Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santiago and Zihuatanejo

For one person, living costs are similar in Santiago and in Zihuatanejo: $1,183 and $1,131 a month, rent and utilities included.

57

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
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Santiago Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Zihuatanejo
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Zihuatanejo Living Index

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Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,183

/mo nomad

Zihuatanejo

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,131

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Santiago and in Zihuatanejo

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

A single person spends $1,183 per month in Santiago vs $1,131 in Zihuatanejo, rent included.

Santiago $1,183
Zihuatanejo $1,131

A couple spends around $1,882 per month in Santiago vs $1,824 in Zihuatanejo, rent included.

Santiago $1,882
Zihuatanejo $1,824

A family of three spends $2,581 per month in Santiago vs $2,517 in Zihuatanejo, rent included.

Santiago $2,581
Zihuatanejo $2,517

Santiago costs about 5% more than Zihuatanejo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Santiago and Zihuatanejo are more affordable than the global median – Santiago 13% lower, Zihuatanejo 17% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.15 CLP 10.1K

$10.86 MX$203

-6.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$51.9 CLP 51.6K

$44.16 MX$827

17.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.56 CLP 8,512

$8.74 MX$164

-2.06%

Cappuccino

$3.15 CLP 3,134

$3.48 MX$65.2

-9.48%

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

$1.71 CLP 1,703

$1.36 MX$25.45

25.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.28 CLP 1,269

$1.02 MX$19.08

25.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.18 CLP 4,162

$2.45 MX$45.89

70.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.46 CLP 4,437

$3.98 MX$74.4

12.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 CLP 1,282

$1.66 MX$31.05

-22.29%

White Bread (500g)

$1.76 CLP 1,755

$2.55 MX$47.69

-30.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.66 CLP 1,647

$1.65 MX$30.90

0.61%

Eggs

$4.21 CLP 4,184

$2.44 MX$45.61

72.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.08 CLP 11.0K

$8.11 MX$152

36.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.75 CLP 6,711

$8.52 MX$159

-20.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.76 CLP 10.7K

$11.56 MX$216

-6.92%

Apples (1kg)

$1.96 CLP 1,947

$2.72 MX$51.0

-27.94%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 CLP 1,534

$1.56 MX$29.27

-1.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.58 CLP 1,576

$1.94 MX$36.39

-18.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.74 CLP 1,731

$1.77 MX$33.10

-1.69%

Potato (1kg)

$1.09 CLP 1,087

$1.94 MX$36.24

-43.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.53 CLP 1,525

$1.88 MX$35.15

-18.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 CLP 1,176

$1.43 MX$26.71

-17.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 CLP 1,071

$1.09 MX$20.47

-0.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 CLP 5,155

$4.28 MX$80.1

21.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.17 CLP 6,134

$10.27 MX$192

-39.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.53 CLP 1,527

$1.82 MX$34.04

-15.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.36 CLP 2,349

$3.06 MX$57.3

-22.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.84 CLP 832

$0.68 MX$12.77

23.53%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.44 CLP 41.2K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.42 CLP 421

$2.61 MX$48.93

-83.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.88 CLP 878

$2.02 MX$37.88

-56.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.49 CLP 11.4K

$11.18 MX$209

2.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 CLP 1,478

$1.44 MX$26.93

3.47%

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

$17.2K CLP 17.2M

$21.3K MX$398.4K

-18.99%

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

$25.6K CLP 25.5M

$23.9K MX$447.0K

7.21%

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

$149 CLP 147.8K

$57.3 MX$1,072

159.52%

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

$12.11 CLP 12.0K

$23.00 MX$431

-47.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.13 CLP 19.0K

$29.80 MX$558

-35.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.30 CLP 33.1K

$34.76 MX$651

-4.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.51 CLP 11.4K

$20.02 MX$375

-42.51%

Cinema Ticket

$7.32 CLP 7,284

$5.14 MX$96.2

42.41%

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

$436 CLP 433.7K

$216 MX$4,041

101.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K CLP 10.9M

$4,526 MX$84.7K

142.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.17 CLP 48.9K

$55.5 MX$1,038

-11.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.11 CLP 29.0K

$40.25 MX$753

-27.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$65.5 CLP 65.2K

$98.5 MX$1,844

-33.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.1 CLP 79.7K

$90.0 MX$1,684

-10.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$554 CLP 551.6K

$596 MX$11.1K

-6.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$383 CLP 380.6K

$384 MX$7,182

-0.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,002 CLP 996.9K

$1,053 MX$19.7K

-4.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$775 CLP 770.5K

$759 MX$14.2K

2.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,708 CLP 2.7M

$1,915 MX$35.8K

41.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,613 CLP 2.6M

$1,149 MX$21.5K

127.35%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$778 CLP 774.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

11.3

-52.30%

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

Last update for Santiago: October 17, 2026

Last update for Zihuatanejo: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santiago

$383 32.3%

Zihuatanejo

$384 34% 0.3% $1.1

Groceries & Markets

Santiago

$236 20%

Zihuatanejo

$264 23.3% 11.8% $28

Eating Out

Santiago

$186 15.8%

Zihuatanejo

$185 16.3% 1% $1.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santiago

$180 15.2%

Zihuatanejo

$110 9.7% 38.8% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Santiago

$101 8.5%

Zihuatanejo

$128 11.3% 27% $27

Getting Around

Santiago

$50 4.2%

Zihuatanejo

$15 * 1.4% 68.8% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Santiago

$48 4.1%

Zihuatanejo

$45 4% 6.1% $2.9

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $554 in Santiago versus $596 in Zihuatanejo. 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 in Santiago versus $44 in Zihuatanejo. Groceries tell a different story – $236 in Santiago vs $264 in Zihuatanejo – so Santiago wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇱 Santiago

🇲🇽 Zihuatanejo

🕒 Local time

07:53 7:53 AM

04:53 4:53 AM

3 h behind Santiago

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,139,087 Capital

67,408

💱 Currency

Chilean Peso CLP $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 CLP = 10.05 USD

10,000 CLP = 8.96 EUR

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 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 26, 2026: 1 USD = 995 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.01 USD). 1 EUR = 1,116 CLP (10,000 CLP = 8.96 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 18.72 MXN (100 MXN = 5.34 USD). 1 EUR = 21 MXN (100 MXN = 4.76 EUR).

USD to CLP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Santiago Zihuatanejo 6,560 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Santiago
Zihuatanejo

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 Zihuatanejo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Santiago is pricier by about 5%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,775 per month in Santiago and $1,696 in Zihuatanejo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $554 in Santiago and $596 in Zihuatanejo. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,183 in Santiago and $1,131 in Zihuatanejo. That’s a gap of about 5%.

Kindergarten costs $436 per month in Santiago and $216 in Zihuatanejo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,183 in Santiago and $1,131 in Zihuatanejo, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Zihuatanejo has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,131 in Zihuatanejo to $1,183 in Santiago. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.