Cost of living comparison

Saint Lucia

compared to

Nicaragua

Managua vs. Castries Cost of Living Summary

Managua is 27.2% cheaper than Castries.

Restaurants: pay 10.1% less in Managua
Groceries: pay 42.5% less in Managua
Transportation: pay 12.3% less in Managua
Housing: pay 38.0% less in Managua
Childcare: pay 10.8% more in Managua
Entertainment and Sports: pay 21.3% less in Managua
Clothing: pay 7.3% more in Managua

The cost of childcare and clothing in Managua are more expensive than in Castries. Expenses including groceries, housing, entertainment and sports, transportation, and restaurants are lower in Managua.

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Managua vs. Castries Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Managua instead of Castries, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 10.1% less for restaurants

	Castries	Managua
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$9.25 EC$25.00	$10.00 NIO368.55	+8.1%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.33 EC$22.50	$7.61 NIO280.46	-8.6%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.94 EC$5.25	$0.88 NIO32.54	-54.6%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.97 EC$2.62	$0.71 NIO26.22	-26.8%
Average			-10.1%

Castries vs. Managua - Cost of restaurants

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pay 42.5% less for groceries

	Castries	Managua
Bread 1 loaf	$1.86 EC$5.02	$2.37 NIO87.46	+27.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.61 EC$15.17	$5.80 NIO213.64	+3.3%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.75 EC$20.95	$4.68 NIO172.61	-39.6%
Eggs 1 dozen	$4.61 EC$12.47	$2.37 NIO87.18	-48.7%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$4.10 EC$11.09	$2.87 NIO105.79	-30.0%
Apples (1 lb)	$3.89 EC$10.50	$1.82 NIO67.08	-53.2%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.75 EC$2.02	$0.27 NIO10.03	-63.6%
Oranges (1 lb)	$3.70 EC$10.00	$0.82 NIO30.09	-77.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$6.66 EC$18.00	$1.11 NIO41.05	-83.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.54 EC$4.17	$1.79 NIO65.90	+15.9%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.93 EC$2.50	$1.01 NIO37.13	+8.9%
Average			-42.5%

Castries vs. Managua - Cost of groceries

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pay 12.3% less for transportation

	Castries	Managua
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.83 EC$15.75	$5.06 NIO186.38	-13.2%
Monthly public transit pass	??	$6.01 NIO221.41
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$25,901.46 EC$70,000.00	$22,973.64 NIO847K	-11.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	??	$14.69 NIO541.39
Average			-12.3%

Castries vs. Managua - Cost of transportation

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pay 38.0% less for housing

	Castries	Managua
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$48.60 EC$131.33	$32.47 NIO1,196.57	-33.2%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$456.36 EC$1,233.33	$256.40 NIO9,449.50	-43.8%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$345.35 EC$933.33	$181.00 NIO6,670.67	-47.6%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$94.32 EC$254.90	$115.83 NIO4,268.74	+22.8%
Average			-38.0%

Castries vs. Managua - Cost of housing

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pay 10.8% more for childcare

	Castries	Managua
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$212.76 EC$575.00	$235.82 NIO8,690.94	+10.8%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	??	$6,060.00 NIO223K
Average			+10.8%

Castries vs. Managua - Cost of childcare

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pay 21.3% less for entertainment and sports

	Castries	Managua
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$2.78 EC$7.50	$1.50 NIO55.28	-45.9%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.70 EC$10.00	$2.60 NIO95.82	-29.7%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$9.25 EC$25.00	$2.73 NIO100.51	-70.5%
Monthly membership at local gym	$41.63 EC$112.50	$34.79 NIO1,282.16	-16.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$5.55 EC$15.00	$9.00 NIO331.69	+62.2%
Average			-21.3%

Castries vs. Managua - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 7.3% more for clothing

	Castries	Managua
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$83.25 EC$225.00	$59.88 NIO2,206.90	-28.1%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$50.88 EC$137.50	$65.00 NIO2,395.54	+27.8%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$111.01 EC$300.00	$122.64 NIO4,519.99	+10.5%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$111.01 EC$300.00	$144.83 NIO5,337.49	+30.5%
Average			+7.3%

Castries vs. Managua - Cost of clothing

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

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