Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santiago and Durango

For one person, living is cheaper in Durango: $1,051 a month against $1,190 in Santiago, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
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Santiago Living Index
51

Cost of Living Index in Durango
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Durango Living Index

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Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,190

/mo nomad

Durango

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,051

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Santiago and in Durango

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

A single person spends $1,190 per month in Santiago vs $1,051 in Durango, rent included.

Santiago $1,190
Durango $1,051

A couple spends around $1,892 per month in Santiago vs $1,656 in Durango, rent included.

Santiago $1,892
Durango $1,656

A family of three spends $2,595 per month in Santiago vs $2,261 in Durango, rent included.

Santiago $2,595
Durango $2,261

Santiago costs about 13% more than Durango, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Santiago and Durango are more affordable than the global median – Santiago 12% lower, Durango 22% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.37 CLP 10.2K

$7.30 MX$135

42.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$51.7 CLP 50.9K

$30.58 MX$565

69.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.94 CLP 8,805

$10.48 MX$194

-14.69%

Cappuccino

$3.26 CLP 3,211

$1.95 MX$35.98

67.18%

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

$1.67 CLP 1,640

$1.15 MX$21.31

45.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.23 CLP 1,212

$0.76 MX$14.07

61.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.98 CLP 3,914

$1.39 MX$25.60

186.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.54 CLP 4,465

$2.77 MX$51.1

63.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.28 CLP 1,263

$1.29 MX$23.92

-0.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.85 CLP 1,817

$2.54 MX$46.94

-27.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.59 CLP 1,567

$1.24 MX$22.95

28.23%

Eggs

$4.10 CLP 4,031

$2.27 MX$41.92

80.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.41 CLP 11.2K

$8.07 MX$149

41.39%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.69 CLP 6,586

$8.15 MX$151

-17.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.81 CLP 10.6K

$9.40 MX$174

15.00%

Apples (1kg)

$1.94 CLP 1,905

$2.54 MX$46.94

-23.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 CLP 1,497

$1.53 MX$28.32

-0.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 CLP 1,577

$1.76 MX$32.46

-9.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.69 CLP 1,668

$1.14 MX$21.10

48.25%

Potato (1kg)

$1.10 CLP 1,084

$1.20 MX$22.13

-8.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.52 CLP 1,500

$1.28 MX$23.69

18.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 CLP 1,164

$0.79 MX$14.54

49.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 CLP 1,061

$1.11 MX$20.51

-2.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.07 CLP 4,995

$3.63 MX$67.1

39.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.95 CLP 5,858

$13.72 MX$253

-56.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 CLP 1,470

$1.74 MX$32.14

-14.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 CLP 2,342

$2.80 MX$51.7

-15.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.83 CLP 821

$0.69 MX$12.74

20.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.14 CLP 39.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.40 CLP 393

$1.13 MX$20.91

-64.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.91 CLP 897

$1.86 MX$34.45

-51.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.63 CLP 11.5K

$10.90 MX$201

6.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 CLP 1,486

$1.42 MX$26.26

6.34%

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

$17.6K CLP 17.3M

$19.4K MX$358.9K

-9.50%

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

$22.0K CLP 21.6M

$24.0K MX$443.3K

-8.35%

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

$151 CLP 149.0K

$59.1 MX$1,092

156.19%

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

$12.34 CLP 12.1K

$21.25 MX$393

-41.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.73 CLP 18.4K

$27.51 MX$508

-31.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.71 CLP 33.2K

$22.49 MX$416

49.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.80 CLP 11.6K

$9.52 MX$176

23.95%

Cinema Ticket

$7.45 CLP 7,334

$3.91 MX$72.2

90.54%

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

$430 CLP 423.7K

$177 MX$3,277

142.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.8K CLP 10.6M

$2,325 MX$43.0K

364.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.65 CLP 48.9K

$55.6 MX$1,027

-10.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.94 CLP 28.5K

$40.30 MX$745

-28.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$65.7 CLP 64.6K

$101 MX$1,870

-35.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.7 CLP 79.4K

$90.8 MX$1,677

-11.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$559 CLP 550.4K

$601 MX$11.1K

-7.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$384 CLP 377.8K

$393 MX$7,255

-2.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,004 CLP 988.4K

$1,057 MX$19.5K

-5.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$780 CLP 767.9K

$777 MX$14.4K

0.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,640 CLP 2.6M

$1,951 MX$36.0K

35.31%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,546 CLP 2.5M

$1,076 MX$19.9K

136.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$804 CLP 791.0K

$531 MX$9,814

51.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

12.3

-56.18%

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

Last update for Santiago: October 11, 2026

Last update for Durango: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santiago

$384 32.3%

Durango

$393 37.3% 2.3% $8.8

Groceries & Markets

Santiago

$236 19.8%

Durango

$245 23.3% 3.6% $8.5

Eating Out

Santiago

$189 15.9%

Durango

$133 12.7% 29.6% $56

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santiago

$182 15.3%

Durango

$108 10.3% 40.9% $75

Clothing & Footwear

Santiago

$101 8.5%

Durango

$130 12.3% 28% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Santiago

$49 4.1%

Durango

$30 2.9% 37.7% $18

Getting Around

Santiago

$48 4.1%

Durango

$13 * 1.3% 72.7% $35

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $559 in Santiago versus $601 in Durango. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 51% higher in Santiago, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $52.0 in Santiago versus $31.00 in Durango. Groceries tell a different story – $236 in Santiago vs $245 in Durango – so Santiago wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇱 Santiago

🇲🇽 Durango

🕒 Local time

13:45 1:45 PM

10:45 10:45 AM

3 h behind Santiago

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,139,087 Capital

518,709

💱 Currency

Chilean Peso CLP $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 CLP = 10.16 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CLP – Chilean Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇱 Chilean Peso ($)

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).

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).

USD to CLP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Santiago Durango 7,330 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Santiago
Durango

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

Santiago vs Durango: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,190 in Santiago, $1,051 in Durango – roughly 13% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,785 per month in Santiago and $1,577 in Durango. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Durango, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $52.0 in Santiago and $31.00 in Durango. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 4% cheaper in Santiago – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Durango, where all-in costs run around $1,051, than in Santiago at $1,190. In Durango it covers expenses comfortably, while in Santiago it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Durango – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Durango. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Santiago makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.