What It Costs to Buy and Live in Grenada:
The 10% Licence and a Wide Budget Range

Grenada is one of the cheaper islands in this series to live on and one of the more expensive to buy into. The reason is the size of one fee, and a living-cost picture that depends heavily on who is estimating.

The island in numbers

The main island is about 21 miles long and 12 miles wide, so nowhere is far from anywhere else. Its population is roughly 112,000, according to an expatriate site's older estimate, and the Eastern Caribbean dollar trades at about EC$2.70 to the US dollar. Most electricity comes from diesel, according to a 2026 guide, which is why power costs more than people expect, and the government provides universal primary healthcare, according to a citizenship advisory guide.

What you pay to buy

The costs were verified in the legal and financing article earlier in this series. A non-citizen pays an Alien Landholding Licence fee of 10% of the price on completion. Stamp duty is about 1% of the price, and legal fees are about 2% plus 15% VAT. A surveyor costs around EC$1,000 for a parcel under an acre. The seller, not the buyer, pays the Property Transfer Tax, at 15% for a foreign seller and 5% for a citizen.

Adding these up for a US$500,000 purchase gives about US$66,500, or 13.3%: US$50,000 for the licence, US$5,000 for stamp duty, US$10,000 in legal fees and US$1,500 in VAT on those fees, before the survey. That is our arithmetic, not a published total, and it shows that the licence accounts for three quarters of the cost. Some advisers say a purchase in an approved Citizenship by Investment project is exempt from the licence, which should be confirmed with an attorney.

What you pay while you own

The Inland Revenue Division's current page lists residential property tax at 0.2% on land and 0.3% on buildings, with EC$100,000 deducted from the building value of one owner-occupied property. It is due by 30 June. Older rates of 0.1% and 0.15% remain in circulation, so confirm the current rate for a specific property.

Electricity

Electricity costs about US$0.30 to US$0.40 per kWh, roughly two to three times typical US rates, according to a 2026 guide. Typical household bills are US$120 to US$250 a month, depending on air conditioning use, and one data site puts the average at about US$100. Imported groceries and vehicles also cost more because of import duties.

Rent

Rents have no official index, and the estimates disagree. A one-bedroom in the centre is quoted at about US$610 to US$632 on data sites, US$450 to US$700 in St George's by a Grenada agency, and US$600 to US$900 by a retirement guide, with about US$700 for a furnished flat. Numbeo's figures convert to about US$680 in the centre and US$500 outside. The southern coast costs more: a two-bedroom near Grand Anse or Lance aux Épines runs US$1,000 to US$1,800 a month, and a three-bedroom villa with ocean views about US$2,400.

Monthly budgets

A single person's costs are quoted at about US$610 excluding rent on one data site and about US$1,334 including it, US$955 to US$1,445 excluding rent on others, and US$1,300 to US$1,900 including rent in a Grenada agency's guide. A comfortable expatriate budget is quoted at US$1,800 to US$3,000, and a retired couple at US$2,500 to US$3,500. That fivefold spread comes from assumptions about housing, imported food and air conditioning.

Health

Private health insurance is quoted at about US$55 to US$210 a month on one site, and about US$450 a month for comprehensive international cover including medical evacuation to Trinidad or Barbados on another. Because local healthcare is limited, evacuation cover is an important line item.

What this means for a buyer

Budget about 13% on top of the price for buying, plus the survey, and ask an attorney whether your purchase qualifies for any exemption. For living costs, build a figure from a specific home, using the St George's market for a lower budget and Grand Anse or Lance aux Épines for a higher one. The areas, rental and legal articles earlier in this series cover where to buy and what the taxes are.