Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kingston and Santiago

For one person, living is cheaper in Santiago: $1,206 a month against $2,224 in Kingston, rent and utilities included – about $12,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

108

Cost of Living Index in Kingston
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Kingston Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
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Santiago Living Index

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Kingston

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,224

/mo nomad

Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,206

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,224 per month in Kingston vs $1,206 in Santiago, rent included.

Kingston $2,224
Santiago $1,206

A couple spends around $3,051 per month in Kingston vs $1,885 in Santiago, rent included.

Kingston $3,051
Santiago $1,885

A family of three spends $3,879 per month in Kingston vs $2,564 in Santiago, rent included.

Kingston $3,879
Santiago $2,564

Kingston costs about 84% more than Santiago, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Kingston sits 66% above the global median, while Santiago is 10% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.71 CA$20.97

$10.19 CLP 9,931

44.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.7 CA$89.3

$52.2 CLP 50.9K

20.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.17 CA$15.92

$8.54 CLP 8,323

30.80%

Cappuccino

$3.51 CA$5.00

$3.19 CLP 3,115

10.03%

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

$2.01 CA$2.87

$1.68 CLP 1,637

19.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 CA$1.86

$1.22 CLP 1,191

7.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.87 CA$8.37

$4.21 CLP 4,101

39.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.27 CA$8.93

$4.66 CLP 4,539

34.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.04 CA$2.90

$1.32 CLP 1,283

54.55%

White Bread (500g)

$2.44 CA$3.48

$1.80 CLP 1,756

35.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.29 CA$4.69

$1.58 CLP 1,543

108.23%

Eggs

$2.90 CA$4.14

$4.25 CLP 4,141

-31.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.27 CA$14.64

$11.19 CLP 10.9K

-8.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.31 CA$16.12

$6.75 CLP 6,580

67.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.99 CA$14.24

$10.67 CLP 10.4K

-6.37%

Apples (1kg)

$2.89 CA$4.12

$2.04 CLP 1,991

41.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.14 CA$1.63

$1.53 CLP 1,497

-25.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.51 CA$5.00

$1.59 CLP 1,549

120.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.55 CA$5.06

$1.75 CLP 1,708

102.86%

Potato (1kg)

$3.30 CA$4.71

$1.08 CLP 1,051

205.56%

Onion (1kg)

$2.24 CA$3.19

$1.51 CLP 1,476

48.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.61 CA$3.72

$1.17 CLP 1,145

123.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 CA$2.26

$1.07 CLP 1,041

47.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.40 CA$19.10

$5.14 CLP 5,015

160.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.16 CA$17.33

$5.88 CLP 5,732

106.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.17 CA$3.09

$1.55 CLP 1,513

40.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.28 CA$4.68

$2.27 CLP 2,218

44.49%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.48 CA$3.54

$0.85 CLP 829

191.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.2 CA$80.0

$41.50 CLP 40.5K

35.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.07 CA$4.37

$0.39 CLP 383

687.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 CA$2.14

$0.84 CLP 820

78.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$31.06 CA$44.27

$11.94 CLP 11.6K

160.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.14 CA$1.63

$1.50 CLP 1,467

-24.00%

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

$27.6K CA$39.3K

$18.1K CLP 17.7M

52.24%

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

$18.7K CA$26.7K

$21.6K CLP 21.1M

-13.42%

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

$120 CA$171

$151 CLP 147.3K

-20.52%

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

$38.49 CA$54.9

$12.04 CLP 11.7K

219.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$63.2 CA$90.1

$18.93 CLP 18.5K

233.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.06 CA$40.00

$33.81 CLP 33.0K

-17.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.84 CA$12.60

$11.72 CLP 11.4K

-24.57%

Cinema Ticket

$10.41 CA$14.84

$7.37 CLP 7,185

41.25%

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

$514 CA$733

$434 CLP 423.3K

18.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K CLP 10.7M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.7 CA$73.7

$50.9 CLP 49.6K

1.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.55 CA$46.39

$29.16 CLP 28.4K

11.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.7 CA$114

$67.4 CLP 65.7K

18.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.3 CA$122

$80.3 CLP 78.2K

6.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,535 CA$2,188

$555 CLP 540.8K

176.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,181 CA$1,684

$372 CLP 363.2K

217.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,287 CA$3,260

$1,009 CLP 984.3K

126.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,544 CA$2,201

$779 CLP 759.1K

98.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,384 CA$4,824

$2,671 CLP 2.6M

26.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,449 CA$3,491

$2,622 CLP 2.6M

-6.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,979 CA$4,246

$791 CLP 771.7K

276.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.61

5.39

-14.47%

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

Last update for Kingston: October 5, 2026

Last update for Santiago: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kingston

$1.2K 53.3%

Santiago

$372 31.6% 68.5% $809

Groceries & Markets

Kingston

$326 14.7%

Santiago

$236 20% 27.4% $89

Eating Out

Kingston

$248 11.2%

Santiago

$187 15.9% 24.6% $61

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kingston

$222 10%

Santiago

$182 15.5% 17.9% $40

Clothing & Footwear

Kingston

$112 5.1%

Santiago

$102 8.7% 8.7% $9.7

Getting Around

Kingston

$77 3.5%

Santiago

$50 4.2% 35.4% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Kingston

$49 2.2%

Santiago

$49 4.1% 0.7% $0.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,535 in Kingston 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 276% higher in Kingston, 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 $63.0 in Kingston versus $52.0 in Santiago. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $326 vs $236 – making Santiago the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Kingston

🇨🇱 Santiago

🕒 Local time

09:01 9:01 AM

10:01 10:01 AM

1 h ahead of Kingston

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

123,363

6,139,087 Capital

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.702 USD

1 CAD = 0.626 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.26 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.15 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CLP, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 CAD (1 CAD = 0.702 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 CAD (1 CAD = 0.626 EUR).

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 975 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.03 USD). 1 EUR = 1,093 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.15 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Kingston Santiago 8,660 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Kingston
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

Kingston vs Santiago: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,224 in Kingston, $1,206 in Santiago – roughly 84% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,336 per month in Kingston 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 $2,224 in Kingston and $1,206 in Santiago. That's a gap of about 84%.

Public transport costs about 35% less in Santiago. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Santiago, where all-in costs run around $1,206, than in Kingston at $2,224. In Santiago it covers expenses comfortably, while in Kingston 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.

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