Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santo Domingo and Sosua

For one person, living is cheaper in Santo Domingo: $1,094 a month against $1,424 in Sosua, rent and utilities included – about $4,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Sosua outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

52

Cost of Living Index in Santo Domingo
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Santo Domingo Living Index
68

Cost of Living Index in Sosua
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Sosua Living Index

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Santo Domingo

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

$1,094

/mo nomad

Sosua

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

$1,424

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Santo Domingo and in Sosua

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,094 in Santo Domingo versus $1,424 in Sosua.

Santo Domingo $1,094
Sosua $1,424

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,713 in Santo Domingo versus $2,228 in Sosua.

Santo Domingo $1,713
Sosua $2,228

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,333 in Santo Domingo versus $3,033 in Sosua.

Santo Domingo $2,333
Sosua $3,033

Living in Santo Domingo costs roughly 23% less than in Sosua.

The two cities straddle the global median: Santo Domingo is 20% below, Sosua is 5% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.87 DOP 597

$9.80 DOP 592

0.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.28 DOP 2,917

$49.65 DOP 3,000

-2.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.47 DOP 451

$7.26 DOP 439

2.89%

Cappuccino

$2.30 DOP 139

$2.26 DOP 137

1.77%

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

$1.05 DOP 63.5

$1.01 DOP 61.2

3.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.58 DOP 35.01

$0.55 DOP 33.11

5.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.52 DOP 152

$2.41 DOP 146

4.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.16 DOP 191

$3.27 DOP 198

-3.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.42 DOP 85.7

$1.32 DOP 79.7

7.58%

White Bread (500g)

$1.52 DOP 92.1

$1.50 DOP 90.4

1.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 DOP 97.0

$0.63 DOP 38.30

155.56%

Eggs

$2.32 DOP 140

$1.99 DOP 120

16.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.98 DOP 422

$7.22 DOP 436

-3.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.47 DOP 331

$5.63 DOP 340

-2.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.72 DOP 406

$6.46 DOP 390

4.02%

Apples (1kg)

$3.21 DOP 194

$3.03 DOP 183

5.94%

Banana (1kg)

$0.77 DOP 46.41

$0.76 DOP 45.93

1.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 DOP 160

$2.64 DOP 159

0.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.79 DOP 108

$1.23 DOP 74.3

45.53%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 DOP 117

$1.74 DOP 105

10.92%

Onion (1kg)

$2.23 DOP 135

$2.24 DOP 135

-0.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 DOP 59.6

$0.68 DOP 40.95

45.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 DOP 59.2

$0.40 DOP 24.04

145.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.24 DOP 317

$5.33 DOP 322

-1.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.18 DOP 615

$10.30 DOP 622

-1.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.61 DOP 158

$2.49 DOP 150

4.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.83 DOP 171

$2.31 DOP 139

22.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.60 DOP 35.98

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.31 DOP 986

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.20 DOP 193

$3.21 DOP 194

-0.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.23 DOP 135

$2.16 DOP 131

3.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.63 DOP 340

$5.89 DOP 356

-4.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.38 DOP 83.2

$1.26 DOP 76.4

9.52%

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

$28.4K DOP 1.7M

$28.6K DOP 1.7M

-0.74%

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

$34.1K DOP 2.1M

$34.4K DOP 2.1M

-0.83%

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

$93.0 DOP 5,617

$65.5 DOP 3,957

41.96%

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

$31.34 DOP 1,894

$27.83 DOP 1,682

12.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$36.15 DOP 2,184

$32.55 DOP 1,967

11.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.12 DOP 1,759

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.71 DOP 1,433

Cinema Ticket

$7.28 DOP 440

$7.30 DOP 441

-0.27%

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

$245 DOP 14.8K

0.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,282 DOP 440.0K

$7,347 DOP 443.9K

-0.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.14 DOP 2,728

$45.48 DOP 2,748

-0.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.00 DOP 2,779

$45.68 DOP 2,760

0.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.4 DOP 5,282

$84.7 DOP 5,115

3.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 DOP 7,341

$125 DOP 7,553

-2.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$709 DOP 42.9K

$851 DOP 51.4K

-16.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$349 DOP 21.1K

$783 DOP 47.3K

-55.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,408 DOP 85.1K

$1,722 DOP 104.1K

-18.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 DOP 37.1K

$1,511 DOP 91.3K

-59.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,462 DOP 148.8K

$1,828 DOP 110.5K

34.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,351 DOP 81.6K

$1,705 DOP 103.0K

-20.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$587 DOP 35.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.56

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

Last update for Santo Domingo: October 25, 2026

Last update for Sosua: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santo Domingo

$349 31.9%

Sosua

$783 55% 125% $434

Groceries & Markets

Santo Domingo

$219 20%

Sosua

$199 14% 9% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santo Domingo

$160 14.7%

Sosua

$126 8.8% 21.6% $35

Eating Out

Santo Domingo

$154 14.1%

Sosua

$152 10.7% 1.5% $2.3

Clothing & Footwear

Santo Domingo

$135 12.3%

Sosua

$135 9.5% 0.3% $0.3

Sport & Entertainment

Santo Domingo

$44 4%

Sosua

$15 * 1% 66.6% $29

Getting Around

Santo Domingo

$33 3%

Sosua

$14 * 1% 57.6% $19

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $709 in Santo Domingo and $851 in Sosua. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $48 in Santo Domingo vs $50 in Sosua. Groceries flip the comparison at $219 vs $199, with Sosua cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇩🇴 Santo Domingo

🇩🇴 Sosua

🕒 Local time

22:08 10:08 PM

Same time as Santo Domingo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

965,040 Capital

7,713

💱 Currency

Dominican Peso DOP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 DOP = 1.66 USD

100 DOP = 1.48 EUR

100 DOP = 1.66 USD

100 DOP = 1.48 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Santo Domingo Sosua 160 km

From you

Santo Domingo
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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

Santo Domingo vs Sosua: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,094 in Santo Domingo and $1,424 in Sosua, so Santo Domingo is about 23% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,641 in Santo Domingo and $2,136 in Sosua to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $709 in Santo Domingo versus $851 in Sosua. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $245 in Santo Domingo versus $245 in Sosua. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Santo Domingo – a meal for two runs $48 versus $50 in Sosua. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Santo Domingo gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.