Cost of Living in San Salvador, 🇸🇻 El Salvador - For Locals, Nomads, and Tourists

AI estimate Updated Jun 8, 2026 About costs

Cost breakdown

Digital nomad: short-term stay (1-3 months). Furnished Airbnb or coliving near center, coworking, eating out ~3x/day, travel health insurance.

Expat: long-term resident (1+ years). Renting apartment in center, mix of cooking and dining out, local health insurance, settled lifestyle.

Family: middle-class 4-person family. 2-3 bedroom in suburbs, groceries for 4, international school, car/transport, family health plan.

Local: budget-conscious local resident. Renting outside center, cooking at home, public transport, local phone plan.

Tourist: short-stay visitor (1-14 days). Hotel/Airbnb nightly, all meals at restaurants, taxis, sightseeing.

CategoryCost

Housing $800 $500 $700 $250 $70

Utilities $80 $70 $100 $60 —

Internet & Mobile $55 $45 $55 $35 —

Groceries $100 $250 $500 $180 —

Transportation $70 $60 $100 $40 $10

Dining Out $450 $180 $200 $60 $25

Leisure Activities $100 $60 $80 $20 $15

Health Insurance $60 $70 $150 — —

Visa & Legal Fees $30 $40 $50 — —

Total $1,745 $1,275 $1,935 $645 $120

Itemized prices

Local prices converted to the selected currency.

Food & Dining

Coffee $1.50 per cup

Beer $1.75 per pint

Meal (Inexpensive) $4.00 per meal

Fast Food Combo $6.00 per meal

Apples $2.50 per kg

Bread $1.20 per loaf

Milk $1.30 per liter

Rice $1.10 per kg

Chicken Fillets $4.50 per kg

Beef $6.50 per kg

Wine (Mid-range) $12.00 per bottle

Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) $40.00 per meal

Water (1.5L bottle) $0.70 per bottle

Transportation

Taxi Start $1.50 per trip

Taxi per km $0.80 per km

Monthly Transport Pass $25.00 per month

Gasoline $1.15 per liter

Ride-hailing (5km) $4.00 per trip

Scooter Rental $20.00 per month

Services

Mobile Plan $15.00 per month

Internet (60 Mbps+) $35.00 per month

Gym Membership $40.00 per month

Tennis Court (Weekend) $15.00 per hour

SIM Card (Tourist, prepaid) $7.00 one-time

Entertainment

Cinema Ticket $5.00 per ticket

Clothing

Jeans $40.00 per pair

Summer Dress $30.00 per dress

Running Shoes $65.00 per pair

Housing

Airbnb (1 month) $600.00 per month

Coliving Space $400.00 per month

Apartment (1 bedroom) $450.00 per month

Coworking Space $120.00 per month

Personal Care

Haircut $8.00 per visit

Laundry $7.00 per kg

Healthcare

Doctor Visit (GP) $30.00 per visit

Pharmacy (basic meds) $8.00 per purchase

About these costs

Method: AI estimate
Last updated: Jun 8, 2026
Generated by: deepseek-v4-flash · cost run 44
Last changed: None yet

Generated by an AI model without cited sources and not yet checked by research. A research pass replaces these values with sourced ones, compared with similar cities.

San Salvador cost of living