Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santiago and Quetzaltenango

For one person, living costs are similar in Santiago and in Quetzaltenango: $1,190 and $1,148 a month, rent and utilities included.

57

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
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Santiago Living Index
56

Cost of Living Index in Quetzaltenango
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Quetzaltenango Living Index

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Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,190

/mo nomad

Quetzaltenango

🇬🇹 Guatemala

$1,148

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Santiago and in Quetzaltenango

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 Quetzaltenango actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,190 per month in Santiago vs $1,148 in Quetzaltenango, rent included.

Santiago $1,190
Quetzaltenango $1,148

A couple spends around $1,892 per month in Santiago vs $1,444 in Quetzaltenango, rent included.

Santiago $1,892
Quetzaltenango $1,444

A family of three spends $2,595 per month in Santiago vs $1,741 in Quetzaltenango, rent included.

Santiago $2,595
Quetzaltenango $1,741

Santiago costs about 4% more than Quetzaltenango, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Santiago and Quetzaltenango are more affordable than the global median – Santiago 12% lower, Quetzaltenango 15% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.37 CLP 10.2K

$6.78 Q 51.9

52.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$51.7 CLP 50.9K

$49.64 Q 380

4.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.94 CLP 8,805

$7.66 Q 58.6

16.71%

Cappuccino

$3.26 CLP 3,211

$3.26 Q 24.91

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

$1.67 CLP 1,640

$1.15 Q 8.77

45.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.23 CLP 1,212

$0.91 Q 6.97

35.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.98 CLP 3,914

$3.35 Q 25.60

18.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.54 CLP 4,465

$4.66 Q 35.65

-2.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.28 CLP 1,263

$2.01 Q 15.36

-36.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.85 CLP 1,817

$2.66 Q 20.33

-30.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.59 CLP 1,567

$2.13 Q 16.30

-25.35%

Eggs

$4.10 CLP 4,031

$2.51 Q 19.16

63.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.41 CLP 11.2K

$6.44 Q 49.23

77.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.69 CLP 6,586

$7.96 Q 60.9

-15.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.81 CLP 10.6K

$12.86 Q 98.3

-15.94%

Apples (1kg)

$1.94 CLP 1,905

$2.86 Q 21.90

-32.17%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 CLP 1,497

$1.70 Q 13.02

-10.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 CLP 1,577

$2.92 Q 22.30

-45.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.69 CLP 1,668

$1.64 Q 12.55

3.05%

Potato (1kg)

$1.10 CLP 1,084

$1.55 Q 11.81

-29.03%

Onion (1kg)

$1.52 CLP 1,500

$2.19 Q 16.71

-30.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 CLP 1,164

$0.69 Q 5.31

71.01%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 CLP 1,061

$1.19 Q 9.10

-9.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.07 CLP 4,995

$3.35 Q 25.64

51.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.95 CLP 5,858

$8.09 Q 61.9

-26.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 CLP 1,470

$1.72 Q 13.18

-13.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 CLP 2,342

$2.71 Q 20.70

-12.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.83 CLP 821

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.14 CLP 39.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.40 CLP 393

$5.15 Q 39.38

-92.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.91 CLP 897

$1.73 Q 13.22

-47.40%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.63 CLP 11.5K

$10.56 Q 80.8

10.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 CLP 1,486

$1.38 Q 10.57

9.42%

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

$17.6K CLP 17.3M

$27.5K Q 210.6K

-36.18%

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

$22.0K CLP 21.6M

$25.3K Q 193.3K

-13.02%

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

$151 CLP 149.0K

$72.7 Q 556

108.15%

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

$12.34 CLP 12.1K

$13.06 Q 99.9

-5.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.73 CLP 18.4K

$46.29 Q 354

-59.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.71 CLP 33.2K

$32.89 Q 251

2.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.80 CLP 11.6K

Cinema Ticket

$7.45 CLP 7,334

$6.35 Q 48.54

17.32%

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

$430 CLP 423.7K

$342 Q 2,611

26.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.8K CLP 10.6M

$6,757 Q 51.7K

59.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.65 CLP 48.9K

$50.0 Q 382

-0.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.94 CLP 28.5K

$46.61 Q 356

-37.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$65.7 CLP 64.6K

$110 Q 844

-40.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.7 CLP 79.4K

$112 Q 857

-28.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$559 CLP 550.4K

$397 Q 3,037

40.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$384 CLP 377.8K

$398 Q 3,046

-3.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,004 CLP 988.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$780 CLP 767.9K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,640 CLP 2.6M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,546 CLP 2.5M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$804 CLP 791.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

11.62

-53.61%

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

Last update for Santiago: October 11, 2026

Last update for Quetzaltenango: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santiago

$384 32.3%

Quetzaltenango

$398 34.7% 3.8% $15

Groceries & Markets

Santiago

$236 19.8%

Quetzaltenango

$264 23% 11.7% $28

Eating Out

Santiago

$189 15.9%

Quetzaltenango

$151 13.1% 20.5% $39

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santiago

$182 15.3%

Quetzaltenango

$132 11.5% 27.6% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Santiago

$101 8.5%

Quetzaltenango

$144 12.5% 41.8% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Santiago

$49 4.1%

Quetzaltenango

$46 4% 6.2% $3

Getting Around

Santiago

$48 4.1%

Quetzaltenango

$14 * 1.2% 71.5% $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 $397 in Quetzaltenango. 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 $52.0 in Santiago versus $50.0 in Quetzaltenango. Groceries tell a different story – $236 in Santiago vs $264 in Quetzaltenango – so Santiago wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇱 Santiago

🇬🇹 Quetzaltenango

🕒 Local time

05:22 5:22 AM

02:22 2:22 AM

3 h behind Santiago

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,139,087 Capital

500,000

💱 Currency

Chilean Peso CLP $

Guatemalan Quetzal GTQ Q

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 CLP = 10.16 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR

1 GTQ = 0.131 USD

1 GTQ = 0.116 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GTQ, 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).

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).

USD to CLP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Santiago Quetzaltenango 5,810 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Santiago
Quetzaltenango

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 Quetzaltenango: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Santiago costs about 4% more than Quetzaltenango, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,785 per month in Santiago and $1,722 in Quetzaltenango. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Quetzaltenango, 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 $1,190 in Santiago and $1,148 in Quetzaltenango. That's a gap of about 4%.

Kindergarten costs $430 per month in Santiago and $342 in Quetzaltenango. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Quetzaltenango, where all-in costs run around $1,148, than in Santiago at $1,190. In Quetzaltenango it covers expenses comfortably, while in Santiago it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Quetzaltenango – 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 Quetzaltenango. 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.