Cost of living comparison
El Salvador is 25.7% cheaper than Costa Rica.
If you lived in El Salvador instead of Costa Rica, you would:
pay 44.9% less for restaurants
Costa Rica
|
El Salvador
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$9.42
₡4,732
|
$5.83
SVC51.01
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$8.16
₡4,102
|
$5.91
SVC51.71
|
|
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.73
₡868
|
$0.71
SVC6.20
|
|
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.50
₡756
|
$0.68
SVC5.90
|
|
pay 9.6% less for groceries
Costa Rica
|
El Salvador
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.87
₡940
|
$1.83
SVC16.04
|
|
Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.15
₡2,086
|
$2.97
SVC25.97
|
|
Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.45
₡3,242
|
$6.82
SVC59.65
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.63
₡1,322
|
$2.36
SVC20.62
|
|
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.92
₡1,969
|
$2.16
SVC18.87
|
|
Apples (1 lb) |
$1.85
₡928
|
$1.44
SVC12.55
|
|
Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.66
₡332
|
$0.75
SVC6.53
|
|
Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.26
₡631
|
$1.03
SVC8.97
|
|
Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.97
₡485
|
$1.09
SVC9.56
|
|
Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.92
₡464
|
$1.04
SVC9.06
|
|
Onions (1 lb) |
$1.08
₡543
|
$0.83
SVC7.29
|
|
pay 1.7% more for transportation
Costa Rica
|
El Salvador
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.58
₡2,806
|
$3.88
SVC33.97
|
|
Monthly public transit pass |
$44.09
₡22,156
|
$21.74
SVC190.11
|
|
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$25,829.98
₡12,980,676
|
$18,000.00
SVC157,411.22
|
|
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$13.39
₡6,727
|
$29.19
SVC255.25
|
|
pay 22.8% less for housing
Costa Rica
|
El Salvador
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$53.15
₡26,708
|
$43.89
SVC383.81
|
|
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$813.71
₡408,925
|
$610.09
SVC5,335.26
|
|
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$522.16
₡262,410
|
$369.44
SVC3,230.82
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$64.83
₡32,580
|
$52.06
SVC455.24
|
|
pay 64.3% less for childcare
Costa Rica
|
El Salvador
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$366.72
₡184,291
|
$96.15
SVC840.82
|
|
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$8,358.53
₡4,200,519
|
$3,776.67
SVC33,027.21
|
|
pay 30.8% less for entertainment and sports
Costa Rica
|
El Salvador
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.88
₡1,448
|
$1.50
SVC13.12
|
|
Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.93
₡1,470
|
$2.31
SVC20.17
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.48
₡2,253
|
$4.00
SVC34.98
|
|
Monthly membership at local gym |
$55.95
₡28,118
|
$31.48
SVC275.31
|
|
Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$7.18
₡3,607
|
$5.00
SVC43.73
|
|
pay 9.5% less for clothing
Costa Rica
|
El Salvador
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$66.61
₡33,473
|
$53.50
SVC467.86
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$44.99
₡22,612
|
$41.12
SVC359.64
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$101.09
₡50,804
|
$81.36
SVC711.53
|
|
Men's business shoes (leather) |
$77.50
₡38,946
|
$85.00
SVC743.33
|
|
Change currency:
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about El Salvador or Costa Rica. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.