Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Maria, CA and Guatemala City

For one person, living is cheaper in Guatemala City: $1,347 a month against $2,950 in Santa Maria, CA, rent and utilities included – about $19,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

140

Cost of Living Index in Santa Maria, CA
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Santa Maria, CA Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Guatemala City
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Guatemala City Living Index

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Santa Maria, CA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,950

/mo nomad

Guatemala City

🇬🇹 Guatemala

$1,347

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Santa Maria, CA and in Guatemala City

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,950 in Santa Maria, CA versus $1,347 in Guatemala City.

Santa Maria, CA $2,950
Guatemala City $1,347

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,175 in Santa Maria, CA versus $2,028 in Guatemala City.

Santa Maria, CA $4,175
Guatemala City $2,028

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,401 in Santa Maria, CA versus $2,710 in Guatemala City.

Santa Maria, CA $5,401
Guatemala City $2,710

Living in Santa Maria, CA is roughly 119% more expensive than in Guatemala City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.97 $12.97

$7.76 Q 59.3

67.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.0 $61.0

$49.88 Q 381

22.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.16 $10.16

$7.72 Q 59.0

31.61%

Cappuccino

$6.12 $6.12

$3.31 Q 25.28

84.89%

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

$3.58 $3.58

$1.17 Q 8.98

205.98%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.98 $1.98

$1.01 Q 7.75

96.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.57 $7.57

$3.18 Q 24.29

138.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.44 $9.44

$4.71 Q 36.00

100.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.04 $1.04

$2.08 Q 15.88

-50.00%

White Bread (500g)

$4.08 $4.08

$3.11 Q 23.78

31.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.88 $4.88

$2.12 Q 16.19

130.19%

Eggs

$4.60 $4.60

$2.44 Q 18.68

88.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.84 $8.84

$6.19 Q 47.28

42.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.44 $7.44

$9.64 Q 73.7

-22.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.27 $13.27

$13.48 Q 103

-1.56%

Apples (1kg)

$1.36 $1.36

$3.98 Q 30.43

-65.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 $1.40

$1.65 Q 12.58

-15.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.58 $2.58

$2.83 Q 21.66

-8.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.23 $3.23

$1.63 Q 12.48

98.16%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 $1.85

$1.53 Q 11.70

20.92%

Onion (1kg)

$1.07 $1.07

$2.18 Q 16.63

-50.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.92 $1.92

$0.69 Q 5.26

178.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.87 $1.87

$1.17 Q 8.94

59.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.90 $11.90

$4.01 Q 30.62

196.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.06 $15.06

$8.08 Q 61.7

86.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.00 $2.00

$1.79 Q 13.71

11.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.27 $4.27

$2.68 Q 20.46

59.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.97 $1.97

$1.01 Q 7.69

95.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$49.41 $49.41

$11.11 Q 84.9

344.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.19 $3.19

$5.17 Q 39.48

-38.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.80 $1.80

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.66 $35.66

$10.66 Q 81.5

234.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 $1.28

$1.37 Q 10.47

-6.57%

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

$28.4K $28.4K

$27.1K Q 207.4K

4.70%

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

$26.8K $26.8K

$24.9K Q 190.7K

7.46%

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

$160 $160

$73.1 Q 559

118.61%

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

$67.2 $67.2

$29.48 Q 225

127.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$59.7 $59.7

$45.73 Q 349

30.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.42 $29.42

$38.04 Q 291

-22.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.79 Q 97.8

Cinema Ticket

$15.22 $15.22

$6.57 Q 50.2

131.66%

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

$1,901 $1,901

$338 Q 2,582

462.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.3K $18.3K

$15.8K Q 120.8K

15.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.36 $48.36

$49.96 Q 382

-3.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.82 $39.82

$47.37 Q 362

-15.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.5 $93.5

$119 Q 908

-21.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 $125

$111 Q 845

13.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,172 $2,172

$835 Q 6,383

159.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,788 $1,788

$538 Q 4,114

232.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,413 $3,413

$1,568 Q 12.0K

117.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,893 $2,893

$823 Q 6,292

251.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$9,693 $9,693

$2,041 Q 15.6K

375.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$9,375 $9,375

$1,099 Q 8,398

753.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,281 $4,281

$846 Q 6,463

406.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.31

11.62

-45.70%

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

Last update for Santa Maria, CA: November 2, 2026

Last update for Guatemala City: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santa Maria, CA

$1.8K 60.6%

Guatemala City

$538 40% 69.9% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Santa Maria, CA

$321 10.9%

Guatemala City

$283 21% 11.8% $38

Eating Out

Santa Maria, CA

$287 9.7%

Guatemala City

$159 11.8% 44.5% $128

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santa Maria, CA

$287 9.7%

Guatemala City

$148 11% 48.3% $138

Clothing & Footwear

Santa Maria, CA

$138 4.7%

Guatemala City

$147 10.9% 6.5% $8.9

Getting Around

Santa Maria, CA

$69 2.4%

Guatemala City

$20 * 1.5% 70.8% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Santa Maria, CA

$60 2%

Guatemala City

$51 3.8% 14.5% $8.7

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 $2,172 in Santa Maria, CA and $835 in Guatemala City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Santa Maria, CA pays about 5.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $61 in Santa Maria, CA vs $50 in Guatemala City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $321 vs $283 per month, with Guatemala City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Santa Maria, CA

🇬🇹 Guatemala City

🕒 Local time

10:52 10:52 AM

12:52 12:52 PM

2 h ahead of Santa Maria, CA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

107,408

2,450,212 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Guatemalan Quetzal GTQ Q

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 GTQ = 0.131 USD

1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GTQ, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇬🇹 Guatemalan Quetzal (Q)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Guatemalan Quetzal exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 7.64 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.131 USD). 1 EUR = 8.58 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR).

GTQ to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Santa Maria, CA Guatemala City 3,750 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Santa Maria, CA
Guatemala City

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

Santa Maria, CA vs Guatemala City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Guatemala City wins on cost – living expenses run 54% lower than in Santa Maria, CA. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Guatemala City the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Santa Maria, CA is about 5.1 times higher, 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: $2,172 in Santa Maria, CA versus $835 in Guatemala City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Guatemala City – a meal for two runs $50 versus $61 in Santa Maria, CA. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,950 per month in Santa Maria, CA versus $1,347 in Guatemala City – Guatemala City is about 54% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Guatemala City is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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 Guatemala City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 54% less than in Santa Maria, CA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.