Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Brasilia and Petropolis

For one person, living is cheaper in Brasilia: $916 a month against $945 in Petropolis, rent and utilities included – about $350 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Petropolis outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

44

Cost of Living Index in Brasilia
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Brasilia Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Petropolis
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Petropolis Living Index

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Brasilia

🇧🇷 Brazil

$916

/mo nomad

Petropolis

🇧🇷 Brazil

$945

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Brasilia and in Petropolis

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $916 in Brasilia versus $945 in Petropolis.

Brasilia $916
Petropolis $945

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,514 in Brasilia versus $1,417 in Petropolis.

Brasilia $1,514
Petropolis $1,417

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,112 in Brasilia versus $1,888 in Petropolis.

Brasilia $2,112
Petropolis $1,888

Living in Brasilia costs roughly 3% less than in Petropolis, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Brasilia 33% lower, Petropolis 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.44 R$45.87

$5.72 R$31.10

47.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$36.71 R$200

$26.56 R$144

38.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.98 R$43.40

$6.47 R$35.19

23.34%

Cappuccino

$2.53 R$13.73

$1.64 R$8.94

54.27%

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

$1.42 R$7.72

$1.29 R$7.02

10.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.00 R$5.45

$0.57 R$3.11

75.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.20 R$11.96

$1.09 R$5.95

101.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.76 R$20.42

$4.20 R$22.84

-10.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.02 R$5.54

$0.89 R$4.84

14.61%

White Bread (500g)

$1.95 R$10.62

$1.47 R$7.97

32.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.24 R$6.74

$1.33 R$7.24

-6.77%

Eggs

$2.27 R$12.36

$1.89 R$10.30

20.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.17 R$60.8

$8.55 R$46.51

30.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.86 R$21.01

$3.85 R$20.93

0.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.58 R$46.64

$9.16 R$49.80

-6.33%

Apples (1kg)

$2.31 R$12.53

$1.61 R$8.75

43.48%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 R$7.50

$1.06 R$5.79

30.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.26 R$6.83

$0.84 R$4.59

50.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.52 R$8.27

$1.18 R$6.39

28.81%

Potato (1kg)

$1.11 R$6.04

$0.64 R$3.50

73.44%

Onion (1kg)

$0.98 R$5.30

$0.74 R$4.04

32.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 R$4.11

$0.49 R$2.69

55.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 R$5.08

$0.57 R$3.08

63.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.36 R$12.85

$2.00 R$10.86

18.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.67 R$41.69

$5.48 R$29.81

39.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 R$6.74

$0.98 R$5.34

26.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.36 R$12.81

$1.27 R$6.90

85.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.73 R$3.96

$1.03 R$5.60

-29.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.76 R$162

$46.23 R$251

-35.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.01 R$5.52

$1.06 R$5.78

-4.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.86 R$4.66

$0.89 R$4.83

-3.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.77 R$31.38

$7.37 R$40.05

-21.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 R$6.78

$1.15 R$6.28

8.70%

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

$22.0K R$119.4K

$19.7K R$106.9K

11.61%

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

$31.9K R$173.2K

$29.5K R$160.6K

7.82%

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

$92.1 R$501

$67.4 R$367

36.64%

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

$11.85 R$64.4

$9.36 R$50.9

26.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.93 R$114

$17.93 R$97.5

16.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.47 R$166

$30.74 R$167

-0.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.29 R$143

$29.15 R$158

-9.81%

Cinema Ticket

$7.46 R$40.59

$6.34 R$34.47

17.67%

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

$764 R$4,156

$344 R$1,872

122.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.7K R$85.5K

$9,986 R$54.3K

57.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.6 R$286

$52.8 R$287

-0.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.10 R$229

$47.16 R$256

-10.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.4 R$432

$83.9 R$456

-5.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.6 R$454

$64.4 R$350

29.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$517 R$2,811

$487 R$2,647

6.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$242 R$1,313

$370 R$2,014

-34.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,156 R$6,287

$809 R$4,398

42.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$580 R$3,151

$582 R$3,165

-0.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,398 R$13.0K

$2,562 R$13.9K

-6.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 R$9,123

$1,907 R$10.4K

-12.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$784 R$4,264

$574 R$3,120

36.69%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.12

11.87

2.11%

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

Last update for Brasilia: October 24, 2026

Last update for Petropolis: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Brasilia

$242 26.4%

Petropolis

$370 39.2% 53.4% $129

Groceries & Markets

Brasilia

$201 21.9%

Petropolis

$163 17.3% 18.6% $37

Eating Out

Brasilia

$150 16.4%

Petropolis

$106 11.2% 29.2% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Brasilia

$125 13.6%

Petropolis

$95 10% 24.2% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Brasilia

$116 12.7%

Petropolis

$112 11.8% 3.7% $4.2

Sport & Entertainment

Brasilia

$45 5%

Petropolis

$43 4.6% 4.4% $2

Getting Around

Brasilia

$38 4.1%

Petropolis

$56 5.9% 47.1% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $517 in Brasilia and $487 in Petropolis. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Brasilia pays 37% 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 Petropolis for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $201 vs $163 per month, with Petropolis cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Brasilia

🇧🇷 Petropolis

🕒 Local time

18:00 6:00 PM

Same time as Brasilia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,817,381 Capital

278,881

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.184 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 EUR

1 BRL = 0.184 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Brasilia Petropolis 900 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Brasilia
Petropolis

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 Petropolis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $916 in Brasilia and $945 in Petropolis, so Brasilia is about 3% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 37% higher in Brasilia, 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 $487 in Petropolis. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Petropolis – 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 $945 in Petropolis – Brasilia is about 3% 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.