Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Guarulhos and Carlton

For one person, living is cheaper in Guarulhos: $964 a month against $2,253 in Carlton, rent and utilities included – about $15,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

47

Cost of Living Index in Guarulhos
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Guarulhos Living Index
110

Cost of Living Index in Carlton
Learn more

Carlton Living Index

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Guarulhos

🇧🇷 Brazil

$964

/mo nomad

Carlton

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,253

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Guarulhos and in Carlton

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $964 in Guarulhos versus $2,253 in Carlton.

Guarulhos $964
Carlton $2,253

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,764 in Guarulhos versus $3,284 in Carlton.

Guarulhos $1,764
Carlton $3,284

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,565 in Guarulhos versus $4,315 in Carlton.

Guarulhos $2,565
Carlton $4,315

Living in Guarulhos costs roughly 57% less than in Carlton, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Guarulhos is 29% below, Carlton is 66% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.69 R$44.06

$17.35 A$24.96

-49.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.01 R$203

$69.5 A$100.0

-42.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.00 R$45.61

$10.19 A$14.66

-11.68%

Cappuccino

$2.46 R$12.50

$3.03 A$4.36

-18.81%

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

$1.35 R$6.82

$2.63 A$3.78

-48.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.86 R$4.37

$2.11 A$3.04

-59.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.44 R$12.39

$6.54 A$9.41

-62.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.88 R$19.65

$6.57 A$9.46

-40.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 R$5.32

$1.34 A$1.92

-21.64%

White Bread (500g)

$1.88 R$9.52

$2.07 A$2.98

-9.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 R$6.76

$1.34 A$1.92

-0.75%

Eggs

$2.46 R$12.47

$3.27 A$4.70

-24.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.61 R$63.9

$10.29 A$14.81

22.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.79 R$24.27

$9.98 A$14.37

-52.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.70 R$54.3

$14.85 A$21.37

-27.95%

Apples (1kg)

$2.38 R$12.07

$3.28 A$4.72

-27.44%

Banana (1kg)

$1.72 R$8.71

$2.84 A$4.09

-39.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.53 R$7.74

$3.21 A$4.62

-52.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.53 R$7.76

$4.51 A$6.49

-66.08%

Potato (1kg)

$1.26 R$6.40

$2.47 A$3.55

-48.99%

Onion (1kg)

$1.18 R$6.00

$2.14 A$3.08

-44.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.98 R$4.97

$2.17 A$3.13

-54.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 R$4.32

$0.90 A$1.30

-5.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.49 R$12.65

$25.29 A$36.39

-90.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.88 R$50.1

$10.37 A$14.92

-4.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 R$7.62

$5.69 A$8.18

-73.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.49 R$12.64

$5.21 A$7.50

-52.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.24 R$6.30

$3.05 A$4.39

-59.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$105 R$532

$82.2 A$118

27.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.17 R$5.94

$3.53 A$5.07

-66.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.72 R$3.64

$1.23 A$1.77

-41.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.49 R$43.03

$26.49 A$38.12

-67.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 R$6.50

$1.30 A$1.88

-1.54%

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

$23.6K R$119.5K

$18.1K A$26.1K

30.24%

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

$34.2K R$173.5K

$14.0K A$20.1K

144.98%

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

$91.6 R$465

$92.2 A$133

-0.63%

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

$14.98 R$75.9

$27.31 A$39.30

-45.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.33 R$113

$47.00 A$67.6

-52.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.22 R$143

$31.64 A$45.53

-10.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.38 A$25.01

Cinema Ticket

$10.05 R$50.9

$13.20 A$19.00

-23.86%

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

$429 R$2,173

$2,076 A$2,987

-79.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K R$56.0K

$12.4K A$17.8K

-10.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$65.1 R$330

$79.3 A$114

-17.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 R$289

$49.34 A$71.0

15.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.2 R$467

$69.7 A$100

32.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.5 R$403

$134 A$193

-40.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$349 R$1,770

$1,395 A$2,007

-74.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$158 R$801

$1,167 A$1,679

-86.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 R$5,042

$2,121 A$3,052

-53.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$768 R$3,895

$1,784 A$2,568

-56.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,944 R$9,855

$5,783 A$8,322

-66.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,480 R$7,502

$4,967 A$7,148

-70.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$378 R$1,914

$5,754 A$8,280

-93.44%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.25

5.9

90.68%

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

Last update for Guarulhos: October 19, 2026

Last update for Carlton: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Guarulhos

$227 23.5%

Carlton

$338 15% 48.8% $111

Accommodation & Living

Guarulhos

$158 16.4%

Carlton

$1.2K 51.8% 639% $1K

Eating Out

Guarulhos

$155 16.1%

Carlton

$271 12% 74.6% $116

Clothing & Footwear

Guarulhos

$132 13.7%

Carlton

$150 6.6% 13.1% $17

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Guarulhos

$129 13.4%

Carlton

$167 7.4% 29.1% $38

Getting Around

Guarulhos

$115 11.9%

Carlton

$104 4.6% 9.3% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Guarulhos

$48 5%

Carlton

$58 2.6% 20.2% $9.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $349 in Guarulhos and $1,395 in Carlton. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Carlton pays 1424% 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 Guarulhos vs $69.0 in Carlton for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $227 vs $338 per month, with Guarulhos cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Guarulhos

🇦🇺 Carlton

🕒 Local time

12:15 12:15 PM

02:15 2:15 AM

14 h ahead of Guarulhos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,291,771

19,001

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Guarulhos Carlton 13,100 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Guarulhos
Carlton

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

Guarulhos vs Carlton: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Guarulhos and Carlton differ by about 134% in total monthly costs ($964 vs $2,253 including rent). Guarulhos is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 1424% lower in Carlton. 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: $349 in Guarulhos versus $1,395 in Carlton. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $429 in Guarulhos versus $2,076 in Carlton. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 49% higher in Carlton. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $964 in Guarulhos versus $2,253 in Carlton, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Guarulhos but tight or insufficient in Carlton. The gap between the two cities makes Guarulhos 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, Guarulhos and Carlton 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 Guarulhos gentler on the wallet – expenses run 134% less than in Carlton. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.