Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between St. Thomas and Santiago

For one person, living is cheaper in Santiago: $1,190 a month against $2,432 in St. Thomas, rent and utilities included – about $14,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

111

Cost of Living Index in St. Thomas
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St. Thomas Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
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Santiago Living Index

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St. Thomas

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,432

/mo nomad

Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,190

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in St. Thomas and in Santiago

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

A single person spends $2,432 per month in St. Thomas vs $1,190 in Santiago, rent included.

St. Thomas $2,432
Santiago $1,190

A couple spends around $3,274 per month in St. Thomas vs $1,892 in Santiago, rent included.

St. Thomas $3,274
Santiago $1,892

A family of three spends $4,117 per month in St. Thomas vs $2,595 in Santiago, rent included.

St. Thomas $4,117
Santiago $2,595

St. Thomas costs about 104% more than Santiago, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

St. Thomas sits 80% above the global median, while Santiago is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.05 CA$29.92

$10.37 CLP 10.2K

102.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.6 CA$89.0

$51.7 CLP 50.9K

21.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.38 CA$16.18

$8.94 CLP 8,810

27.29%

Cappuccino

$3.32 CA$4.71

$3.26 CLP 3,213

1.84%

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

$2.19 CA$3.12

$1.67 CLP 1,641

31.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.59 CA$2.25

$1.23 CLP 1,213

29.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.02 CA$7.14

$3.98 CLP 3,916

26.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.89 CA$8.37

$4.54 CLP 4,467

29.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.08 CA$2.96

$1.28 CLP 1,263

62.50%

White Bread (500g)

$2.61 CA$3.70

$1.85 CLP 1,818

41.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.73 CA$5.30

$1.59 CLP 1,568

134.59%

Eggs

$3.09 CA$4.39

$4.10 CLP 4,034

-24.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.94 CA$14.13

$11.41 CLP 11.2K

-12.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.43 CA$21.92

$6.69 CLP 6,590

130.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.20 CA$27.29

$10.81 CLP 10.6K

77.61%

Apples (1kg)

$3.86 CA$5.49

$1.94 CLP 1,906

98.97%

Banana (1kg)

$1.24 CA$1.76

$1.52 CLP 1,498

-18.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.49 CA$4.97

$1.60 CLP 1,577

118.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.97 CA$5.64

$1.69 CLP 1,669

134.91%

Potato (1kg)

$3.36 CA$4.78

$1.10 CLP 1,085

205.45%

Onion (1kg)

$3.07 CA$4.36

$1.52 CLP 1,501

101.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.85 CA$4.06

$1.18 CLP 1,165

141.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.46 CA$2.07

$1.08 CLP 1,062

35.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.98 CA$15.61

$5.07 CLP 4,998

116.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.74 CA$18.10

$5.95 CLP 5,861

114.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.40 CA$3.41

$1.49 CLP 1,471

61.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 CA$3.95

$2.38 CLP 2,344

16.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.25 CA$3.20

$0.83 CLP 821

171.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$58.7 CA$83.4

$40.14 CLP 39.5K

46.14%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.30 CA$3.27

$0.40 CLP 393

475.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.62 CA$2.30

$0.91 CLP 897

78.02%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.70 CA$30.85

$11.63 CLP 11.5K

86.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.13 CA$1.60

$1.51 CLP 1,487

-25.17%

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

$28.0K CA$39.8K

$17.6K CLP 17.3M

59.49%

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

$19.7K CA$28.0K

$22.0K CLP 21.7M

-10.35%

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

$123 CA$175

$151 CLP 149.1K

-18.51%

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

$42.76 CA$60.8

$12.34 CLP 12.2K

246.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.5 CA$78.8

$18.73 CLP 18.4K

196.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.43 CA$63.1

$33.71 CLP 33.2K

31.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.32 CA$28.87

$11.80 CLP 11.6K

72.20%

Cinema Ticket

$10.33 CA$14.69

$7.45 CLP 7,338

38.66%

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

$399 CA$567

$430 CLP 423.9K

-7.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.7K CA$23.7K

$10.8K CLP 10.6M

54.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.5 CA$76.1

$49.65 CLP 48.9K

7.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.84 CA$50.9

$28.94 CLP 28.5K

23.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.2 CA$117

$65.7 CLP 64.7K

25.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.6 CA$129

$80.7 CLP 79.5K

12.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 CA$1,631

$559 CLP 550.7K

105.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,267 CA$1,801

$384 CLP 378.0K

230.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,794 CA$2,550

$1,004 CLP 989.0K

78.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,470 CA$2,089

$780 CLP 768.3K

88.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,187 CA$5,951

$2,640 CLP 2.6M

58.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,561 CA$5,061

$2,546 CLP 2.5M

39.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,970 CA$4,221

$804 CLP 791.4K

269.56%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.99

5.39

-7.42%

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

Last update for St. Thomas: October 11, 2026

Last update for Santiago: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

St. Thomas

$1.3K 52.1%

Santiago

$384 32.3% 69.7% $884

Groceries & Markets

St. Thomas

$387 15.9%

Santiago

$236 19.8% 39.1% $151

Eating Out

St. Thomas

$294 12.1%

Santiago

$189 15.9% 35.6% $105

Monthly Utilities & Internet

St. Thomas

$222 9.1%

Santiago

$182 15.3% 17.7% $39

Clothing & Footwear

St. Thomas

$118 4.9%

Santiago

$101 8.5% 14.2% $17

Getting Around

St. Thomas

$78 3.2%

Santiago

$48 4.1% 38% $30

Sport & Entertainment

St. Thomas

$65 2.7%

Santiago

$49 4.1% 25.3% $16

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,148 in St. Thomas versus $559 in Santiago. 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 270% higher in St. Thomas, 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 $63.0 in St. Thomas versus $52.0 in Santiago. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $387 vs $236 – making Santiago the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 St. Thomas

🇨🇱 Santiago

🕒 Local time

21:31 9:31 PM

22:31 10:31 PM

1 h ahead of St. Thomas

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

38,909

6,139,087 Capital

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.704 USD

1 CAD = 0.628 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.15 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.07 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CLP, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 CAD (1 CAD = 0.704 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.628 EUR).

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 985 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,103 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.07 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

St. Thomas Santiago 8,540 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

St. Thomas
Santiago

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

St. Thomas vs Santiago: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – St. Thomas is pricier by about 104%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,648 per month in St. Thomas and $1,785 in Santiago. 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 46% less in Santiago. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $399 per month in St. Thomas and $430 in Santiago. 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 $1,190, than in St. Thomas at $2,432. In Santiago it covers expenses comfortably, while in St. Thomas 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, St. Thomas makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.