Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Manzanillo and Santiago

For one person, living costs are similar in Manzanillo and in Santiago: $1,230 and $1,190 a month, rent and utilities included.

60

Cost of Living Index in Manzanillo
Learn more

Manzanillo Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
Learn more

Santiago Living Index

Jump to prices

Manzanillo

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,230

/mo nomad

Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,190

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,230 in Manzanillo versus $1,190 in Santiago.

Manzanillo $1,230
Santiago $1,190

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,152 in Manzanillo versus $1,892 in Santiago.

Manzanillo $2,152
Santiago $1,892

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,075 in Manzanillo versus $2,595 in Santiago.

Manzanillo $3,075
Santiago $2,595

Living in Manzanillo is roughly 3% more expensive than in Santiago, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Manzanillo 9% lower, Santiago 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.10 MX$205

$10.37 CLP 10.2K

7.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.44 MX$599

$51.7 CLP 50.9K

-37.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.83 MX$200

$8.94 CLP 8,805

21.14%

Cappuccino

$3.58 MX$66.2

$3.26 CLP 3,211

9.82%

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

$1.17 MX$21.59

$1.67 CLP 1,640

-29.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.17 MX$21.54

$1.23 CLP 1,212

-4.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.16 MX$40.00

$3.98 CLP 3,914

-45.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.39 MX$81.1

$4.54 CLP 4,465

-3.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.40

$1.28 CLP 1,263

15.62%

White Bread (500g)

$2.60 MX$47.96

$1.85 CLP 1,817

40.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.20 MX$22.26

$1.59 CLP 1,567

-24.53%

Eggs

$2.09 MX$38.64

$4.10 CLP 4,031

-49.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.28 MX$153

$11.41 CLP 11.2K

-27.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.41 MX$100

$6.69 CLP 6,586

-19.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.93 MX$184

$10.81 CLP 10.6K

-8.14%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 MX$54.2

$1.94 CLP 1,905

51.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.31

$1.52 CLP 1,497

-6.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.78 MX$32.89

$1.60 CLP 1,577

11.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.52 MX$28.14

$1.69 CLP 1,668

-10.06%

Potato (1kg)

$2.23 MX$41.12

$1.10 CLP 1,084

102.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.69 MX$31.24

$1.52 CLP 1,500

11.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.87 MX$34.57

$1.18 CLP 1,164

58.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.10

$1.08 CLP 1,061

11.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.44 MX$100

$5.07 CLP 4,995

7.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.62 MX$122

$5.95 CLP 5,858

11.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 MX$33.77

$1.49 CLP 1,470

22.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 MX$46.60

$2.38 CLP 2,342

5.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 MX$13.90

$0.83 CLP 821

-9.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.14 CLP 39.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.41 MX$44.55

$0.40 CLP 393

502.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.43 MX$44.84

$0.91 CLP 897

167.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.40 MX$174

$11.63 CLP 11.5K

-19.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 MX$25.17

$1.51 CLP 1,486

-9.93%

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

$20.9K MX$386.6K

$17.6K CLP 17.3M

19.05%

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

$24.4K MX$450.4K

$22.0K CLP 21.6M

10.88%

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

$65.5 MX$1,211

$151 CLP 149.0K

-56.73%

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

$19.83 MX$367

$12.34 CLP 12.1K

60.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.37 MX$543

$18.73 CLP 18.4K

56.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$65.3 MX$1,206

$33.71 CLP 33.2K

93.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$33.01 MX$610

$11.80 CLP 11.6K

179.75%

Cinema Ticket

$4.46 MX$82.4

$7.45 CLP 7,334

-40.13%

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

$163 MX$3,016

$430 CLP 423.7K

-62.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,172 MX$132.5K

$10.8K CLP 10.6M

-33.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.02 MX$795

$49.65 CLP 48.9K

-13.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.85 MX$459

$28.94 CLP 28.5K

-14.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.6 MX$1,397

$65.7 CLP 64.6K

15.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 MX$2,213

$80.7 CLP 79.4K

48.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$684 MX$12.6K

$559 CLP 550.4K

22.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$479 MX$8,845

$384 CLP 377.8K

24.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,519 MX$28.1K

$1,004 CLP 988.4K

51.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,373 MX$25.4K

$780 CLP 767.9K

76.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,640 CLP 2.6M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,546 CLP 2.5M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$409 MX$7,563

$804 CLP 791.0K

-49.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

5.39

109.65%

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

Last update for Manzanillo: October 12, 2026

Last update for Santiago: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Manzanillo

$479 38.9%

Santiago

$384 32.3% 19.8% $95

Groceries & Markets

Manzanillo

$233 18.9%

Santiago

$236 19.8% 1.3% $3.1

Eating Out

Manzanillo

$193 15.7%

Santiago

$189 15.9% 2% $3.8

Clothing & Footwear

Manzanillo

$118 9.6%

Santiago

$101 8.5% 14.6% $17

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Manzanillo

$115 9.3%

Santiago

$182 15.3% 59.1% $68

Sport & Entertainment

Manzanillo

$74 6%

Santiago

$49 4.1% 34.5% $26

Getting Around

Manzanillo

$18 * 1.4%

Santiago

$48 4.1% 176% $31

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 $684 in Manzanillo and $559 in Santiago. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Santiago pays 96% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32.00 in Manzanillo vs $52.0 in Santiago for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $233 vs $236 per month, with Manzanillo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Manzanillo

🇨🇱 Santiago

🕒 Local time

20:32 8:32 PM

23:32 11:32 PM

3 h ahead of Manzanillo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

159,853

6,139,087 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.16 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CLP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 984 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,107 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Manzanillo Santiago 6,840 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Manzanillo
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

Manzanillo vs Santiago: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Manzanillo and Santiago differ by about 3% in total monthly costs ($1,230 vs $1,190 including rent). Santiago is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 96% lower in Santiago. 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: $684 in Manzanillo versus $559 in Santiago. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Manzanillo pay roughly 1% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $1,230 per month in Manzanillo versus $1,190 in Santiago – a 3% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,190 in Santiago versus $1,230 in Manzanillo, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Santiago but tight or insufficient in Manzanillo. The gap between the two cities makes Santiago 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 Santiago gentler on the wallet – expenses run 3% less than in Manzanillo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.