Cost of living comparison

 Vientiane, Laos
compared to
 San Salvador, El Salvador
San Salvador vs. Vientiane Cost of Living Summary

San Salvador is 61.8% more expensive than Vientiane.

Restaurants
pay 2.9 times more in San Salvador
Groceries
pay 48.9% more in San Salvador
Transportation
pay 26.8% more in San Salvador
Housing
pay 77.5% more in San Salvador
Childcare
pay 44.9% less in San Salvador
Entertainment and Sports
pay 79.6% more in San Salvador
Clothing
pay 54.3% more in San Salvador

The cost of restaurants, entertainment and sports, housing, clothing, groceries, and transportation in San Salvador are more expensive than in Vientiane. Notably, restaurants, entertainment and sports, and housing are significantly more expensive in San Salvador.

San Salvador vs. Vientiane Cost Breakdown

If you lived in San Salvador instead of Vientiane, you would:

pay 2.9 times more for restaurants

 
Vientiane
San Salvador
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $1.98
LAK42,814
$10.00
SVC87.45
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$2.97
LAK64,221
$7.00
SVC61.22
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $0.53
LAK11,418
$1.09
SVC9.51

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pay 48.9% more for groceries

 
Vientiane
San Salvador
Bread
1 loaf
$0.91
LAK19,694
$2.12
SVC18.54
Local cheese (8 oz) $13.72
LAK296,229
$3.24
SVC28.30
Milk (1 gallon) $6.42
LAK138,631
$7.39
SVC64.59

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pay 26.8% more for transportation

 
Vientiane
San Salvador
Gasoline (1 gallon) $5.00
LAK108,058
$3.97
SVC34.74
Monthly public transit pass $49.23
LAK1,063,162
$20.00
SVC174.91
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $28,330.27
LAK611,770,395
$25,000.00
SVC218,631.30

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pay 77.5% more for housing

 
Vientiane
San Salvador
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$11.17
LAK241,267
$42.14
SVC368.55
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $859.15
LAK18,552,729
$858.33
SVC7,506.34
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $775.98
LAK16,756,633
$641.67
SVC5,611.54

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pay 44.9% less for childcare

 
Vientiane
San Salvador
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $332.66
LAK7,183,531
$160.29
SVC1,401.74
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $9,252.41
LAK199,798,618
$5,740.67
SVC50,203.58

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pay 79.6% more for entertainment and sports

 
Vientiane
San Salvador
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $0.95
LAK20,485
$2.00
SVC17.49
Cappuccino in mid-range area $1.50
LAK32,296
$3.24
SVC28.32
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$1.59
LAK34,251
$4.00
SVC34.98

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pay 54.3% more for clothing

 
Vientiane
San Salvador
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$85.86
LAK1,854,016
$72.14
SVC630.91
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$62.88
LAK1,357,815
$47.86
SVC418.52
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$57.29
LAK1,237,081
$112.14
SVC980.72

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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: June 2025
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See the cost of living in Laos vs. El Salvador. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Laos and El Salvador.

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