Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Merrillville, IN and Santiago

For one person, living is cheaper in Santiago: $1,183 a month against $2,597 in Merrillville, IN, rent and utilities included – about $17,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

122

Cost of Living Index in Merrillville, IN
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Merrillville, IN Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
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Santiago Living Index

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Merrillville, IN

🇺🇸 United States

$2,597

/mo nomad

Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,183

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,597 in Merrillville, IN versus $1,183 in Santiago.

Merrillville, IN $2,597
Santiago $1,183

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,672 in Merrillville, IN versus $1,882 in Santiago.

Merrillville, IN $3,672
Santiago $1,882

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,748 in Merrillville, IN versus $2,581 in Santiago.

Merrillville, IN $4,748
Santiago $2,581

Living in Merrillville, IN is roughly 119% more expensive than in Santiago, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Merrillville, IN is 92% above, Santiago is 13% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.93 $14.93

$10.15 CLP 9,995

47.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.9 $55.9

$51.9 CLP 51.1K

7.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.88 $9.88

$8.56 CLP 8,423

15.42%

Cappuccino

$4.63 $4.63

$3.15 CLP 3,101

46.98%

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

$2.19 $2.19

$1.71 CLP 1,685

28.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.24 $2.24

$1.28 CLP 1,255

75.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.54 $4.54

$4.18 CLP 4,118

8.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.90 $5.90

$4.46 CLP 4,390

32.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.74 $0.74

$1.29 CLP 1,269

-42.64%

White Bread (500g)

$3.19 $3.19

$1.76 CLP 1,737

81.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.54 $4.54

$1.66 CLP 1,630

173.49%

Eggs

$4.63 $4.63

$4.21 CLP 4,140

9.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.10 $11.10

$11.08 CLP 10.9K

0.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.61 $9.61

$6.75 CLP 6,641

42.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.94 $21.94

$10.76 CLP 10.6K

103.90%

Apples (1kg)

$5.75 $5.75

$1.96 CLP 1,927

193.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.12 $1.12

$1.54 CLP 1,518

-27.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.39 $4.39

$1.58 CLP 1,560

177.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.49 $5.49

$1.74 CLP 1,713

215.52%

Potato (1kg)

$3.68 $3.68

$1.09 CLP 1,075

237.61%

Onion (1kg)

$4.40 $4.40

$1.53 CLP 1,509

187.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.45 $2.45

$1.18 CLP 1,163

107.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 $1.27

$1.08 CLP 1,060

17.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.36 $11.36

$5.18 CLP 5,101

119.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.22 $12.22

$6.17 CLP 6,070

98.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.08 $2.08

$1.53 CLP 1,511

35.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.43 $3.43

$2.36 CLP 2,325

45.34%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.02 $2.02

$0.84 CLP 824

140.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.44 CLP 40.8K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.95 $4.95

$0.42 CLP 416

1078.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.87 $1.87

$0.88 CLP 869

112.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$50.3 $50.3

$11.49 CLP 11.3K

337.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.93 $0.93

$1.49 CLP 1,462

-37.58%

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

$27.9K $27.9K

$17.2K CLP 17.0M

61.61%

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

$27.0K $27.0K

$25.6K CLP 25.2M

5.56%

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

$233 $233

$149 CLP 146.3K

56.47%

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

$50.9 $50.9

$12.11 CLP 11.9K

319.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$59.0 $59.0

$19.13 CLP 18.8K

208.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.50 $47.50

$33.30 CLP 32.8K

42.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.51 CLP 11.3K

Cinema Ticket

$14.98 $14.98

$7.32 CLP 7,208

104.64%

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

$1,397 $1,397

$436 CLP 429.2K

220.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.4K $20.4K

$11.0K CLP 10.8M

86.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.3 $53.3

$49.17 CLP 48.4K

8.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.39 $40.39

$29.11 CLP 28.7K

38.75%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 $106

$65.5 CLP 64.5K

62.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.7 $95.7

$80.1 CLP 78.9K

19.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,510 $1,510

$554 CLP 545.8K

172.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,374 $1,374

$383 CLP 376.6K

259.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,410 $2,410

$1,002 CLP 986.5K

140.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,148 $2,148

$775 CLP 762.5K

177.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,523 $2,523

$2,708 CLP 2.7M

-6.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 $2,195

$2,613 CLP 2.6M

-16.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$778 CLP 766.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.53

5.39

21.15%

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

Last update for Merrillville, IN: October 19, 2026

Last update for Santiago: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Merrillville, IN

$1.4K 52.9%

Santiago

$383 32.3% 72.2% $992

Groceries & Markets

Merrillville, IN

$390 15%

Santiago

$236 20% 39.5% $154

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Merrillville, IN

$342 13.2%

Santiago

$180 15.2% 47.5% $163

Eating Out

Merrillville, IN

$257 9.9%

Santiago

$186 15.8% 27.4% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Merrillville, IN

$133 5.1%

Santiago

$101 8.5% 24.3% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Merrillville, IN

$77 3%

Santiago

$48 4.1% 38.1% $30

Getting Around

Merrillville, IN

$22 * 0.9%

Santiago

$50 4.2% 122% $27

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 $1,510 in Merrillville, IN and $554 in Santiago. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $56.0 in Merrillville, IN vs $52.0 in Santiago for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $390 vs $236 per month, with Santiago cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Merrillville, IN

🇨🇱 Santiago

🕒 Local time

16:22 4:22 PM

18:22 6:22 PM

2 h ahead of Merrillville, IN

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

36,444

6,139,087 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.16 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CLP, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇱 Chilean Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

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

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 984 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,107 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR).

CLP to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Merrillville, IN Santiago 8,500 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Merrillville, IN
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

Merrillville, IN vs Santiago: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Merrillville, IN and Santiago differ by about 119% in total monthly costs ($2,597 vs $1,183 including rent). Santiago is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $3,895 in Merrillville, IN and $1,775 in Santiago to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,510 in Merrillville, IN versus $554 in Santiago. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 65% higher in Merrillville, IN. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,597 per month in Merrillville, IN versus $1,183 in Santiago – a 119% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,183 in Santiago versus $2,597 in Merrillville, IN, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Santiago but tight or insufficient in Merrillville, IN. 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 119% less than in Merrillville, IN. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.