Cost of living comparison
compared to
Managua vs. San Salvador Cost of Living Summary
Managua is 13.0% cheaper than San Salvador.
- Restaurants
-
pay 20.5% less in Managua
- Groceries
-
pay 0.9% more in Managua
- Transportation
-
pay 29.4% less in Managua
- Housing
-
pay 42.4% less in Managua
- Childcare
-
pay 15.1% less in Managua
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 5.2% less in Managua
- Clothing
-
pay 20.4% more in Managua
The cost of clothing and groceries in Managua are more expensive than in San Salvador. Expenses including housing, transportation, restaurants, childcare, and entertainment and sports are lower in Managua.
Managua vs. San Salvador Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Managua instead of San Salvador, you would:
pay 20.5% less for restaurants
|
San Salvador
|
Managua
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$7.00
SVC61.08
|
$4.91
NIO180.13
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$7.00
SVC61.08
|
$7.30
NIO268.05
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.14
SVC9.90
|
$0.82
NIO30.05
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.91
SVC7.95
|
$0.65
NIO23.85
|
|
San Salvador vs. Managua - Cost of restaurants
pay 0.9% more for groceries
|
San Salvador
|
Managua
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.95
SVC17.01
|
$2.41
NIO88.57
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$3.77
SVC32.86
|
$5.80
NIO212.71
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.84
SVC59.68
|
$4.68
NIO171.86
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.01
SVC26.26
|
$2.29
NIO84.08
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.99
SVC26.05
|
$2.87
NIO105.33
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.77
SVC15.46
|
$1.77
NIO64.95
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.76
SVC6.60
|
$0.39
NIO14.44
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.17
SVC10.17
|
$0.82
NIO29.96
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.22
SVC10.61
|
$1.01
NIO37.17
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.97
SVC8.44
|
$1.78
NIO65.18
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.98
SVC8.51
|
$1.00
NIO36.72
|
|
San Salvador vs. Managua - Cost of groceries
pay 29.4% less for transportation
|
San Salvador
|
Managua
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.82
SVC33.34
|
$5.05
NIO185.42
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$15.00
SVC130.88
|
$6.01
NIO220.45
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$25,500.00
SVC222,494.28
|
$22,973.64
NIO843,003.80
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$29.93
SVC261.12
|
$5.94
NIO218.09
|
|
San Salvador vs. Managua - Cost of transportation
pay 42.4% less for housing
|
San Salvador
|
Managua
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$43.33
SVC378.09
|
$36.87
NIO1,353.03
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$900.00
SVC7,852.74
|
$256.67
NIO9,418.23
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$758.33
SVC6,616.66
|
$190.00
NIO6,971.94
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$82.16
SVC716.84
|
$75.42
NIO2,767.34
|
|
San Salvador vs. Managua - Cost of housing
pay 15.1% less for childcare
|
San Salvador
|
Managua
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$162.67
SVC1,419.31
|
$124.17
NIO4,556.22
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$6,420.00
SVC56,016.21
|
$6,000.00
NIO220,166.41
|
|
San Salvador vs. Managua - Cost of childcare
pay 5.2% less for entertainment and sports
|
San Salvador
|
Managua
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.00
SVC17.45
|
$1.36
NIO49.90
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.25
SVC28.35
|
$2.31
NIO84.64
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.00
SVC34.90
|
$2.66
NIO97.58
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$30.80
SVC268.74
|
$35.79
NIO1,313.28
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$5.25
SVC45.81
|
$8.00
NIO293.56
|
|
San Salvador vs. Managua - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 20.4% more for clothing
|
San Salvador
|
Managua
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$62.60
SVC546.20
|
$77.43
NIO2,841.42
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$45.83
SVC399.91
|
$72.50
NIO2,660.34
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$131.80
SVC1,149.99
|
$132.64
NIO4,867.30
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$109.17
SVC952.51
|
$108.16
NIO3,968.84
|
|
San Salvador vs. Managua - 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: November 2025
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