Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cambridge, MA and Rio de Janeiro

For one person, living is cheaper in Rio de Janeiro: $1,289 a month against $4,506 in Cambridge, MA, rent and utilities included – about $38,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

216

Cost of Living Index in Cambridge, MA
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Cambridge, MA Living Index
63

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

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Cambridge, MA

🇺🇸 United States

$4,506

/mo nomad

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,289

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cambridge, MA 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 Cambridge, MA and in Rio de Janeiro actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,506 in Cambridge, MA versus $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro.

Cambridge, MA $4,506
Rio de Janeiro $1,289

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,767 in Cambridge, MA versus $1,868 in Rio de Janeiro.

Cambridge, MA $5,767
Rio de Janeiro $1,868

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,029 in Cambridge, MA versus $2,448 in Rio de Janeiro.

Cambridge, MA $7,029
Rio de Janeiro $2,448

Living in Cambridge, MA is roughly 250% more expensive than in Rio de Janeiro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cambridge, MA is 234% above, Rio de Janeiro is 5% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.88 $19.88

$10.06 R$51.0

97.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$99.2 $99.2

$40.44 R$205

145.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.19 $12.19

$8.55 R$43.35

42.57%

Cappuccino

$5.20 $5.20

$2.38 R$12.04

118.49%

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

$3.17 $3.17

$1.61 R$8.18

96.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 $2.33

$1.03 R$5.22

126.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.13 $8.13

$2.47 R$12.54

229.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.97 $7.97

$3.70 R$18.77

115.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 $1.17

$1.19 R$6.05

-1.68%

White Bread (500g)

$4.54 $4.54

$2.05 R$10.38

121.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$6.97 $6.97

$1.28 R$6.49

444.53%

Eggs

$4.91 $4.91

$2.29 R$11.60

114.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.35 $15.35

$10.76 R$54.5

42.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.08 $15.08

$4.41 R$22.36

241.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.19 $19.19

$9.84 R$49.86

95.02%

Apples (1kg)

$6.46 $6.46

$2.81 R$14.25

129.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.72 $1.72

$1.78 R$9.03

-3.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.92 $5.92

$1.60 R$8.13

270.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$7.33 $7.33

$1.80 R$9.11

307.22%

Potato (1kg)

$4.38 $4.38

$1.22 R$6.17

259.02%

Onion (1kg)

$3.81 $3.81

$1.04 R$5.26

266.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.00 $3.00

$0.77 R$3.92

289.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.57 $2.57

$0.67 R$3.38

283.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.66 $12.66

$3.01 R$15.27

320.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.72 $15.72

$8.08 R$40.94

94.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 $1.96

$1.19 R$6.03

64.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.41 $5.41

$2.51 R$12.73

115.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.50 $2.50

$0.99 R$5.00

152.53%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$91.0 $91.0

$50.1 R$254

81.56%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.05 $2.05

$1.22 R$6.20

68.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.51 $1.51

$0.92 R$4.66

64.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.82 $10.82

$8.97 R$45.45

20.62%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.07 $1.07

$1.30 R$6.57

-17.69%

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

$36.7K $36.7K

$23.9K R$121.0K

53.86%

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

$25.5K $25.5K

$32.9K R$166.6K

-22.39%

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

$227 $227

$133 R$676

70.53%

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

$54.4 $54.4

$10.82 R$54.8

402.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$78.4 $78.4

$22.90 R$116

242.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.3 $74.3

$30.79 R$156

141.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.56 $30.56

$31.85 R$161

-4.05%

Cinema Ticket

$14.78 $14.78

$8.05 R$40.83

83.60%

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

$2,847 $2,847

$598 R$3,029

376.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.9K $35.9K

$13.4K R$68.0K

167.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$76.4 $76.4

$42.04 R$213

81.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.3 $51.3

$49.68 R$252

3.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 $103

$74.5 R$378

38.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$138 $138

$68.7 R$348

100.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,392 $3,392

$903 R$4,578

275.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,926 $2,926

$529 R$2,684

452.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,218 $5,218

$1,326 R$6,724

293.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,459 $3,459

$756 R$3,831

357.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,990 $4,990

$4,010 R$20.3K

24.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,067 $5,067

$1,560 R$7,910

224.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,239 $6,239

$640 R$3,242

875.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.5

11.93

-45.52%

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

Last update for Cambridge, MA: October 12, 2026

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cambridge, MA

$2.9K 64.9%

Rio de Janeiro

$529 41.1% 81.9% $2.4K

Groceries & Markets

Cambridge, MA

$502 11.2%

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7% 57.3% $288

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cambridge, MA

$360 8%

Rio de Janeiro

$167 13% 53.6% $193

Eating Out

Cambridge, MA

$337 7.5%

Rio de Janeiro

$165 12.8% 51% $172

Clothing & Footwear

Cambridge, MA

$166 3.7%

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2% 36.2% $60

Getting Around

Cambridge, MA

$111 2.5%

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7% 45.9% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Cambridge, MA

$104 2.3%

Rio de Janeiro

$47 3.6% 54.9% $57

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $3,392 in Cambridge, MA and $903 in Rio de Janeiro. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cambridge, MA pays 875% 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: $99.0 in Cambridge, MA vs $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $502 vs $215 per month, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Cambridge, MA

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🕒 Local time

13:46 1:46 PM

14:46 2:46 PM

1 h ahead of Cambridge, MA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

105,162

6,211,223

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 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).

BRL to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Cambridge, MA Rio de Janeiro 7,800 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Cambridge, MA
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

Cambridge, MA vs Rio de Janeiro: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rio de Janeiro wins on cost – living expenses run 250% lower than in Cambridge, MA. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Rio de Janeiro the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 875% higher in Cambridge, MA, 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: $3,392 in Cambridge, MA versus $903 in Rio de Janeiro. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 134% higher in Cambridge, MA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Rio de Janeiro – a meal for two runs $40.00 versus $99.0 in Cambridge, MA. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro versus $4,506 in Cambridge, MA, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Rio de Janeiro but tight or insufficient in Cambridge, MA. The gap between the two cities makes Rio de Janeiro the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Rio de Janeiro delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,289 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Rio de Janeiro hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Cambridge, MA and Rio de Janeiro 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 Rio de Janeiro gentler on the wallet – expenses run 250% less than in Cambridge, MA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.