Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bonao and Rio de Janeiro

For one person, living is cheaper in Bonao: $686 a month against $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

33

Cost of Living Index in Bonao
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Bonao Living Index
63

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
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Rio de Janeiro Living Index

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Bonao

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

$686

/mo nomad

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,289

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bonao and in Rio de Janeiro

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $686 in Bonao versus $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro.

Bonao $686
Rio de Janeiro $1,289

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,131 in Bonao versus $1,868 in Rio de Janeiro.

Bonao $1,131
Rio de Janeiro $1,868

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,575 in Bonao versus $2,448 in Rio de Janeiro.

Bonao $1,575
Rio de Janeiro $2,448

Living in Bonao costs roughly 47% less than in Rio de Janeiro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bonao 49% lower, Rio de Janeiro 5% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.71 DOP 595

$10.06 R$51.0

-3.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.73 DOP 3,047

$40.44 R$205

22.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.65 DOP 468

$8.55 R$43.35

-10.53%

Cappuccino

$2.00 DOP 123

$2.38 R$12.04

-15.97%

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

$1.05 DOP 64.6

$1.61 R$8.18

-34.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.60 DOP 36.58

$1.03 R$5.22

-41.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.44 DOP 149

$2.47 R$12.54

-1.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.14 DOP 192

$3.70 R$18.77

-15.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.03 DOP 63.3

$1.19 R$6.05

-13.45%

White Bread (500g)

$1.04 DOP 63.6

$2.05 R$10.38

-49.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.66 DOP 40.65

$1.28 R$6.49

-48.44%

Eggs

$1.21 DOP 74.1

$2.29 R$11.60

-47.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.01 DOP 307

$10.76 R$54.5

-53.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.61 DOP 344

$4.41 R$22.36

27.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.51 DOP 399

$9.84 R$49.86

-33.84%

Apples (1kg)

$2.36 DOP 145

$2.81 R$14.25

-16.01%

Banana (1kg)

$0.63 DOP 38.55

$1.78 R$9.03

-64.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.69 DOP 165

$1.60 R$8.13

68.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.37 DOP 83.8

$1.80 R$9.11

-23.89%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 DOP 121

$1.22 R$6.17

61.48%

Onion (1kg)

$1.57 DOP 95.9

$1.04 R$5.26

50.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.00 DOP 61.0

$0.77 R$3.92

29.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 DOP 31.40

$0.67 R$3.38

-23.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.24 DOP 321

$3.01 R$15.27

74.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.14 DOP 437

$8.08 R$40.94

-11.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.18 DOP 133

$1.19 R$6.03

83.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.91 DOP 178

$2.51 R$12.73

15.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.58 DOP 35.60

$0.99 R$5.00

-41.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$34.07 DOP 2,087

$50.1 R$254

-32.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.12 DOP 191

$1.22 R$6.20

155.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.17 DOP 133

$0.92 R$4.66

135.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.41 DOP 147

$8.97 R$45.45

-73.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 DOP 85.5

$1.30 R$6.57

7.69%

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

$22.8K DOP 1.4M

$23.9K R$121.0K

-4.44%

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

$34.1K DOP 2.1M

$32.9K R$166.6K

3.79%

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

$92.9 DOP 5,691

$133 R$676

-30.36%

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

$31.91 DOP 1,955

$10.82 R$54.8

194.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.96 DOP 2,203

$22.90 R$116

57.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.79 R$156

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.85 R$161

Cinema Ticket

$7.33 DOP 449

$8.05 R$40.83

-8.94%

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

$248 DOP 15.2K

$598 R$3,029

-58.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,364 DOP 451.1K

$13.4K R$68.0K

-45.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.46 DOP 2,785

$42.04 R$213

8.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.18 DOP 2,829

$49.68 R$252

-7.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.4 DOP 5,291

$74.5 R$378

15.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$126 DOP 7,698

$68.7 R$348

82.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$903 R$4,578

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$529 R$2,684

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,326 R$6,724

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$756 R$3,831

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,010 R$20.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,560 R$7,910

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$640 R$3,242

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.56

11.93

13.66%

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

Last update for Bonao: October 10, 2026

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Bonao

$174 25.4%

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7% 23.2% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bonao

$161 23.4%

Rio de Janeiro

$167 13% 3.9% $6.3

Eating Out

Bonao

$150 21.8%

Rio de Janeiro

$165 12.8% 10.2% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Bonao

$137 19.9%

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2% 22.6% $31

Getting Around

Bonao

$50 7.3%

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7% 18.9% $9.5

Sport & Entertainment

Bonao

$15 * 2.1%

Rio de Janeiro

$47 3.6% 220% $32

Accommodation & Living

Bonao

- * 0%

Rio de Janeiro

$529 41.1%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $50.0 in Bonao vs $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro. Groceries flip the comparison at $174 vs $215, with Bonao cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇩🇴 Bonao

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🕒 Local time

11:05 11:05 AM

12:05 12:05 PM

1 h ahead of Bonao

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

158,034

6,211,223

💱 Currency

Dominican Peso DOP $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 DOP = 1.63 USD

100 DOP = 1.45 EUR

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to DOP – Dominican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇩🇴 Dominican Peso ($)

Dominican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 61.26 DOP (100 DOP = 1.63 USD). 1 EUR = 68.87 DOP (100 DOP = 1.45 EUR).

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).

USD to DOP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bonao Rio de Janeiro 5,510 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Bonao
Rio de Janeiro

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

Bonao vs Rio de Janeiro: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bonao and Rio de Janeiro differ by about 88% in total monthly costs ($686 vs $1,289 including rent). Bonao is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,029 in Bonao and $1,933 in Rio de Janeiro to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

A monthly transit pass in Bonao runs roughly 47% less than in Rio de Janeiro. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $248 in Bonao versus $598 in Rio de Janeiro. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $686 in Bonao versus $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bonao but tight or insufficient in Rio de Janeiro. The gap between the two cities makes Bonao the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Bonao gentler on the wallet – expenses run 88% less than in Rio de Janeiro. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.