Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Quebec City and Santiago

For one person, living is cheaper in Santiago: $1,206 a month against $1,893 in Quebec City, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

91

Cost of Living Index in Quebec City
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Quebec City Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
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Santiago Living Index

Jump to prices

Quebec City

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,893

/mo nomad

Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,206

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,893 in Quebec City versus $1,206 in Santiago.

Quebec City $1,893
Santiago $1,206

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,839 in Quebec City versus $1,885 in Santiago.

Quebec City $2,839
Santiago $1,885

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,785 in Quebec City versus $2,564 in Santiago.

Quebec City $3,785
Santiago $2,564

Living in Quebec City is roughly 57% more expensive than in Santiago, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Quebec City is 41% above, Santiago is 10% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.19 CA$30.14

$10.19 CLP 9,954

107.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.1 CA$91.1

$52.2 CLP 51.0K

22.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.97 CA$15.60

$8.54 CLP 8,342

28.45%

Cappuccino

$3.66 CA$5.21

$3.19 CLP 3,122

14.73%

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

$2.07 CA$2.95

$1.68 CLP 1,641

23.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 CA$2.01

$1.22 CLP 1,194

15.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.58 CA$7.93

$4.21 CLP 4,110

32.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.56 CA$7.91

$4.66 CLP 4,550

19.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.12 CA$3.01

$1.32 CLP 1,286

60.61%

White Bread (500g)

$2.85 CA$4.05

$1.80 CLP 1,760

58.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.25 CA$6.04

$1.58 CLP 1,547

168.99%

Eggs

$3.18 CA$4.52

$4.25 CLP 4,151

-25.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.87 CA$12.62

$11.19 CLP 10.9K

-20.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 CA$14.96

$6.75 CLP 6,596

55.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.39 CA$14.78

$10.67 CLP 10.4K

-2.62%

Apples (1kg)

$4.21 CA$5.99

$2.04 CLP 1,995

106.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 CA$2.26

$1.53 CLP 1,500

3.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.70 CA$5.26

$1.59 CLP 1,553

132.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.91 CA$5.56

$1.75 CLP 1,712

123.43%

Potato (1kg)

$2.86 CA$4.06

$1.08 CLP 1,054

164.81%

Onion (1kg)

$2.79 CA$3.97

$1.51 CLP 1,480

84.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.69 CA$3.83

$1.17 CLP 1,148

129.91%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.43 CA$2.03

$1.07 CLP 1,043

33.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.87 CA$21.16

$5.14 CLP 5,027

189.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.16 CA$15.88

$5.88 CLP 5,745

89.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.15 CA$4.48

$1.55 CLP 1,516

103.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 CA$4.84

$2.27 CLP 2,223

49.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.77 CA$3.93

$0.85 CLP 831

225.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$69.6 CA$99.0

$41.50 CLP 40.6K

67.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.90 CA$4.13

$0.39 CLP 383

643.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.11

$0.84 CLP 822

76.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$34.24 CA$48.70

$11.94 CLP 11.7K

186.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 CA$1.78

$1.50 CLP 1,470

-16.67%

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

$28.3K CA$40.2K

$18.1K CLP 17.7M

56.23%

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

$21.3K CA$30.3K

$21.6K CLP 21.1M

-1.46%

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

$100 CA$143

$151 CLP 147.7K

-33.66%

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

$31.82 CA$45.26

$12.04 CLP 11.8K

164.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.74 CA$63.6

$18.93 CLP 18.5K

136.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.56 CA$49.16

$33.81 CLP 33.0K

2.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.27 CA$21.72

$11.72 CLP 11.5K

30.29%

Cinema Ticket

$10.87 CA$15.46

$7.37 CLP 7,202

47.49%

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

$685 CA$975

$434 CLP 424.3K

57.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,148 CA$13.0K

$11.0K CLP 10.7M

-16.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.7 CA$84.9

$50.9 CLP 49.7K

17.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.2 CA$71.4

$29.16 CLP 28.5K

72.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.7 CA$128

$67.4 CLP 65.8K

33.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 CA$153

$80.3 CLP 78.4K

34.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,025 CA$1,458

$555 CLP 542.0K

84.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$774 CA$1,101

$372 CLP 364.0K

107.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,565 CA$2,226

$1,009 CLP 986.6K

55.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,278 CA$1,818

$779 CLP 760.9K

64.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,737 CA$6,737

$2,671 CLP 2.6M

77.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,731 CA$3,884

$2,622 CLP 2.6M

4.15%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,037 CA$4,320

$791 CLP 773.5K

283.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.44

5.39

-17.63%

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

Last update for Quebec City: October 3, 2026

Last update for Santiago: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Quebec City

$774 41.2%

Santiago

$372 31.6% 51.9% $401

Groceries & Markets

Quebec City

$342 18.2%

Santiago

$236 20% 30.8% $105

Eating Out

Quebec City

$299 16%

Santiago

$187 15.9% 37.4% $112

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Quebec City

$177 9.4%

Santiago

$182 15.5% 3% $5.3

Clothing & Footwear

Quebec City

$138 7.4%

Santiago

$102 8.7% 25.9% $36

Getting Around

Quebec City

$91 4.9%

Santiago

$50 4.2% 45.6% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Quebec City

$56 3%

Santiago

$49 4.1% 13.8% $7.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,025 in Quebec City and $555 in Santiago. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Quebec City pays 284% 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: $64.0 in Quebec City vs $52.0 in Santiago for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $342 vs $236 per month, with Santiago cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Quebec City

🇨🇱 Santiago

🕒 Local time

01:47 1:47 AM

02:47 2:47 AM

1 h ahead of Quebec City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

530,168

6,139,087 Capital

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.703 USD

1 CAD = 0.627 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.23 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.12 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 = 1.42 CAD (1 CAD = 0.703 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 CAD (1 CAD = 0.627 EUR).

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 977 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,096 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.12 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

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Quebec City Santiago 8,920 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Quebec City
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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

Quebec City vs Santiago: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Santiago wins on cost – living expenses run 57% lower than in Quebec City. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Santiago the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 284% higher in Quebec City, 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: $1,025 in Quebec City versus $555 in Santiago. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,893 per month in Quebec City versus $1,206 in Santiago – a 57% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Santiago runs roughly 68% less than in Quebec City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,206 in Santiago versus $1,893 in Quebec City, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Santiago but tight or insufficient in Quebec City. 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 57% less than in Quebec City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.