Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cuiaba and Brasilia

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.

49

Cost of Living Index in Cuiaba
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Cuiaba Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Brasilia
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Brasilia Living Index

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Cuiaba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,018

/mo nomad

Brasilia

🇧🇷 Brazil

$916

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cuiaba and in Brasilia

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

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

Cuiaba $1,018
Brasilia $916

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

Cuiaba $1,540
Brasilia $1,514

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

Cuiaba $2,062
Brasilia $2,112

Living in Cuiaba is roughly 11% more expensive than in Brasilia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.16 R$28.07

$8.44 R$45.89

-38.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.37 R$149

$36.71 R$200

-25.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 R$40.92

$7.98 R$43.42

-5.76%

Cappuccino

$1.71 R$9.31

$2.53 R$13.74

-32.41%

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

$1.36 R$7.40

$1.42 R$7.72

-4.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.72 R$3.90

$1.00 R$5.45

-28.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.91 R$10.37

$2.20 R$11.96

-13.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 R$13.80

$3.76 R$20.43

-32.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.14 R$6.19

$1.02 R$5.54

11.76%

White Bread (500g)

$1.49 R$8.12

$1.95 R$10.63

-23.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.69 R$9.18

$1.24 R$6.75

36.29%

Eggs

$2.95 R$16.04

$2.27 R$12.37

29.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.16 R$87.9

$11.17 R$60.8

44.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.24 R$23.08

$3.86 R$21.02

9.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.25 R$55.7

$8.58 R$46.66

19.46%

Apples (1kg)

$2.21 R$12.01

$2.31 R$12.54

-4.33%

Banana (1kg)

$2.33 R$12.68

$1.38 R$7.50

68.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.40 R$13.03

$1.26 R$6.84

90.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.86 R$15.55

$1.52 R$8.27

88.16%

Potato (1kg)

$2.38 R$12.93

$1.11 R$6.05

114.41%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 R$10.73

$0.98 R$5.31

101.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 R$8.34

$0.76 R$4.11

101.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R$7.56

$0.93 R$5.08

49.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.17 R$11.80

$2.36 R$12.86

-8.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.90 R$59.3

$7.67 R$41.71

42.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 R$9.94

$1.24 R$6.75

47.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 R$15.69

$2.36 R$12.81

22.03%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.95 R$5.17

$0.73 R$3.96

30.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$35.73 R$194

$29.76 R$162

20.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.01 R$5.52

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.86 R$4.67

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.77 R$31.40

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.20 R$6.54

$1.25 R$6.79

-4.00%

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

$28.1K R$152.6K

$22.0K R$119.4K

27.78%

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

$31.3K R$170.1K

$31.9K R$173.3K

-1.83%

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

$165 R$895

$92.1 R$501

78.65%

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

$17.94 R$97.6

$11.85 R$64.4

51.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.18 R$132

$20.93 R$114

15.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.40 R$133

$30.47 R$166

-19.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.93 R$103

$26.29 R$143

-28.00%

Cinema Ticket

$5.66 R$30.76

$7.46 R$40.61

-24.13%

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

$408 R$2,217

$764 R$4,158

-46.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,796 R$47.8K

$15.7K R$85.5K

-44.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.2 R$393

$52.6 R$286

37.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.11 R$251

$42.10 R$229

9.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$141 R$767

$79.4 R$432

77.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$64.1 R$349

$83.6 R$455

-23.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$310 R$1,686

$517 R$2,813

-40.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$218 R$1,188

$242 R$1,314

-9.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$734 R$3,993

$1,156 R$6,290

-36.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$391 R$2,125

$580 R$3,153

-32.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,266 R$6,884

$2,398 R$13.0K

-47.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$742 R$4,034

$1,678 R$9,128

-55.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$365 R$1,986

$784 R$4,267

-53.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.1

12.12

32.84%

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

Last update for Cuiaba: October 26, 2026

Last update for Brasilia: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Cuiaba

$265 26%

Brasilia

$201 21.9% 24.3% $64

Accommodation & Living

Cuiaba

$218 21.5%

Brasilia

$242 26.4% 10.6% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cuiaba

$207 20.3%

Brasilia

$125 13.6% 39.6% $82

Clothing & Footwear

Cuiaba

$146 14.3%

Brasilia

$116 12.7% 20.3% $30

Eating Out

Cuiaba

$107 10.5%

Brasilia

$150 16.4% 39.8% $43

Getting Around

Cuiaba

$40 * 3.9%

Brasilia

$38 4.1% 3.9% $1.6

Sport & Entertainment

Cuiaba

$36 3.5%

Brasilia

$45 5% 27.1% $9.7

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 $310 in Cuiaba and $517 in Brasilia. 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: $27 in Cuiaba vs $37 in Brasilia. Groceries flip the comparison at $265 vs $201, with Brasilia cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Cuiaba

🇧🇷 Brasilia

🕒 Local time

13:07 1:07 PM

14:07 2:07 PM

1 h ahead of Cuiaba

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

650,877

2,817,381 Capital

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.184 USD

1 BRL = 0.165 EUR

1 BRL = 0.184 USD

1 BRL = 0.165 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Cuiaba Brasilia 880 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Cuiaba
Brasilia

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

Cuiaba vs Brasilia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

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

On paper, salaries run 53% lower in Cuiaba. 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: $310 in Cuiaba versus $517 in Brasilia. 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 $1,018 per month in Cuiaba versus $916 in Brasilia – 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.