Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Quetzaltenango and Pokhara

For one person, living is cheaper in Pokhara: $495 a month against $1,148 in Quetzaltenango, rent and utilities included – about $7,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

56

Cost of Living Index in Quetzaltenango
Learn more

Quetzaltenango Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Pokhara
Learn more

Pokhara Living Index

Jump to prices

Quetzaltenango

🇬🇹 Guatemala

$1,148

/mo nomad

Pokhara

🇳🇵 Nepal

$495

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Quetzaltenango and in Pokhara

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Quetzaltenango and in Pokhara actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,148 per month in Quetzaltenango vs $495 in Pokhara, rent included.

Quetzaltenango $1,148
Pokhara $495

A couple spends around $1,444 per month in Quetzaltenango vs $758 in Pokhara, rent included.

Quetzaltenango $1,444
Pokhara $758

A family of three spends $1,741 per month in Quetzaltenango vs $1,021 in Pokhara, rent included.

Quetzaltenango $1,741
Pokhara $1,021

Quetzaltenango costs about 132% more than Pokhara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Quetzaltenango and Pokhara are more affordable than the global median – Quetzaltenango 15% lower, Pokhara 63% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.78 Q 51.9

$2.56 NPR 389

164.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.64 Q 380

$13.29 NPR 2,019

273.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.66 Q 58.6

$6.67 NPR 1,014

14.84%

Cappuccino

$3.26 Q 24.91

$1.08 NPR 165

201.85%

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

$1.15 Q 8.77

$0.51 NPR 77.9

125.49%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.91 Q 6.97

$0.16 NPR 23.58

468.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 Q 25.60

$2.55 NPR 387

31.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.66 Q 35.65

$3.57 NPR 542

30.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.01 Q 15.36

$0.82 NPR 124

145.12%

White Bread (500g)

$2.66 Q 20.33

$0.67 NPR 102

297.01%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.13 Q 16.30

$0.66 NPR 100

222.73%

Eggs

$2.51 Q 19.16

$1.79 NPR 273

40.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.44 Q 49.23

$5.74 NPR 872

12.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.96 Q 60.9

$3.09 NPR 470

157.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 Q 98.3

$5.66 NPR 860

127.21%

Apples (1kg)

$2.86 Q 21.90

$2.52 NPR 383

13.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 Q 13.02

$1.25 NPR 190

36.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.92 Q 22.30

$1.19 NPR 181

145.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.64 Q 12.55

$0.65 NPR 99.5

152.31%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 Q 11.81

$0.41 NPR 62.1

278.05%

Onion (1kg)

$2.19 Q 16.71

$0.86 NPR 131

154.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.69 Q 5.31

$0.40 NPR 60.6

72.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 Q 9.10

$0.29 NPR 44.57

310.34%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.35 Q 25.64

$2.58 NPR 392

29.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.09 Q 61.9

$10.94 NPR 1,662

-26.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 Q 13.18

$2.40 NPR 364

-28.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 Q 20.70

$3.78 NPR 574

-28.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.20 NPR 30.36

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.35 NPR 2,940

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.15 Q 39.38

$1.59 NPR 241

223.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.73 Q 13.22

$0.76 NPR 115

127.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.56 Q 80.8

$2.59 NPR 394

307.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.38 Q 10.57

$1.18 NPR 179

16.95%

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

$27.5K Q 210.6K

$32.5K NPR 4.9M

-15.35%

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

$25.3K Q 193.3K

$34.9K NPR 5.3M

-27.50%

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

$72.7 Q 556

$64.4 NPR 9,782

12.99%

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

$13.06 Q 99.9

$5.20 NPR 790

151.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.29 Q 354

$6.95 NPR 1,056

566.04%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.89 Q 251

$19.67 NPR 2,989

67.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.40 NPR 1,276

Cinema Ticket

$6.35 Q 48.54

$2.48 NPR 377

156.05%

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

$342 Q 2,611

$48.45 NPR 7,362

604.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,757 Q 51.7K

$1,976 NPR 300.2K

241.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.0 Q 382

$18.79 NPR 2,854

166.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.61 Q 356

$36.53 NPR 5,550

27.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Q 844

$35.20 NPR 5,348

213.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 Q 857

$30.88 NPR 4,692

262.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$397 Q 3,037

$128 NPR 19.4K

211.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$398 Q 3,046

$85.9 NPR 13.1K

363.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$240 NPR 36.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$161 NPR 24.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,801 NPR 273.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$603 NPR 91.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$180 NPR 27.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.62

12.5

-7.04%

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

Last update for Quetzaltenango: October 11, 2026

Last update for Pokhara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Quetzaltenango

$398 34.7%

Pokhara

$86 17.4% 78.4% $312

Groceries & Markets

Quetzaltenango

$264 23%

Pokhara

$152 30.7% 42.3% $112

Eating Out

Quetzaltenango

$151 13.1%

Pokhara

$76 15.4% 49.5% $75

Clothing & Footwear

Quetzaltenango

$144 12.5%

Pokhara

$55 11% 61.9% $89

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Quetzaltenango

$132 11.5%

Pokhara

$77 15.5% 42.1% $56

Sport & Entertainment

Quetzaltenango

$46 4%

Pokhara

$25 5% 46% $21

Getting Around

Quetzaltenango

$14 * 1.2%

Pokhara

$26 5.2% 85% $12

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $397 in Quetzaltenango versus $128 in Pokhara. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50.0 in Quetzaltenango versus $13.00 in Pokhara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $264 vs $152 – making Pokhara the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇹 Quetzaltenango

🇳🇵 Pokhara

🕒 Local time

00:01 12:01 AM

11:46 11:46 AM

11 h 45 min ahead of Quetzaltenango

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

500,000

💱 Currency

Guatemalan Quetzal GTQ Q

Nepalese Rupee NPR रु

📈 Exchange rate

1 GTQ = 0.131 USD

1 GTQ = 0.116 EUR

1,000 NPR = 6.58 USD

1,000 NPR = 5.85 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NPR, USD, EUR to GTQ – Guatemalan Quetzal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇹 Guatemalan Quetzal (Q)

Guatemalan Quetzal exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 7.65 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.131 USD). 1 EUR = 8.6 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.116 EUR).

Nepalese Rupee exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 152 NPR (1,000 NPR = 6.58 USD). 1 EUR = 171 NPR (1,000 NPR = 5.85 EUR).

USD to GTQ in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Quetzaltenango Pokhara 15,200 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Quetzaltenango
Pokhara

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

Quetzaltenango vs Pokhara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,148 in Quetzaltenango, $495 in Pokhara – roughly 132% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,722 per month in Quetzaltenango and $743 in Pokhara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Pokhara, 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 $1,148 in Quetzaltenango and $495 in Pokhara. That's a gap of about 132%.

Kindergarten costs $342 per month in Quetzaltenango and $48.45 in Pokhara. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Pokhara, where all-in costs run around $495, than in Quetzaltenango at $1,148. In Pokhara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Quetzaltenango it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Pokhara has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $495 in Pokhara to $1,148 in Quetzaltenango. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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