Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Salvador vs. Guatemala City Cost of Living Summary
San Salvador is 6.5% more expensive than Guatemala City.
- Restaurants
-
pay 9.0% more in San Salvador
- Groceries
-
pay 2.8% less in San Salvador
- Transportation
-
pay 37.7% more in San Salvador
- Housing
-
pay 31.8% more in San Salvador
- Childcare
-
pay 10.2% less in San Salvador
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 21.0% less in San Salvador
- Clothing
-
pay 1.2% more in San Salvador
The cost of transportation, housing, restaurants, and clothing in San Salvador are more expensive than in Guatemala City. Expenses including entertainment and sports, childcare, and groceries are lower in San Salvador.
San Salvador vs. Guatemala City Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Salvador instead of Guatemala City, you would:
pay 9.0% more for restaurants
|
Guatemala City
|
San Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$5.22
GTQ39.86
|
$7.00
SVC61.08
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$6.33
GTQ48.32
|
$7.00
SVC61.08
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.20
GTQ9.13
|
$1.14
SVC9.90
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.95
GTQ7.24
|
$0.91
SVC7.95
|
|
Guatemala City vs. San Salvador - Cost of restaurants
pay 2.8% less for groceries
|
Guatemala City
|
San Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.11
GTQ23.75
|
$1.95
SVC17.01
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$3.93
GTQ30.01
|
$3.77
SVC32.86
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.96
GTQ60.79
|
$6.84
SVC59.68
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.55
GTQ19.50
|
$3.01
SVC26.26
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.82
GTQ29.18
|
$2.99
SVC26.05
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.76
GTQ13.48
|
$1.77
SVC15.46
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.76
GTQ5.80
|
$0.76
SVC6.60
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.41
GTQ10.75
|
$1.17
SVC10.17
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.86
GTQ6.57
|
$1.22
SVC10.61
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.78
GTQ5.98
|
$0.97
SVC8.44
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.20
GTQ9.20
|
$0.98
SVC8.51
|
|
Guatemala City vs. San Salvador - Cost of groceries
pay 37.7% more for transportation
|
Guatemala City
|
San Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.07
GTQ31.08
|
$3.82
SVC33.34
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$13.61
GTQ103.97
|
$15.00
SVC130.88
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$19,565.40
GTQ149,458.53
|
$25,500.00
SVC222,494.28
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$13.83
GTQ105.62
|
$29.93
SVC261.12
|
|
Guatemala City vs. San Salvador - Cost of transportation
pay 31.8% more for housing
|
Guatemala City
|
San Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$46.51
GTQ355.27
|
$43.33
SVC378.09
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$745.66
GTQ5,696.00
|
$900.00
SVC7,852.74
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$422.61
GTQ3,228.30
|
$758.33
SVC6,616.66
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$61.38
GTQ468.89
|
$82.16
SVC716.84
|
|
Guatemala City vs. San Salvador - Cost of housing
pay 10.2% less for childcare
|
Guatemala City
|
San Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$230.87
GTQ1,763.61
|
$162.67
SVC1,419.31
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$5,887.88
GTQ44,977.05
|
$6,420.00
SVC56,016.21
|
|
Guatemala City vs. San Salvador - Cost of childcare
pay 21.0% less for entertainment and sports
|
Guatemala City
|
San Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$3.26
GTQ24.91
|
$2.00
SVC17.45
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.31
GTQ25.31
|
$3.25
SVC28.35
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.04
GTQ30.89
|
$4.00
SVC34.90
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$48.62
GTQ371.43
|
$30.80
SVC268.74
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$7.17
GTQ54.80
|
$5.25
SVC45.81
|
|
Guatemala City vs. San Salvador - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 1.2% more for clothing
|
Guatemala City
|
San Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$51.42
GTQ392.83
|
$62.60
SVC546.20
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$53.26
GTQ406.86
|
$45.83
SVC399.91
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$122.72
GTQ937.44
|
$131.80
SVC1,149.99
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$121.74
GTQ929.96
|
$109.17
SVC952.51
|
|
Guatemala City vs. San Salvador - 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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cost of living in Guatemala vs. El Salvador.
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