Cost of living comparison
compared to
Guatemala vs. El Salvador Cost of Living Summary
Guatemala is 6.8% more expensive than El Salvador overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 11.0% more in Guatemala
- Groceries
-
pay 7.1% more in Guatemala
- Transportation
-
pay 19.0% less in Guatemala
- Housing
-
pay 1.4% more in Guatemala
- Childcare
-
pay 16.9% more in Guatemala
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 36.3% more in Guatemala
- Clothing
-
pay 6.4% less in Guatemala
The cost of entertainment and sports, childcare, restaurants, groceries, and housing in Guatemala are more expensive than in El Salvador. Expenses including transportation and clothing are lower in Guatemala.
Guatemala vs. El Salvador Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Guatemala instead of El Salvador, you would:
pay 11.0% more for restaurants
|
El Salvador
|
Guatemala
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$5.50
SVC47.99
|
$5.22
GTQ39.87
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$6.33
SVC55.23
|
$6.33
GTQ48.34
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.99
SVC8.64
|
$1.20
GTQ9.14
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.81
SVC7.05
|
$0.95
GTQ7.24
|
|
El Salvador vs. Guatemala - Cost of restaurants
pay 7.1% more for groceries
|
El Salvador
|
Guatemala
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.95
SVC17.01
|
$3.11
GTQ23.76
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$3.77
SVC32.86
|
$3.85
GTQ29.44
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.72
SVC58.61
|
$7.68
GTQ58.70
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.78
SVC24.25
|
$2.53
GTQ19.34
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.82
SVC24.64
|
$3.82
GTQ29.19
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.67
SVC14.60
|
$1.76
GTQ13.48
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.76
SVC6.60
|
$0.76
GTQ5.80
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.17
SVC10.17
|
$1.41
GTQ10.75
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.22
SVC10.61
|
$0.80
GTQ6.08
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.97
SVC8.44
|
$0.78
GTQ5.98
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.98
SVC8.51
|
$1.00
GTQ7.62
|
|
El Salvador vs. Guatemala - Cost of groceries
pay 19.0% less for transportation
|
El Salvador
|
Guatemala
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.75
SVC32.69
|
$4.07
GTQ31.09
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$15.00
SVC130.88
|
$13.61
GTQ103.97
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$24,666.67
SVC215,223.23
|
$19,570.53
GTQ149,497.66
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$29.78
SVC259.88
|
$13.54
GTQ103.40
|
|
El Salvador vs. Guatemala - Cost of transportation
pay 1.4% more for housing
|
El Salvador
|
Guatemala
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$41.89
SVC365.49
|
$46.52
GTQ355.36
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$666.67
SVC5,816.84
|
$811.38
GTQ6,198.05
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$502.78
SVC4,386.87
|
$485.36
GTQ3,707.66
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$64.97
SVC566.86
|
$49.53
GTQ378.35
|
|
El Salvador vs. Guatemala - Cost of housing
pay 16.9% more for childcare
|
El Salvador
|
Guatemala
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$162.67
SVC1,419.31
|
$230.93
GTQ1,764.07
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$6,420.00
SVC56,016.21
|
$5,889.42
GTQ44,988.83
|
|
El Salvador vs. Guatemala - Cost of childcare
pay 36.3% more for entertainment and sports
|
El Salvador
|
Guatemala
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.00
SVC17.45
|
$3.56
GTQ27.16
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.83
SVC24.69
|
$3.31
GTQ25.31
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.00
SVC34.90
|
$3.98
GTQ30.40
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$30.27
SVC264.08
|
$44.81
GTQ342.29
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$5.17
SVC45.08
|
$7.18
GTQ54.82
|
|
El Salvador vs. Guatemala - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 6.4% less for clothing
|
El Salvador
|
Guatemala
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$62.60
SVC546.20
|
$49.09
GTQ374.98
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$45.83
SVC399.91
|
$53.27
GTQ406.91
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$131.80
SVC1,149.99
|
$111.74
GTQ853.57
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$109.17
SVC952.51
|
$103.64
GTQ791.68
|
|
El Salvador vs. Guatemala - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
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