Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kingston and Jonesboro, AR

For one person, living is cheaper in Kingston: $1,668 a month against $2,110 in Jonesboro, AR, rent and utilities included – about $5,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

81

Cost of Living Index in Kingston
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Kingston Living Index
104

Cost of Living Index in Jonesboro, AR
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Jonesboro, AR Living Index

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Kingston

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$1,668

/mo nomad

Jonesboro, AR

🇺🇸 United States

$2,110

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Kingston and in Jonesboro, AR

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 Jonesboro, AR actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,668 in Kingston versus $2,110 in Jonesboro, AR.

Kingston $1,668
Jonesboro, AR $2,110

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,812 in Kingston versus $2,960 in Jonesboro, AR.

Kingston $2,812
Jonesboro, AR $2,960

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,955 in Kingston versus $3,809 in Jonesboro, AR.

Kingston $3,955
Jonesboro, AR $3,809

Living in Kingston costs roughly 21% less than in Jonesboro, AR, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Kingston 24% above, Jonesboro, AR 56% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.29 JMD 2,099

$27.13 $27.13

-51.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$73.8 JMD 11.7K

$60.7 $60.7

21.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.14 JMD 1,285

$10.45 $10.45

-22.11%

Cappuccino

$5.45 JMD 861

$4.93 $4.93

10.55%

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

$1.14 JMD 180

$2.21 $2.21

-48.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.72 JMD 115

$1.80 $1.80

-60.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.16 JMD 341

$4.38 $4.38

-50.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.11 JMD 491

$6.65 $6.65

-53.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$4.19 JMD 661

$1.13 $1.13

270.80%

White Bread (500g)

$3.78 JMD 598

$3.36 $3.36

12.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 JMD 254

$2.14 $2.14

-24.77%

Eggs

$3.48 JMD 550

$3.61 $3.61

-3.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.40 JMD 1,801

$8.87 $8.87

28.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.35 JMD 1,003

$8.76 $8.76

-27.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.40 JMD 1,644

$11.54 $11.54

-9.88%

Apples (1kg)

$6.05 JMD 957

$4.28 $4.28

41.36%

Banana (1kg)

$3.82 JMD 604

$1.08 $1.08

253.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$7.25 JMD 1,146

$2.96 $2.96

144.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.06 JMD 484

$3.86 $3.86

-20.73%

Potato (1kg)

$3.21 JMD 506

$1.71 $1.71

87.72%

Onion (1kg)

$2.62 JMD 415

$2.46 $2.46

6.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.13 JMD 494

$1.76 $1.76

77.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.44 JMD 228

$2.00 $2.00

-28.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.48 JMD 1,498

$8.10 $8.10

17.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.36 JMD 1,795

$13.55 $13.55

-16.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.86 JMD 453

$1.77 $1.77

61.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.88 JMD 613

$3.73 $3.73

4.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 JMD 119

$1.13 $1.13

-33.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.27 JMD 5,888

$29.75 $29.75

25.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.22 JMD 192

$3.04 $3.04

-59.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.20 JMD 505

$1.45 $1.45

120.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.31 JMD 996

$28.47 $28.47

-77.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.39 JMD 219

$0.84 $0.84

65.48%

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

$44.3K JMD 7.0M

$32.1K $32.1K

38.03%

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

$32.8K JMD 5.2M

$25.8K $25.8K

26.94%

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

$167 JMD 26.4K

$221 $221

-24.37%

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

$29.86 JMD 4,717

$45.73 $45.73

-34.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.4 JMD 8,443

$71.6 $71.6

-25.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.9 JMD 9,787

$40.18 $40.18

54.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.61 JMD 2,782

$10.90 $10.90

61.56%

Cinema Ticket

$13.15 JMD 2,078

$12.18 $12.18

7.96%

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

$359 JMD 56.7K

$763 $763

-53.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,382 JMD 1.3M

$8,367 $8,367

0.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.75 JMD 3,752

$63.4 $63.4

-62.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.13 JMD 4,918

$36.22 $36.22

-14.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.9 JMD 12.2K

$78.9 $78.9

-2.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$100 JMD 15.9K

$107 $107

-6.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$975 JMD 154.0K

$1,134 $1,134

-14.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$563 JMD 89.0K

$860 $860

-34.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,142 JMD 338.5K

$1,436 $1,436

49.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,421 JMD 224.6K

$1,140 $1,140

24.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,876 JMD 454.4K

$1,567 $1,567

83.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,044 JMD 323.0K

$1,557 $1,557

31.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 JMD 116.1K

$3,356 $3,356

-78.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.45

6.36

48.58%

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

Last update for Kingston: October 10, 2026

Last update for Jonesboro, AR: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kingston

$563 33.8%

Jonesboro, AR

$860 40.7% 52.7% $297

Groceries & Markets

Kingston

$384 23%

Jonesboro, AR

$316 15% 17.6% $68

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kingston

$250 15%

Jonesboro, AR

$338 16% 35.1% $88

Eating Out

Kingston

$221 13.2%

Jonesboro, AR

$359 17% 62.6% $138

Clothing & Footwear

Kingston

$105 6.3%

Jonesboro, AR

$129 6.1% 23% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Kingston

$88 5.3%

Jonesboro, AR

$65 3.1% 26.9% $24

Getting Around

Kingston

$57 3.5%

Jonesboro, AR

$45 2.1% 22.5% $13

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $975 in Kingston and $1,134 in Jonesboro, AR. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Jonesboro, AR pays 357% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $74.0 in Kingston vs $61.0 in Jonesboro, AR for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $316 per month, with Jonesboro, AR cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇯🇲 Kingston

🇺🇸 Jonesboro, AR

🕒 Local time

01:26 1:26 AM

Same time as Kingston

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

660,000 Capital

78,576

💱 Currency

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.63 EUR

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to JMD – Jamaican Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇲 Jamaican Dollar ($)

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.63 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

USD to JMD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Kingston Jonesboro, AR 2,410 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Kingston
Jonesboro, AR

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 Jonesboro, AR: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kingston is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and utilities. The 27% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 357% lower in Jonesboro, AR. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $975 in Kingston versus $1,134 in Jonesboro, AR. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,668 per month in Kingston versus $2,110 in Jonesboro, AR – a 27% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Kingston runs roughly 25% less than in Jonesboro, AR. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,668 in Kingston versus $2,110 in Jonesboro, AR, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Kingston but tight or insufficient in Jonesboro, AR. The gap between the two cities makes Kingston 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.

Expats usually find Kingston gentler on the wallet – expenses run 27% less than in Jonesboro, AR. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.