,206 in Santiago, rent included.

Chimaltenango $745
Santiago $1,206

A couple spends around $1,229 per month in Chimaltenango vs $1,885 in Santiago, rent included.

Chimaltenango $1,229
Santiago $1,885

A family of three spends $1,712 per month in Chimaltenango vs $2,564 in Santiago, rent included.

Chimaltenango $1,712
Santiago $2,564

Chimaltenango is about 38% cheaper than Santiago, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Chimaltenango and Santiago are more affordable than the global median – Chimaltenango 44% lower, Santiago 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.92 Q 52.9

$10.19 CLP 9,931

-32.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.80 Q 381

$52.2 CLP 50.9K

-4.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.69 Q 58.8

$8.54 CLP 8,323

-9.95%

Cappuccino

$3.36 Q 25.67

$3.19 CLP 3,115

5.33%

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

$1.16 Q 8.88

$1.68 CLP 1,637

-30.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.93 Q 7.10

$1.22 CLP 1,191

-23.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 Q 24.36

$4.21 CLP 4,101

-24.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.85 Q 37.04

$4.66 CLP 4,539

4.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.00 Q 15.30

$1.32 CLP 1,283

51.52%

White Bread (500g)

$3.13 Q 23.94

$1.80 CLP 1,756

73.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.09 Q 15.96

$1.58 CLP 1,543

32.28%

Eggs

$2.56 Q 19.59

$4.25 CLP 4,141

-39.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.46 Q 49.37

$11.19 CLP 10.9K

-42.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.44 Q 72.1

$6.75 CLP 6,580

39.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.47 Q 103

$10.67 CLP 10.4K

26.24%

Apples (1kg)

$4.00 Q 30.54

$2.04 CLP 1,991

96.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.66 Q 12.66

$1.53 CLP 1,497

8.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.82 Q 21.56

$1.59 CLP 1,549

77.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 Q 12.70

$1.75 CLP 1,708

-5.14%

Potato (1kg)

$1.48 Q 11.27

$1.08 CLP 1,051

37.04%

Onion (1kg)

$2.10 Q 16.08

$1.51 CLP 1,476

39.07%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.68 Q 5.17

$1.17 CLP 1,145

-41.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 Q 8.78

$1.07 CLP 1,041

7.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 Q 30.48

$5.14 CLP 5,015

-22.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.36 Q 63.9

$5.88 CLP 5,732

42.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.75 Q 13.36

$1.55 CLP 1,513

12.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.68 Q 20.49

$2.27 CLP 2,218

18.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 CLP 829

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.50 CLP 40.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.27 Q 40.28

$0.39 CLP 383

1251.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.84 CLP 820

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.27 Q 78.5

$11.94 CLP 11.6K

-13.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 Q 9.28

$1.50 CLP 1,467

-19.33%

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

$27.9K Q 213.3K

$18.1K CLP 17.7M

54.17%

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

$25.3K Q 193.1K

$21.6K CLP 21.1M

16.96%

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

$72.4 Q 553

$151 CLP 147.3K

-52.09%

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

$29.30 Q 224

$12.04 CLP 11.7K

143.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.04 Q 359

$18.93 CLP 18.5K

148.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.81 CLP 33.0K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.72 CLP 11.4K

Cinema Ticket

$6.34 Q 48.43

$7.37 CLP 7,185

-13.98%

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

$338 Q 2,583

$434 CLP 423.3K

-22.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,593 Q 50.4K

$11.0K CLP 10.7M

-40.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.38 Q 377

$50.9 CLP 49.6K

-2.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.63 Q 364

$29.16 CLP 28.4K

63.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 Q 889

$67.4 CLP 65.7K

72.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 Q 873

$80.3 CLP 78.2K

42.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$555 CLP 540.8K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$372 CLP 363.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,009 CLP 984.3K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$779 CLP 759.1K

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)

$791 CLP 771.7K

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 Chimaltenango: October 4, 2026

Last update for Santiago: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Chimaltenango

$282 37.7%

Santiago

$236 20% 16.4% $46

Eating Out

Chimaltenango

$153 20.4%

Santiago

$187 15.9% 22.6% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chimaltenango

$149 19.9%

Santiago

$182 15.5% 22.4% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Chimaltenango

$147 19.7%

Santiago

$102 8.7% 30.5% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Chimaltenango

$13 * 1.7%

Santiago

$49 4.1% 283% $36

Getting Around

Chimaltenango

$5.3 * 0.7%

Santiago

$50 4.2% 839% $44

Accommodation & Living

Chimaltenango

- * 0%

Santiago

$372 31.6%

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50.0 in Chimaltenango versus $52.0 in Santiago. Groceries tell a different story – $282 in Chimaltenango vs $236 in Santiago – so Santiago wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇹 Chimaltenango

🇨🇱 Santiago

🕒 Local time

01:19 1:19 AM

04:19 4:19 AM

3 h ahead of Chimaltenango

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

43,900

6,139,087 Capital

💱 Currency

Guatemalan Quetzal GTQ Q

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GTQ = 0.131 USD

1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.26 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.14 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 7.64 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.131 USD). 1 EUR = 8.57 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR).

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 975 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.03 USD). 1 EUR = 1,094 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.14 EUR).

USD to GTQ in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chimaltenango Santiago 5,760 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Chimaltenango
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

Chimaltenango vs Santiago: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Santiago costs about 62% more than Chimaltenango, 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 $1,117 per month in Chimaltenango and $1,809 in Santiago. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50.0 in Chimaltenango and $52.0 in Santiago. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 20% cheaper in Santiago – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Chimaltenango, where all-in costs run around $745, than in Santiago at $1,206. In Chimaltenango it covers expenses comfortably, while in Santiago it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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