Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Salvador vs. Guatemala City Cost of Living Summary
San Salvador is 11.4% more expensive than Guatemala City.
- Restaurants
-
pay 5.4% less in San Salvador
- Groceries
-
pay 16.9% more in San Salvador
- Transportation
-
pay 22.8% more in San Salvador
- Housing
-
pay 29.1% more in San Salvador
- Childcare
-
pay 41.9% less in San Salvador
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 18.8% less in San Salvador
- Clothing
-
pay 8.8% more in San Salvador
San Salvador vs. Guatemala City Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Salvador instead of Guatemala City, you would:
pay 5.4% less for restaurants
|
Guatemala City
|
San Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$6.81
GTQ52.10
|
$6.75
SVC59.06
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$7.86
GTQ60.11
|
$7.00
SVC61.25
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.13
GTQ8.62
|
$1.14
SVC10.01
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.95
GTQ7.27
|
$0.83
SVC7.29
|
|
Guatemala City vs. San Salvador - Cost of restaurants
pay 16.9% more for groceries
|
Guatemala City
|
San Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.06
GTQ23.38
|
$2.85
SVC24.94
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$3.16
GTQ24.18
|
$3.85
SVC33.72
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.79
GTQ59.62
|
$6.95
SVC60.81
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.54
GTQ19.40
|
$3.02
SVC26.39
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.27
GTQ32.69
|
$3.16
SVC27.66
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.77
GTQ13.56
|
$2.29
SVC20.07
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.76
GTQ5.83
|
$0.63
SVC5.54
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.29
GTQ9.90
|
$1.18
SVC10.35
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.74
GTQ5.63
|
$1.56
SVC13.68
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.69
GTQ5.25
|
$1.33
SVC11.65
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.97
GTQ7.43
|
$1.49
SVC13.05
|
|
Guatemala City vs. San Salvador - Cost of groceries
pay 22.8% more for transportation
|
Guatemala City
|
San Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.17
GTQ39.53
|
$4.75
SVC41.60
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$14.23
GTQ108.90
|
$37.50
SVC328.13
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$27,487.68
GTQ210K
|
$25,000.00
SVC219K
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | ?? |
$30.00
SVC262.50
|
|
Guatemala City vs. San Salvador - Cost of transportation
pay 29.1% more for housing
|
Guatemala City
|
San Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$46.14
GTQ353.04
|
$42.50
SVC371.88
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$825.96
GTQ6,320.23
|
$898.99
SVC7,866.27
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$544.31
GTQ4,165.07
|
$770.00
SVC6,737.58
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$55.58
GTQ425.28
|
$99.35
SVC869.35
|
|
Guatemala City vs. San Salvador - Cost of housing
pay 41.9% less for childcare
|
Guatemala City
|
San Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$340.40
GTQ2,604.78
|
$162.67
SVC1,423.35
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$6,685.90
GTQ51,160.52
|
$4,720.00
SVC41,300.50
|
|
Guatemala City vs. San Salvador - Cost of childcare
pay 18.8% less for entertainment and sports
|
Guatemala City
|
San Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$3.27
GTQ25.05
|
$2.00
SVC17.50
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.34
GTQ25.59
|
$3.55
SVC31.02
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.06
GTQ31.06
|
$4.00
SVC35.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$39.43
GTQ301.73
|
$31.60
SVC276.50
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$6.48
GTQ49.59
|
$5.00
SVC43.75
|
|
Guatemala City vs. San Salvador - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 8.8% more for clothing
|
Guatemala City
|
San Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$49.64
GTQ379.84
|
$67.15
SVC587.57
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$47.46
GTQ363.17
|
$47.00
SVC411.25
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$117.72
GTQ900.82
|
$118.33
SVC1,035.43
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$112.60
GTQ861.58
|
$117.00
SVC1,023.76
|
|
Guatemala City vs. San Salvador - Cost of clothing
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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Compare further: Guatemala City vs. San Salvador
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cost of living in Guatemala vs. El Salvador.
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