Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Brasilia and Fourways

For one person, living costs are similar in Brasilia and in Fourways: $1,008 and $1,049 a month, rent and utilities included.

49

Cost of Living Index in Brasilia
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Brasilia Living Index
51

Cost of Living Index in Fourways
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Fourways Living Index

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Brasilia

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,008

/mo nomad

Fourways

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,049

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Brasilia and in Fourways

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 Fourways actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,008 in Brasilia versus $1,049 in Fourways.

Brasilia $1,008
Fourways $1,049

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,618 in Brasilia versus $1,600 in Fourways.

Brasilia $1,618
Fourways $1,600

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,228 in Brasilia versus $2,152 in Fourways.

Brasilia $2,228
Fourways $2,152

Living in Brasilia costs roughly 4% less than in Fourways, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Brasilia 25% lower, Fourways 22% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.23 R$46.81

$8.81 R 145

4.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.99 R$203

$37.13 R 612

7.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.44 R$42.79

$5.49 R 90.5

53.73%

Cappuccino

$2.62 R$13.29

$2.30 R 37.90

13.91%

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

$1.52 R$7.70

$1.10 R 18.13

38.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.91 R$4.63

$0.82 R 13.50

10.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.43 R$12.30

$2.44 R 40.17

-0.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.99 R$20.23

$2.70 R 44.42

47.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.10 R$5.57

$1.16 R 19.15

-5.17%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 R$10.47

$1.14 R 18.82

81.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.36 R$6.90

$1.72 R 28.35

-20.93%

Eggs

$2.46 R$12.47

$2.52 R 41.50

-2.38%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.06 R$61.1

$7.74 R 128

55.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.00 R$20.29

$4.53 R 74.6

-11.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.09 R$46.06

$7.46 R 123

21.85%

Apples (1kg)

$2.43 R$12.33

$1.44 R 23.73

68.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 R$7.76

$1.59 R 26.27

-3.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.33 R$6.73

$1.79 R 29.55

-25.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.73 R$8.76

$1.56 R 25.75

10.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 R$5.95

$1.08 R 17.79

8.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.04 R$5.28

$1.22 R 20.15

-14.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.83 R$4.20

$1.23 R 20.31

-32.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 R$5.03

$1.04 R 17.12

-4.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.43 R$12.34

$3.26 R 53.7

-25.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.26 R$41.86

$5.17 R 85.1

59.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 R$6.50

$1.51 R 24.80

-15.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.48 R$12.58

$1.99 R 32.72

24.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.03 R$5.23

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$36.05 R$183

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.05 R$5.32

$0.31 R 5.14

238.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.91 R$4.63

$0.78 R 12.84

16.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.31 R$31.99

$14.47 R 238

-56.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 R$6.51

$1.56 R 25.76

-17.95%

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

$24.2K R$122.5K

$28.7K R 473.3K

-15.91%

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

$33.3K R$169.0K

$27.6K R 454.2K

20.92%

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

$98.4 R$499

$88.4 R 1,456

11.35%

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

$12.88 R$65.3

$36.56 R 602

-64.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.35 R$113

$37.70 R 621

-40.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.14 R$173

$32.69 R 539

4.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.34 R$144

$16.67 R 275

70.01%

Cinema Ticket

$7.78 R$39.45

$7.22 R 119

7.76%

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

$834 R$4,230

$257 R 4,239

224.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.3K R$87.9K

$7,930 R 130.7K

118.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.8 R$288

$52.8 R 870

7.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.40 R$230

$31.74 R 523

43.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.5 R$433

$78.6 R 1,295

8.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.5 R$459

$84.8 R 1,398

6.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$507 R$2,572

$390 R 6,432

29.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$279 R$1,412

$399 R 6,569

-30.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,123 R$5,693

$750 R 12.4K

49.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$568 R$2,881

$691 R 11.4K

-17.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,518 R$12.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,744 R$8,840

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$841 R$4,263

$1,603 R 26.4K

-47.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.12

11.34

6.88%

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

Last update for Brasilia: October 12, 2026

Last update for Fourways: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Brasilia

$279 27.7%

Fourways

$399 38% 43.1% $120

Groceries & Markets

Brasilia

$214 21.3%

Fourways

$185 17.6% 13.7% $29

Eating Out

Brasilia

$160 15.9%

Fourways

$140 13.3% 12.9% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Brasilia

$134 13.3%

Fourways

$163 15.5% 21.7% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Brasilia

$125 12.4%

Fourways

$112 10.6% 10.9% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Brasilia

$50 4.9%

Fourways

$47 4.5% 5.2% $2.6

Getting Around

Brasilia

$46 4.5%

Fourways

$4.2 * 0.4% 90.8% $42

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 $507 in Brasilia and $390 in Fourways. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Fourways pays 91% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $40.00 in Brasilia vs $37.00 in Fourways for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $214 vs $185 per month, with Fourways cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Brasilia

🇿🇦 Fourways

🕒 Local time

01:15 1:15 AM

06:15 6:15 AM

5 h ahead of Brasilia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,817,381 Capital

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Brasilia Fourways 7,860 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Brasilia
Fourways

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 Fourways: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Brasilia and Fourways differ by about 4% in total monthly costs ($1,008 vs $1,049 including rent). Brasilia is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 91% lower in Fourways. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $507 in Brasilia versus $390 in Fourways. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $834 in Brasilia versus $257 in Fourways. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Brasilia – a meal for two runs $40.00 versus $37.00 in Fourways. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,008 in Brasilia versus $1,049 in Fourways, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Brasilia but tight or insufficient in Fourways. The gap between the two cities makes Brasilia 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.

Safety-wise, Brasilia and Fourways are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Brasilia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 4% less than in Fourways. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.