How much does it cost to live in Cabarete?
Typical Month (Mid Range)
$1,882 (DOP 110,833)
Housing, food, transport, mobile, coworking and gym.
Updated September 2026 · Sources cited: wise.com, longtermlettings.com
- Typical Month (Lower End)
- $838 (DOP 49,383)
- Typical Month (Premium)
- $3,469 (DOP 204,317)
- Furnished 1-bed rent
- $924 (DOP 54,428)
Cabarete city centre
Good to know
Good to Know
- Landlords in Cabarete commonly quote rent in USD but many will accept payment in Dominican pesos (DOP) at the daily exchange rate — paying in pesos when the peso is weak can save you money.
- Furnished, move-in-ready short-term rentals typically cost noticeably more than the 'unfurnished long-term lease' numbers you'll see in generic cost-of-living calculators — budget above the headline averages if you need a place ready to work from on arrival.
- Cooking with local produce from a colmado (neighborhood corner store) or the local mercado is significantly cheaper than shopping at supermarket chains, especially for imported/packaged goods which carry real markup.
- Multiple expat sources note Cabarete is not a 'budget' Dominican town — its tourism and long-standing kitesurf/expat scene push both rents and dining prices noticeably above inland or less-touristed DR towns.
- Cabarete is a small surf/kite town, not a business hub — coworking options are limited compared to Santo Domingo or Santiago, and hours/pricing can change with the season.
- There's no formal public transit system in town; motoconchos and shared guaguas are the everyday way to get around and are paid in cash.
- Cabarete has no cinema of its own — the nearest multiplex is in Puerto Plata, roughly 30-40 minutes away.
- Entry is visa-free for most Western passports for 30 days; if you plan to stay 3+ months, decide in advance whether you'll do a border run, request an in-country extension, or just pay the overstay fee at the airport when you leave.
- Cash (Dominican pesos) is preferred for motoconchos, small guagua fares, and many local shops — cards are less reliably accepted outside larger businesses.
Monthly Totals
- Mid-range month
- DOP 110,833
Includes 7 estimated components
- Lean month
- DOP 49,383
Includes 4 estimated components
- Comfortable month
- DOP 204,317
Includes 7 estimated components
Living Costs
- Where nomads live
- No large formal nomad-listing platform tracks Cabarete specifically, but expat/rental sources consistently identify Cabarete town center and the Kite Beach corridor (between the center and Encuentro/Kite Beach) as where remote workers, kitesurfers, and expats cluster — described by one relocation guide as the DR's 'kitesurfing, yoga, and remote-worker cafes' hub, and by a monthly-rental operator as sitting 'between Kite beach and Cabarete center.' All housing figures below reflect that corridor.
Housing (per month)
- Mid-range 1-bed
- DOP 61,850
Estimated
Midpoint of a relocation guide's stated range for Sosúa/Cabarete apartments with 'more comfort' and modern finish, quoted as $900–$1,200/month.
Published in USD
- Budget studio / 1-bed
- DOP 54,428
Estimated
Blended figure: Wise's cost-of-living page states the average monthly rent for a 1-bedroom apartment in Cabarete's city centre is $699 (likely reflecting standard/unfurnished leases), plus a furnished-rental premium of roughly $150–$300/month documented by a Cabarete rental-market analysis; midpoint premium (~$225) added to Wise's base figure.
Published in USD
- Premium apartment
- DOP 147,261
Local listing
Active listing on LongTermLettings: 'Victorian Luxury beachfront condos' in Cabarete, ground-floor 2-bedroom/2-bathroom direct beachfront unit, listed at 'Monthly rental of US$2,500 between December and April' with lower rates in other months.
Published in USD
- Private room in a shared home
- DOP 20,617
Estimated
No live listing site currently advertises private-room-in-shared-house pricing for Cabarete specifically. Estimated from the gap between budget studio/apartment pricing and typical shared-housing discounts seen in similar Caribbean coastal towns; an older (2014) expat-forum thread cited a $250/month studio which we treat as a floor, adjusted upward for inflation.
Published in USD
Groceries
- Groceries for one (month)
- DOP 17,671
Estimated
No single current source states a Cabarete-specific monthly grocery total. Estimated from general signals: local produce/colmado shopping is described as notably cheap while imported/supermarket goods carry a real markup; figure assumes a mix of local market and supermarket shopping for one person cooking most meals at home.
