When you think of Curaçao you may not think of the same prices as the Netherlands or more expensive. In this blog we give you insight into the prices of daily life on Curaçao!
Shopping on Curaçao
One of the nicest things abroad is going to the supermarket, we think. You discover new products and everything goes differently than in your home country. You will immediately notice the prices in the supermarket. These are usually a lot more expensive than in Europe. Why? That is actually quite simple if you think about it.
Curaçao is not a self-sufficient island, which means that we have to import products for the supermarket from other countries. All these products must therefore be transported by plane or boat and also think of the refrigerated products. The costs of transport are increasing so that the price of the product is also more expensive! In addition, import duties also have to be paid because Customs also has to earn its money. All in all, you can calculate that almost all products are more expensive than you are used to. This results in higher expenditure on food and drink.
In this blog we assume 1 person and then you lose around 10 ANG for a simple meal, think of a pasta bolognese or a pizza. Are you really going to cook a more elaborate meal then you will quickly get the 20-25 ANG per meal.
Then of course you also have to eat breakfast and lunch. Bread here is the same price as in the Netherlands, so for a loaf of bread you will spend about 3-5 ANG. A jar of Calvé's peanut butter quickly costs 7 ANG, so it's pricey again. Drinking is about twice as much as in the Netherlands, but you do have a wide range of A and B brands here, so pay close attention to this when buying your product.
We have checked with our own residents and on average everyone loses 200 ANG per week and this includes a beer that is in the fridge!
Car costs on Curaçao
In this blog we assume that you rent a car and that the insurance is included in the rental price. An average rental price for a neat car is around ANG 1000 per month. Of course you also have to refuel this car, otherwise you won't get ahead. Hey, an advantage because refueling on Curaçao is cheap! You pay about 1.85 ANG per liter so that is much cheaper than in the Netherlands.
Every month liter prices are set on the island and every gas station must apply these rates. So it makes no sense to 'shop' for the cheapest gas station because everyone has the same price.
What does Gas/Water/Electra cost on Curaçao?
One of the most expensive cost items in Curaçao is the utilities. This has to do with the fact that the island is not large, but it has to run machines to generate all this. The price per household is therefore quite high to pay for the machines, etc. You can assume that water and electricity are 7 – 10 times as expensive in the Netherlands.
Most residences charge all-in rates, but with some residences you have to pay an additional 100 ANG per month for the use of water and electricity. Believe us, this really isn't a lot of money!
Gas, on the other hand, is cheap and you only use it for cooking because we don't have a central heating system for stoves here! Filling a small gas bomb costs 13 ANG and you can easily cook on that for 4 – 5 months if you are alone.
Rent for your room / appartment
When you go to Curaçao and you are still young, it is even more fun to live in a student villa or apartment complex. This way you quickly have contact with fellow peers and you can do fun things together.
On average, a room in a student villa costs ANG 750, so you will certainly lose this per month. This is often incl. gas, water and electricity! If you want to rent your own apartment, it depends on the location where you rent the apartment. If you get closer to Willemstad or Jan Thiel, you will soon be 1500 – 2000 ANG and in the suburbs around 1000 ANG.
Sports on Curaçao
In the Netherlands, sport is really a Do and many people regularly exercise a few times a week. That also happens on Curaçao, but of course you don't have major sports competitions here because it is only an island.
You do have several gyms here where you can work out with and without air conditioning. The average price of a sports subscription is 150 ANG per month.
All in all, you can assume that you need about 2000 ANG per month to live here on Curaçao!
