Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Glendale, CA and Guatemala City

For one person, living is cheaper in Guatemala City: $1,347 a month against $3,146 in Glendale, CA, rent and utilities included – about $21,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

150

Cost of Living Index in Glendale, CA
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Glendale, CA Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Guatemala City
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Guatemala City Living Index

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Glendale, CA

🇺🇸 United States

$3,146

/mo nomad

Guatemala City

🇬🇹 Guatemala

$1,347

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Glendale, CA and in Guatemala City

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,146 in Glendale, CA versus $1,347 in Guatemala City.

Glendale, CA $3,146
Guatemala City $1,347

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,831 in Glendale, CA versus $2,028 in Guatemala City.

Glendale, CA $4,831
Guatemala City $2,028

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,517 in Glendale, CA versus $2,710 in Guatemala City.

Glendale, CA $6,517
Guatemala City $2,710

Living in Glendale, CA is roughly 134% more expensive than in Guatemala City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.40 $25.40

$7.76 Q 59.3

227.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$76.8 $76.8

$49.88 Q 381

54.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.18 $15.18

$7.72 Q 59.0

96.63%

Cappuccino

$5.92 $5.92

$3.31 Q 25.28

78.85%

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

$3.12 $3.12

$1.17 Q 8.98

166.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 $2.32

$1.01 Q 7.75

129.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.27 $7.27

$3.18 Q 24.29

128.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.17 $10.17

$4.71 Q 36.00

115.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 $1.39

$2.08 Q 15.88

-33.17%

White Bread (500g)

$5.02 $5.02

$3.11 Q 23.78

61.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.74 $4.74

$2.12 Q 16.19

123.58%

Eggs

$5.52 $5.52

$2.44 Q 18.68

126.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.12 $11.12

$6.19 Q 47.28

79.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.02 $9.02

$9.64 Q 73.7

-6.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.84 $19.84

$13.48 Q 103

47.18%

Apples (1kg)

$4.62 $4.62

$3.98 Q 30.43

16.08%

Banana (1kg)

$2.25 $2.25

$1.65 Q 12.58

36.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.09 $4.09

$2.83 Q 21.66

44.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.57 $5.57

$1.63 Q 12.48

241.72%

Potato (1kg)

$3.31 $3.31

$1.53 Q 11.70

116.34%

Onion (1kg)

$2.78 $2.78

$2.18 Q 16.63

27.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.94 $1.94

$0.69 Q 5.26

181.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 $2.66

$1.17 Q 8.94

127.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.93 $11.93

$4.01 Q 30.62

197.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.17 $15.17

$8.08 Q 61.7

87.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.45 $2.45

$1.79 Q 13.71

36.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.80 $2.80

$2.68 Q 20.46

4.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.03 $1.03

$1.01 Q 7.69

1.98%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$64.4 $64.4

$11.11 Q 84.9

479.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.64 $3.64

$5.17 Q 39.48

-29.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.16 $2.16

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$38.62 $38.62

$10.66 Q 81.5

262.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.59 $1.59

$1.37 Q 10.47

16.06%

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

$29.3K $29.3K

$27.1K Q 207.4K

8.05%

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

$27.1K $27.1K

$24.9K Q 190.7K

8.76%

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

$219 $219

$73.1 Q 559

199.41%

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

$79.0 $79.0

$29.48 Q 225

167.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$71.7 $71.7

$45.73 Q 349

56.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$15.25 $15.25

$38.04 Q 291

-59.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.79 Q 97.8

Cinema Ticket

$18.19 $18.19

$6.57 Q 50.2

176.86%

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

$1,192 $1,192

$338 Q 2,582

252.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K $12.6K

$15.8K Q 120.8K

-20.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.6 $61.6

$49.96 Q 382

23.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.43 $47.43

$47.37 Q 362

0.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$120 $120

$119 Q 908

0.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$203 $203

$111 Q 845

83.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,885 $2,885

$835 Q 6,383

245.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,622 $1,622

$538 Q 4,114

201.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,623 $4,623

$1,568 Q 12.0K

194.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,195 $3,195

$823 Q 6,292

288.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,838 $2,838

$2,041 Q 15.6K

39.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,342 $2,342

$1,099 Q 8,398

113.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,126 $5,126

$846 Q 6,463

506.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.53

11.62

-43.80%

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

Last update for Glendale, CA: November 3, 2026

Last update for Guatemala City: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Glendale, CA

$1.6K 51.6%

Guatemala City

$538 40% 66.8% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Glendale, CA

$427 13.6%

Guatemala City

$283 21% 33.8% $144

Eating Out

Glendale, CA

$398 12.7%

Guatemala City

$159 11.8% 60.1% $239

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Glendale, CA

$370 11.8%

Guatemala City

$148 11% 59.9% $221

Clothing & Footwear

Glendale, CA

$194 6.2%

Guatemala City

$147 10.9% 24.3% $47

Getting Around

Glendale, CA

$83 2.6%

Guatemala City

$20 * 1.5% 75.5% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Glendale, CA

$52 1.6%

Guatemala City

$51 3.8% 0.9% $0.4

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 $2,885 in Glendale, CA and $835 in Guatemala City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Glendale, CA pays about 6.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $77 in Glendale, CA vs $50 in Guatemala City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $427 vs $283 per month, with Guatemala City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Glendale, CA

🇬🇹 Guatemala City

🕒 Local time

05:19 5:19 AM

07:19 7:19 AM

2 h ahead of Glendale, CA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

200,831

2,450,212 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Guatemalan Quetzal GTQ Q

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 GTQ = 0.131 USD

1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GTQ, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇬🇹 Guatemalan Quetzal (Q)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Guatemalan Quetzal exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 7.64 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.131 USD). 1 EUR = 8.58 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR).

GTQ to USD in detail →

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Glendale, CA Guatemala City 3,530 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Glendale, CA
Guatemala City

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

Glendale, CA vs Guatemala City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Guatemala City is about 57% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Glendale, CA is about 6.1 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: $2,885 in Glendale, CA versus $835 in Guatemala City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Guatemala City runs roughly 83% less than in Glendale, CA. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $1,192 in Glendale, CA versus $338 in Guatemala City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Guatemala City is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

For families, Guatemala City is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Glendale, CA, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Guatemala City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 57% less than in Glendale, CA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.