Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Brasilia and Cuiaba

For one person, living is cheaper in Brasilia: $916 a month against $1,018 in Cuiaba, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Brasilia
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Brasilia Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Cuiaba
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Cuiaba Living Index

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Brasilia

🇧🇷 Brazil

$916

/mo nomad

Cuiaba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,018

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Brasilia and in Cuiaba

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $916 in Brasilia versus $1,018 in Cuiaba.

Brasilia $916
Cuiaba $1,018

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,514 in Brasilia versus $1,540 in Cuiaba.

Brasilia $1,514
Cuiaba $1,540

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,112 in Brasilia versus $2,062 in Cuiaba.

Brasilia $2,112
Cuiaba $2,062

Living in Brasilia costs roughly 10% less than in Cuiaba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Brasilia 33% lower, Cuiaba 25% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.44 R$45.41

$5.16 R$27.77

63.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$36.71 R$198

$27.37 R$147

34.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.98 R$42.96

$7.52 R$40.48

6.12%

Cappuccino

$2.53 R$13.59

$1.71 R$9.21

47.95%

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

$1.42 R$7.64

$1.36 R$7.32

4.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.00 R$5.39

$0.72 R$3.85

38.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.20 R$11.83

$1.91 R$10.25

15.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.76 R$20.21

$2.54 R$13.65

48.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.02 R$5.49

$1.14 R$6.12

-10.53%

White Bread (500g)

$1.95 R$10.51

$1.49 R$8.03

30.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.24 R$6.68

$1.69 R$9.08

-26.63%

Eggs

$2.27 R$12.24

$2.95 R$15.87

-23.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.17 R$60.1

$16.16 R$87.0

-30.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.86 R$20.79

$4.24 R$22.83

-8.96%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.58 R$46.16

$10.25 R$55.1

-16.29%

Apples (1kg)

$2.31 R$12.41

$2.21 R$11.88

4.52%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 R$7.42

$2.33 R$12.55

-40.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.26 R$6.77

$2.40 R$12.89

-47.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.52 R$8.18

$2.86 R$15.38

-46.85%

Potato (1kg)

$1.11 R$5.98

$2.38 R$12.79

-53.36%

Onion (1kg)

$0.98 R$5.25

$1.97 R$10.61

-50.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 R$4.07

$1.53 R$8.25

-50.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 R$5.03

$1.39 R$7.48

-33.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.36 R$12.72

$2.17 R$11.67

8.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.67 R$41.27

$10.90 R$58.7

-29.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 R$6.67

$1.83 R$9.83

-32.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.36 R$12.68

$2.88 R$15.52

-18.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.73 R$3.92

$0.95 R$5.12

-23.16%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.76 R$160

$35.73 R$192

-16.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.01 R$5.46

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.86 R$4.62

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.77 R$31.06

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 R$6.71

$1.20 R$6.47

4.17%

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

$22.0K R$118.1K

$28.1K R$151.0K

-21.74%

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

$31.9K R$171.4K

$31.3K R$168.3K

1.86%

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

$92.1 R$496

$165 R$886

-44.02%

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

$11.85 R$63.8

$17.94 R$96.5

-33.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.93 R$113

$24.18 R$130

-13.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.47 R$164

$24.40 R$131

24.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.29 R$141

$18.93 R$102

38.88%

Cinema Ticket

$7.46 R$40.17

$5.66 R$30.43

31.80%

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

$764 R$4,114

$408 R$2,194

87.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.7K R$84.6K

$8,796 R$47.3K

78.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.6 R$283

$72.2 R$389

-27.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.10 R$227

$46.11 R$248

-8.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.4 R$427

$141 R$759

-43.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.6 R$450

$64.1 R$345

30.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$517 R$2,783

$310 R$1,668

66.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$242 R$1,300

$218 R$1,176

10.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,156 R$6,223

$734 R$3,951

57.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$580 R$3,119

$391 R$2,102

48.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,398 R$12.9K

$1,266 R$6,811

89.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 R$9,030

$742 R$3,991

126.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$784 R$4,221

$365 R$1,965

114.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.12

16.1

-24.72%

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

Last update for Brasilia: October 24, 2026

Last update for Cuiaba: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Brasilia

$242 26.4%

Cuiaba

$218 21.5% 9.6% $23

Groceries & Markets

Brasilia

$201 21.9%

Cuiaba

$265 26% 32% $64

Eating Out

Brasilia

$150 16.4%

Cuiaba

$107 10.5% 28.4% $43

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Brasilia

$125 13.6%

Cuiaba

$207 20.3% 65.5% $82

Clothing & Footwear

Brasilia

$116 12.7%

Cuiaba

$146 14.3% 25.5% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Brasilia

$45 5%

Cuiaba

$36 3.5% 21.3% $9.7

Getting Around

Brasilia

$38 4.1%

Cuiaba

$40 * 3.9% 4.1% $1.6

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $517 in Brasilia and $310 in Cuiaba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Brasilia pays about 2.1 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $37 in Brasilia vs $27 in Cuiaba. Groceries flip the comparison at $201 vs $265, with Brasilia cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Brasilia

🇧🇷 Cuiaba

🕒 Local time

05:00 5:00 AM

04:00 4:00 AM

1 h behind Brasilia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,817,381 Capital

650,877

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.186 USD

1 BRL = 0.167 EUR

1 BRL = 0.186 USD

1 BRL = 0.167 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Brasilia Cuiaba 880 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Brasilia
Cuiaba

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

Brasilia vs Cuiaba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $916 in Brasilia and $1,018 in Cuiaba, so Brasilia is about 10% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Brasilia is about 2.1 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $517 in Brasilia versus $310 in Cuiaba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Cuiaba – a meal for two runs $27 versus $37 in Brasilia. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $916 per month in Brasilia versus $1,018 in Cuiaba – Brasilia is about 10% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Brasilia gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.