Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santiago and San Juan

For one person, living is cheaper in Santiago: $1,206 a month against $2,197 in San Juan, rent and utilities included – about $11,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
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Santiago Living Index
108

Cost of Living Index in San Juan
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San Juan Living Index

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Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,206

/mo nomad

San Juan

🇵🇷 Puerto Rico

$2,197

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Santiago and in San Juan

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

A single person spends $1,206 per month in Santiago vs $2,197 in San Juan, rent included.

Santiago $1,206
San Juan $2,197

A couple spends around $1,885 per month in Santiago vs $3,317 in San Juan, rent included.

Santiago $1,885
San Juan $3,317

A family of three spends $2,564 per month in Santiago vs $4,436 in San Juan, rent included.

Santiago $2,564
San Juan $4,436

Santiago is about 45% cheaper than San Juan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Santiago sits 10% below the global median, while San Juan is 64% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.19 CLP 9,954

$18.95 $18.95

-46.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.2 CLP 51.0K

$81.6 $81.6

-35.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.54 CLP 8,342

$9.01 $9.01

-5.22%

Cappuccino

$3.19 CLP 3,122

$3.63 $3.63

-12.12%

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

$1.68 CLP 1,641

$1.92 $1.92

-12.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.22 CLP 1,194

$1.44 $1.44

-15.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.21 CLP 4,110

$2.96 $2.96

42.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.66 CLP 4,550

$5.12 $5.12

-8.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 CLP 1,286

$2.16 $2.16

-38.89%

White Bread (500g)

$1.80 CLP 1,760

$3.64 $3.64

-50.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.58 CLP 1,547

$2.40 $2.40

-34.17%

Eggs

$4.25 CLP 4,151

$7.30 $7.30

-41.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.19 CLP 10.9K

$12.48 $12.48

-10.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.75 CLP 6,596

$9.91 $9.91

-31.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.67 CLP 10.4K

$13.15 $13.15

-18.86%

Apples (1kg)

$2.04 CLP 1,995

$5.01 $5.01

-59.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 CLP 1,500

$2.57 $2.57

-40.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.59 CLP 1,553

$4.83 $4.83

-67.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.75 CLP 1,712

$4.68 $4.68

-62.61%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 CLP 1,054

$3.69 $3.69

-70.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.51 CLP 1,480

$3.89 $3.89

-61.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 CLP 1,148

$3.35 $3.35

-65.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 CLP 1,043

$1.65 $1.65

-35.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.14 CLP 5,027

$11.90 $11.90

-56.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.88 CLP 5,745

$15.42 $15.42

-61.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 CLP 1,516

$2.98 $2.98

-47.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 CLP 2,223

$3.91 $3.91

-41.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 CLP 831

$0.78 $0.78

8.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.50 CLP 40.6K

$29.65 $29.65

39.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.39 CLP 383

$2.53 $2.53

-84.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.84 CLP 822

$1.53 $1.53

-45.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.94 CLP 11.7K

$41.18 $41.18

-71.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 CLP 1,470

$1.23 $1.23

21.95%

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

$18.1K CLP 17.7M

$39.7K $39.7K

-54.44%

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

$21.6K CLP 21.1M

$28.0K $28.0K

-22.96%

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

$151 CLP 147.7K

$323 $323

-53.24%

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

$12.04 CLP 11.8K

$70.0 $70.0

-82.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.93 CLP 18.5K

$70.1 $70.1

-72.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.81 CLP 33.0K

$41.55 $41.55

-18.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.72 CLP 11.5K

$7.78 $7.78

50.64%

Cinema Ticket

$7.37 CLP 7,202

$10.57 $10.57

-30.27%

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

$434 CLP 424.3K

$814 $814

-46.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K CLP 10.7M

$12.4K $12.4K

-11.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.9 CLP 49.7K

$55.5 $55.5

-8.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.16 CLP 28.5K

$61.6 $61.6

-52.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$67.4 CLP 65.8K

$107 $107

-36.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.3 CLP 78.4K

$113 $113

-29.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$555 CLP 542.0K

$1,791 $1,791

-69.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$372 CLP 364.0K

$847 $847

-56.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,009 CLP 986.6K

$2,872 $2,872

-64.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$779 CLP 760.9K

$1,496 $1,496

-47.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,671 CLP 2.6M

$7,513 $7,513

-64.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,622 CLP 2.6M

$3,351 $3,351

-21.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$791 CLP 773.5K

$2,674 $2,674

-70.40%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

6.55

-17.71%

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

Last update for Santiago: October 4, 2026

Last update for San Juan: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santiago

$372 31.6%

San Juan

$847 37.8% 128% $475

Groceries & Markets

Santiago

$236 20%

San Juan

$412 18.4% 74.5% $176

Eating Out

Santiago

$187 15.9%

San Juan

$261 11.6% 39.1% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santiago

$182 15.5%

San Juan

$463 20.7% 154% $281

Clothing & Footwear

Santiago

$102 8.7%

San Juan

$152 6.8% 48% $49

Getting Around

Santiago

$50 4.2%

San Juan

$43 1.9% 13.2% $6.5

Sport & Entertainment

Santiago

$49 4.1%

San Juan

$63 2.8% 29.1% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $555 in Santiago versus $1,791 in San Juan. 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 238% higher in San Juan, 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 $82.0 in San Juan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $236 vs $412 – making Santiago the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇱 Santiago

🇵🇷 San Juan

🕒 Local time

04:57 4:57 AM

03:57 3:57 AM

1 h behind Santiago

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,139,087 Capital

322,854 Capital

💱 Currency

Chilean Peso CLP $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 CLP = 10.23 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.12 EUR

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to CLP – Chilean Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇱 Chilean Peso ($)

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).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

USD to CLP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Santiago San Juan 5,790 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Santiago
San Juan

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 San Juan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Juan costs about 82% more than Santiago, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,809 per month in Santiago and $3,295 in San Juan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Kindergarten costs $434 per month in Santiago and $814 in San Juan. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 74% more in San Juan, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Santiago, where all-in costs run around $1,206, than in San Juan at $2,197. In Santiago it covers expenses comfortably, while in San Juan it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Santiago costs $1,206 versus $2,197 in San Juan. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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