Published in USD
Sample prices
1L Milk
- 1L Milk
- DOP 110
Estimated
General estimate of typical Dominican Republic supermarket pricing; no Cabarete-specific listing found.
Dozen Eggs
- Dozen Eggs
- DOP 150
Estimated
General estimate of typical Dominican Republic supermarket pricing; no Cabarete-specific listing found.
1kg Chicken Breast
- 1kg Chicken Breast
- DOP 220
Estimated
General estimate of typical Dominican Republic supermarket pricing; no Cabarete-specific listing found.
1.5L Bottled Water (Store)
- 1.5L Bottled Water (Store)
- DOP 60
Estimated
General estimate of typical Dominican Republic supermarket pricing for a store-bought bottle, not restaurant pricing; no Cabarete-specific listing found.
Eating out
- Cheap meal
- DOP 353
Estimated
Wise cost-of-living page states 'A meal at an inexpensive restaurant in Cabarete costs approximately $8.' [Adjusted 2026-09-18: the source's 471 DOP reduced by 25%; see "adjusted".]
Published in USD
- High-end meal
- DOP 2,062
Estimated
Midpoint of a Cabarete cost-of-living guide's stated range: 'a nicer meal at an oceanfront restaurant catering to tourists can run $25 to $45 per person.'
Published in USD
- Mid-range meal
- DOP 1,105
Estimated
Wise states a three-course mid-range meal for two costs around $50; halved to $25 to represent a single-person meal, per methodology requirement. [Adjusted 2026-09-18: the source's 1473 DOP reduced by 25%; see "adjusted".]
Published in USD
Work, Transport & Essentials
Coworking
- Venue
- The Surfasana Lab
- Day pass
- DOP 900
Estimated
No live day-pass pricing was published on Cabarete coworking sites found at the time of research (The Surfasana Lab, Co-Cabarete); estimated at a typical small-town Caribbean coworking day rate (~US$15).
- Monthly hot desk
- DOP 10,588
Estimated
No published monthly hot-desk rate found for The Surfasana Lab or Co-Cabarete; estimated at a typical regional small-market monthly hot-desk rate (~US$175).
Transport
- How to get there
- motoconcho (motorcycle taxi)
- About monthly passes
- Cabarete has no formal public transit system or monthly pass; locals and nomads get around via motoconchos (motorcycle taxis) and shared 'guagua' minivans, both paid per ride in cash.
- Single ride
- DOP 75
Estimated
Estimated typical short in-town motoconcho fare; no fixed published tariff exists for these informal rides.
Mobile & data
- Carrier
- Claro
- Monthly plan
- DOP 1,769
Survey / cost-of-living site
cuantomecuesta.com 2026 cost guide lists Claro 'Plan 60' (postpago) with 8-10GB data at RD$1,769/month.
- Data allowance
- 8-10 GB (Plan 60, postpago)
Short Stays (per night)
- Seasonal pricing
- Yes
- Why
- Winter months (December–February) represent a genuine high season with measurably higher hotel and rental rates, driven by Northern Hemisphere winter holidays and an established Caribbean tourism peak, while summer months (June–September) reflect low-season pricing.
Low season
- Budget
- DOP 1,450
DR365 low-season boutique hotel estimates of $40-90/night at low end; basic budget properties ~$25-30/night (April/September)
- Luxury
- DOP 10,440
5-star luxury properties (Lifestyle, Millennium) estimated at $150-220/night in low season (April-September)
- Premium
- DOP 5,800
4-star hotels estimated $90-120/night in low season based on high-season to low-season ratio and DR365 boutique data
- Standard
- DOP 3,480
3-star hotels estimated $50-70/night in low season; KAYAK March average $58/night supports this tier
High season
- Budget
- DOP 2,320
Hotel aggregator data showing budget 2-star properties at ~$40/night in December-February (Tripadvisor, KAYAK minimum deals)
- Luxury
- DOP 17,400
Lifestyle Cabarate and Millennium Resort (5-star properties) estimated at $250-350/night in peak December-February season
- Premium
- DOP 9,340
4-star hotel minimum $161/night (KAYAK reported 4-star low end; high season uplift assumed)
- Standard
- DOP 5,220
3-star hotel range $80-100/night for high season (KAYAK $88 low end; January rate assumption higher)
Low-season months
- April
- September
High-season months
- December
- January
- February
Sources cited for this category
These are the sources cited in this cost of living research for this city. Individual figures may not each trace to one of them.
More About Cabarete
Data last updated September 2026 · Verify anything important.