Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santiago and Thompson

For one person, living is cheaper in Santiago: $1,206 a month against $1,808 in Thompson, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
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Santiago Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Thompson
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Thompson Living Index

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Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,206

/mo nomad

Thompson

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,808

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Santiago and in Thompson

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

A single person spends $1,206 per month in Santiago vs $1,808 in Thompson, rent included.

Santiago $1,206
Thompson $1,808

A couple spends around $1,885 per month in Santiago vs $2,730 in Thompson, rent included.

Santiago $1,885
Thompson $2,730

A family of three spends $2,564 per month in Santiago vs $3,652 in Thompson, rent included.

Santiago $2,564
Thompson $3,652

Santiago is about 33% cheaper than Thompson, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Santiago sits 10% below the global median, while Thompson is 35% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.19 CLP 9,954

$17.37 CA$24.71

-41.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.2 CLP 51.0K

$63.3 CA$90.0

-17.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.54 CLP 8,342

$10.63 CA$15.12

-19.66%

Cappuccino

$3.19 CLP 3,122

$3.62 CA$5.15

-11.88%

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

$1.68 CLP 1,641

$1.96 CA$2.79

-14.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.22 CLP 1,194

$1.62 CA$2.30

-24.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.21 CLP 4,110

$5.33 CA$7.58

-21.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.66 CLP 4,550

$5.60 CA$7.97

-16.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 CLP 1,286

$2.13 CA$3.02

-38.03%

White Bread (500g)

$1.80 CLP 1,760

$2.49 CA$3.55

-27.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.58 CLP 1,547

$3.20 CA$4.56

-50.63%

Eggs

$4.25 CLP 4,151

$3.33 CA$4.74

27.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.19 CLP 10.9K

$10.09 CA$14.35

10.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.75 CLP 6,596

$11.46 CA$16.30

-41.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.67 CLP 10.4K

$14.70 CA$20.91

-27.41%

Apples (1kg)

$2.04 CLP 1,995

$3.65 CA$5.19

-44.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 CLP 1,500

$1.17 CA$1.67

30.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.59 CLP 1,553

$3.77 CA$5.37

-57.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.75 CLP 1,712

$4.16 CA$5.92

-57.93%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 CLP 1,054

$2.40 CA$3.42

-55.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.51 CLP 1,480

$2.20 CA$3.13

-31.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 CLP 1,148

$2.42 CA$3.44

-51.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 CLP 1,043

$1.60 CA$2.27

-33.13%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.14 CLP 5,027

$13.73 CA$19.53

-62.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.88 CLP 5,745

$12.67 CA$18.02

-53.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 CLP 1,516

$2.69 CA$3.83

-42.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 CLP 2,223

$3.04 CA$4.32

-25.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 CLP 831

$2.20 CA$3.13

-61.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.50 CLP 40.6K

$67.2 CA$95.5

-38.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.39 CLP 383

$2.86 CA$4.07

-86.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.84 CLP 822

$1.38 CA$1.97

-39.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.94 CLP 11.7K

$22.69 CA$32.27

-47.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 CLP 1,470

$1.12 CA$1.60

33.93%

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

$18.1K CLP 17.7M

$27.8K CA$39.6K

-34.95%

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

$21.6K CLP 21.1M

$20.4K CA$29.1K

5.76%

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

$151 CLP 147.7K

$137 CA$195

10.24%

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

$12.04 CLP 11.8K

$37.96 CA$54.0

-68.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.93 CLP 18.5K

$53.0 CA$75.4

-64.27%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.81 CLP 33.0K

$41.03 CA$58.4

-17.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.72 CLP 11.5K

$15.67 CA$22.28

-25.21%

Cinema Ticket

$7.37 CLP 7,202

$10.96 CA$15.59

-32.76%

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

$434 CLP 424.3K

$641 CA$911

-32.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K CLP 10.7M

$13.8K CA$19.6K

-20.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.9 CLP 49.7K

$53.5 CA$76.0

-4.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.16 CLP 28.5K

$38.21 CA$54.4

-23.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$67.4 CLP 65.8K

$84.0 CA$120

-19.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.3 CLP 78.4K

$102 CA$145

-21.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$555 CLP 542.0K

$672 CA$956

-17.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$372 CLP 364.0K

$674 CA$958

-44.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,009 CLP 986.6K

$1,090 CA$1,551

-7.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$779 CLP 760.9K

$1,116 CA$1,587

-30.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,671 CLP 2.6M

$4,094 CA$5,823

-34.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,622 CLP 2.6M

$4,002 CA$5,693

-34.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$791 CLP 773.5K

$1,531 CA$2,178

-48.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

4.64

16.16%

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

Last update for Santiago: October 4, 2026

Last update for Thompson: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santiago

$372 31.6%

Thompson

$674 37.6% 80.9% $301

Groceries & Markets

Santiago

$236 20%

Thompson

$350 19.6% 48.4% $114

Eating Out

Santiago

$187 15.9%

Thompson

$266 14.9% 42.2% $79

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santiago

$182 15.5%

Thompson

$228 12.7% 25.2% $46

Clothing & Footwear

Santiago

$102 8.7%

Thompson

$125 7% 22.1% $23

Getting Around

Santiago

$50 4.2%

Thompson

$86 4.8% 73.2% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Santiago

$49 4.1%

Thompson

$63 3.5% 29.7% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $555 in Santiago versus $672 in Thompson. 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 93% higher in Thompson, 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 $63.0 in Thompson. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $236 vs $350 – making Santiago the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇱 Santiago

🇨🇦 Thompson

🕒 Local time

03:31 3:31 AM

01:31 1:31 AM

2 h behind Santiago

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,139,087 Capital

12,829

💱 Currency

Chilean Peso CLP $

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 CLP = 10.23 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.12 EUR

1 CAD = 0.703 USD

1 CAD = 0.627 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, 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).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 CAD (1 CAD = 0.703 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 CAD (1 CAD = 0.627 EUR).

USD to CLP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Santiago Thompson 10,250 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Santiago
Thompson

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 Thompson: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Thompson is pricier by about 50%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,809 per month in Santiago and $2,712 in Thompson. 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.

Public transport costs about 62% less in Santiago. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $434 per month in Santiago and $641 in Thompson. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Santiago, where all-in costs run around $1,206, than in Thompson at $1,808. In Santiago it covers expenses comfortably, while in Thompson it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Santiago – 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 Santiago. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Thompson makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.