Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Couva and Arima

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.

55

Cost of Living Index in Couva
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Couva Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Arima
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Arima Living Index

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Couva

🇹🇹 Trinidad And Tobago

$1,158

/mo nomad

Arima

🇹🇹 Trinidad And Tobago

$1,273

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Couva and in Arima

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

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

Couva $1,158
Arima $1,273

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

Couva $1,754
Arima $2,161

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

Couva $2,350
Arima $3,049

Couva is about 9% cheaper than Arima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.52 TTD 70.6

$10.24 TTD 68.8

2.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$59.4 TTD 398

$74.8 TTD 502

-20.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.17 TTD 54.8

$8.91 TTD 59.8

-8.31%

Cappuccino

$3.82 TTD 25.66

$3.63 TTD 24.35

5.23%

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

$1.04 TTD 6.97

$1.04 TTD 6.96

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.73 TTD 4.88

$0.72 TTD 4.84

1.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.82 TTD 12.19

$1.81 TTD 12.15

0.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.51 TTD 16.88

$2.91 TTD 19.54

-13.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.04 TTD 13.66

$2.39 TTD 16.06

-14.64%

White Bread (500g)

$2.28 TTD 15.28

$2.44 TTD 16.41

-6.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.89 TTD 19.42

$2.80 TTD 18.79

3.21%

Eggs

$3.76 TTD 25.23

$4.41 TTD 29.57

-14.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.81 TTD 45.71

$6.49 TTD 43.54

4.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.93 TTD 66.7

$6.67 TTD 44.78

48.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.92 TTD 59.9

$9.20 TTD 61.8

-3.04%

Apples (1kg)

$5.68 TTD 38.12

$5.38 TTD 36.10

5.58%

Banana (1kg)

$2.45 TTD 16.45

$2.24 TTD 15.07

9.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.60 TTD 24.20

$3.61 TTD 24.24

-0.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.25 TTD 28.52

$4.77 TTD 32.03

-10.90%

Potato (1kg)

$0.76 TTD 5.09

$1.34 TTD 8.96

-43.28%

Onion (1kg)

$0.76 TTD 5.09

$1.03 TTD 6.90

-26.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 TTD 10.18

$1.36 TTD 9.15

11.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 TTD 8.10

$0.96 TTD 6.48

26.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.52 TTD 37.05

$4.76 TTD 31.97

15.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.54 TTD 118

$19.44 TTD 130

-9.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 TTD 10.42

$1.83 TTD 12.28

-15.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.01 TTD 20.19

$3.10 TTD 20.80

-2.90%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.04 TTD 6.99

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.86 TTD 5.77

$0.72 TTD 4.84

19.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.91 TTD 6.13

$0.71 TTD 4.73

28.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.85 TTD 99.7

$15.02 TTD 101

-1.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.13 TTD 7.57

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

$36.8K TTD 246.8K

$27.4K TTD 184.0K

34.09%

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

$40.6K TTD 272.5K

$36.4K TTD 244.2K

11.59%

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

$44.53 TTD 299

$91.2 TTD 613

-51.19%

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

$42.99 TTD 289

$44.14 TTD 296

-2.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.38 TTD 311

$55.5 TTD 373

-16.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 TTD 346

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 TTD 59.3

$8.61 TTD 57.8

2.56%

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

$401 TTD 2,692

$180 TTD 1,212

122.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K TTD 73.8K

$10.7K TTD 72.1K

2.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.0 TTD 362

$62.5 TTD 419

-13.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.41 TTD 244

$43.47 TTD 292

-16.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.6 TTD 588

$144 TTD 970

-39.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.7 TTD 589

$72.7 TTD 488

20.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$416 TTD 2,790

$510 TTD 3,424

-18.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$387 TTD 2,601

$372 TTD 2,496

4.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$522 TTD 3,506

$1,048 TTD 7,034

-50.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$481 TTD 3,228

$895 TTD 6,010

-46.28%

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 Couva: October 25, 2026

Last update for Arima: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Couva

$387 33.5%

Arima

$372 29.2% 4% $16

Groceries & Markets

Couva

$319 27.5%

Arima

$314 24.6% 1.6% $4.9

Eating Out

Couva

$176 15.2%

Arima

$174 13.7% 0.9% $1.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Couva

$134 11.6%

Arima

$191 15% 42.6% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Couva

$120 10.3%

Arima

$145 11.4% 21.6% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Couva

$18 * 1.5%

Arima

$69 5.4% 289% $51

Getting Around

Couva

$5.4 * 0.5%

Arima

$8.4 * 0.7% 54.9% $3

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $416 in Couva versus $510 in Arima. 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 $59 in Couva versus $75 in Arima. Groceries tell a different story – $319 in Couva vs $314 in Arima – so Arima wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇹 Couva

🇹🇹 Arima

🕒 Local time

06:18 6:18 AM

Same time as Couva

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

48,858

35,000

💱 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

Couva Arima 31 km

From you

Couva
Arima

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

Couva vs Arima: 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 $1,737 per month in Couva and $1,909 in Arima. 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 $1,158 in Couva and $1,273 in Arima. That’s a gap of about 10%.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $59 in Couva and $75 in Arima. 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 $1,158 in Couva and $1,273 in Arima, 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.