Before going into detail about how much our lifestyle costs us each month, it’s probably a good idea to talk about what being location independent actually means! This is a term that we first heard about a couple of years ago, and is one that we think fits our lifestyle perfectly. Here’s how Wikipedia describes location independence:
“A location independent professional – or digital nomad – utilizes new technology to design a lifestyle that allows them to live and work wherever they want – be it from home, the internet cafe, on the beach, or even from the other side of the world.”
Yep, that definitely sounds like us!
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Nick and I have been fortunate enough to live and work abroad for three years now. Our first job was teaching English in China, and during our time teaching, we were able to work on this travel blog and create articles. We knew that our true location independence would not only come from teaching, but from writing about our travels – that was our true passion.
Since leaving China in July, 2013, we have lived off of an income earned solely from our website, and various opportunities that have arisen (and continue to arise) from it. The money we make each month is enough to live comfortably, travel when we want to, and put some money in the bank. We’ve lived and worked online in a few countries now: Grenada for a total of 10 months, Mexico for 2 months, and Guatemala for 2 months.
Our travel style has changed since we became serious about our website, and we definitely travel at a slower pace these days. Not only does snail travel allow us to immerse ourselves further into the cities and cultures that we’re exploring, but it allows us the time we need to be able to work on various partnerships, business campaigns and freelance writing.
The costs of living this laptop lifestyle vary depending on which country, city or part of the world we are in. However, we try to keep our monthly costs to around $1,500 USD for the both of us. You would think that our monthly expenses would be significantly less when we are receiving free accommodation from house/pet sitting, but that simply isn’t the case as we’ve accepted jobs that are in countries with higher living expenses (Grenada and Costa Rica).
Here’s an estimate of where our money goes each month, broken down into the countries we’ve spent a significant amount of time living in:
(All costs are listed in US Dollars)
| Accommodation Costs (Oceanfront Home) | $0.00 (Pet-Sitting) |
| Utility Costs | $0.00 (Included) |
| Cooking Gas | $7.50 |
| House Cleaner | $22.00 |
| Groceries | $1,050.00 |
| Restaurant / Entertainment | $266.00 |
| Alcohol at Home | $50.00 |
| Drinking Water | $0.00 (Water is Safe to Drink) |
| Transport (Car included) | $76.00 in Petrol |
| Phone / Wi-Fi | $7.52 (Cell Phone Pay-As-You-Go) |
| Total Costs | $1,479.00 |
If we had to pay for accommodation while living in Grenada, our costs would be much higher, as a basic apartment would cost around $600 / month. Being able to house / pet sit in Grenada has been truly an amazing experience, and this will be our digital nomad base for 5 – 6 months of the year. We are able to live off of approximately $1,500 each month, which includes living a pretty lavish lifestyle filled with live music nights, eating at restaurants, enjoying cheese and wine platters, and being able to explore the island.
For more on living in Grenada, check out:
Living in Grenada: Our Life in Photos
61 Awesome Things To Do In Grenada
Introducing Grenada: A Drive Around The Island of Spice
| Accommodation Costs (2 Bedroom, 2-Level Apartment) | $380.00 |
| Utility Costs | $0.00 (Included in Rent) |
| Groceries / Drinking Water | $500.00 |
| Restaurant / Entertainment | $1,000.00 |
| Transport | $0 Around Town (Walked), $9.60 Bus to Next Town (4 Return Trips) |
| Phone / Wi-Fi | $60.00 |
| Extras (Pilates class, golfing, festival costs) | $200.00 |
| Total Costs | $2,150.00 |
During our two months in the little west coast town of San Pancho, we had 5 sets of family members come and visit us! This meant that we spent much more money than usual on activities, eating at restaurants, and party nights! Plus, we lived there during Christmas and New Year’s, so we spent more money on festivals and celebrations than normal.
Our monthly costs during our time spent living in San Pancho could have been significantly cheaper than listed above, and definitely would have been if it were just the two of us living our typical lifestyle.
For more on living in San Pancho, check out:
Finding an Apartment in San Pancho, Mexico
15 Things To See and Do In San Pancho
| Accommodation Costs (Lakefront, 2-Level Apartment) | $550.00 |
| Utility Costs | $0.00 (Included) |
| Gas for Cooking and Hot Water | $36.00 |
| House Cleaner | $0.00 (Included) |
| Groceries | $517.00 |
| Restaurant / Alcohol / Entertainment | $114.00 |
| Drinking Water (Five 18L Bottles) | $13.00 |
| Transport | $48.32 (Boats and Tuk-Tuks) |
| Phone / Wi-Fi | $6.50 (Cell Phone Pay-As-You-Go) |
| Total Costs | $1,284.00 |
Our cost of living in Guatemala was very low, especially considering we had to pay for our accommodation there! With this budget, we were able to travel to other villages around the lake, go kayaking and wake-boarding, and eat / drink a lot. And honestly, that view from our apartment was priceless!
For more on living on Lake Atitlan, Guatemala, check out:
The Cost of Living on Lake Atitlan, Guatemala
Travelling to Lake Atitlan, A Guide to The Villages
A Tour of Our Lakefront Casita on Lake Atitlan
We can’t believe how little it costs us to live abroad, especially when we think of how much money we spent each month while living in Canada – our mortgage alone was over $1,500 USD / month! On top of that, there were expensive grocery bills, utility costs, vehicle maintenance, gas, insurance, property tax, condominium fees, etc.
We calculate that we spent around $3,675 USD / month in Canada on necessities alone! That’s not including any entertainment whatsoever. That’s simply what we needed to live in a house, eat, pay bills and get to and from work every day.
Since becoming location independent and working on our website, we’ve been able to live and travel in tropical countries, immerse ourselves in the city that we’re visiting, and live the lifestyle of our dreams. Eating, drinking, playing, living, travelling, exploring and pet-sitting, all for less than the cost of our rent/mortgage in Canada. Now, that’s a good deal!
This is why we continously write about this topic and try to inspire you to consider this alternative lifestyle. As always, we’re not trying to boast about this life, we’re just trying to shed some light on the reality of what it costs to live abroad and how enlightening the experience can be.
There are many places in the world where the dollar / pound / euro etc. will go much further and life is more relaxed. This style of living definitely isn’t for everyone and we don’t assume that, but if you’re reading this article, we will assume that you are looking to try something new.
This will be our way of life for the foreseeable future and we invite you to join us! In our minds, it’s $1,500 per month well spent 🙂
For more information on Location Independence, check out these articles:
7 Reasons Why We Love The Location Independent Lifestyle (and Why You Could Too!)
27 Inspiring Photos That Will Motivate You To Become a Digital Nomad Today
Our Digital Nomad Lifestyle: Answering Your Money Questions
