Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Araras and St. Thomas

For one person, living is cheaper in Araras: $857 a month against $2,432 in St. Thomas, rent and utilities included – about $18,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

42

Cost of Living Index in Araras
Learn more

Araras Living Index
111

Cost of Living Index in St. Thomas
Learn more

St. Thomas Living Index

Jump to prices

Araras

🇧🇷 Brazil

$857

/mo nomad

St. Thomas

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,432

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Araras and in St. Thomas

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Araras and in St. Thomas actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $857 per month in Araras vs $2,432 in St. Thomas, rent included.

Araras $857
St. Thomas $2,432

A couple spends around $1,387 per month in Araras vs $3,274 in St. Thomas, rent included.

Araras $1,387
St. Thomas $3,274

A family of three spends $1,916 per month in Araras vs $4,117 in St. Thomas, rent included.

Araras $1,916
St. Thomas $4,117

Araras is about 65% cheaper than St. Thomas, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Araras sits 37% below the global median, while St. Thomas is 80% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.40 R$27.36

$21.05 CA$29.76

-74.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.60 R$160

$62.6 CA$88.5

-49.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.13 R$36.15

$11.38 CA$16.09

-37.35%

Cappuccino

$2.46 R$12.47

$3.32 CA$4.69

-25.90%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.37 R$6.95

$2.19 CA$3.10

-37.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.93 R$4.73

$1.59 CA$2.24

-41.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.43 R$12.34

$5.02 CA$7.10

-51.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.04 R$15.41

$5.89 CA$8.33

-48.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.02 R$5.16

$2.08 CA$2.95

-50.96%

White Bread (500g)

$1.57 R$7.94

$2.61 CA$3.69

-39.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.79 R$3.99

$3.73 CA$5.27

-78.82%

Eggs

$2.02 R$10.25

$3.09 CA$4.37

-34.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.27 R$62.2

$9.94 CA$14.05

23.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.80 R$24.32

$15.43 CA$21.81

-68.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.72 R$49.28

$19.20 CA$27.15

-49.38%

Apples (1kg)

$2.14 R$10.84

$3.86 CA$5.46

-44.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.23 R$6.23

$1.24 CA$1.75

-0.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.70 R$3.54

$3.49 CA$4.94

-79.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 R$9.11

$3.97 CA$5.61

-54.66%

Potato (1kg)

$0.84 R$4.25

$3.36 CA$4.76

-75.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.68 R$3.46

$3.07 CA$4.34

-77.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.01 R$5.13

$2.85 CA$4.03

-64.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 R$2.63

$1.46 CA$2.06

-64.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.35 R$11.89

$10.98 CA$15.52

-78.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.11 R$41.09

$12.74 CA$18.01

-36.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 R$3.65

$2.40 CA$3.39

-70.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 R$9.60

$2.78 CA$3.93

-32.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.04 R$5.26

$2.25 CA$3.18

-53.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$45.56 R$231

$58.7 CA$82.9

-22.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.52 R$7.68

$2.30 CA$3.26

-33.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.64 R$8.29

$1.62 CA$2.29

1.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.94 R$40.28

$21.70 CA$30.68

-63.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 R$5.35

$1.13 CA$1.59

-6.19%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$24.1K R$122.3K

$28.0K CA$39.6K

-13.94%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$32.4K R$164.4K

$19.7K CA$27.9K

64.50%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$40.62 R$206

$123 CA$174

-67.08%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$12.04 R$61.0

$42.76 CA$60.5

-71.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.12 R$96.9

$55.5 CA$78.4

-65.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.80 R$232

$44.43 CA$62.8

3.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.51 R$139

$20.32 CA$28.72

35.38%

Cinema Ticket

$5.94 R$30.09

$10.33 CA$14.61

-42.50%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$286 R$1,448

$399 CA$564

-28.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.4K R$52.5K

$16.7K CA$23.5K

-37.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.7 R$277

$53.5 CA$75.7

2.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.80 R$192

$35.84 CA$50.7

5.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.5 R$489

$82.2 CA$116

17.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.9 R$304

$90.6 CA$128

-33.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$234 R$1,188

$1,148 CA$1,622

-79.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$240 R$1,217

$1,267 CA$1,792

-81.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$679 R$3,444

$1,794 CA$2,537

-62.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$472 R$2,393

$1,470 CA$2,078

-67.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,743 R$8,834

$4,187 CA$5,919

-58.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,197 R$6,070

$3,561 CA$5,034

-66.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,970 CA$4,198

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.79

4.99

156.31%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Araras: October 13, 2026

Last update for St. Thomas: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Araras

$240 28%

St. Thomas

$1.3K 52.1% 428% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Araras

$195 22.7%

St. Thomas

$387 15.9% 99% $193

Eating Out

Araras

$122 14.2%

St. Thomas

$294 12.1% 142% $173

Clothing & Footwear

Araras

$112 13.1%

St. Thomas

$118 4.9% 5.4% $6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Araras

$72 8.4%

St. Thomas

$222 9.1% 209% $150

Getting Around

Araras

$59 6.9%

St. Thomas

$78 3.2% 31.4% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Araras

$58 6.7%

St. Thomas

$65 2.7% 12.9% $7.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $234 in Araras versus $1,148 in St. Thomas. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32.00 in Araras versus $63.0 in St. Thomas. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $195 vs $387 – making Araras the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Araras

🇨🇦 St. Thomas

🕒 Local time

02:07 2:07 AM

01:07 1:07 AM

1 h behind Araras

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

130,866

38,909

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Araras St. Thomas 8,030 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Araras
St. Thomas

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Araras vs St. Thomas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

St. Thomas costs about 184% more than Araras, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,286 per month in Araras and $3,648 in St. Thomas. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Araras, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 29% less in Araras. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $286 per month in Araras and $399 in St. Thomas. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Araras, where all-in costs run around $857, than in St. Thomas at $2,432. In Araras it covers expenses comfortably, while in St. Thomas it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Araras – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Araras. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, St. Thomas makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.