Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Macaé and Chapala

For one person, living is cheaper in Macaé: $885 a month against $1,087 in Chapala, rent and utilities included – about $2,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in Macaé
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Macaé Living Index
53

Cost of Living Index in Chapala
Learn more

Chapala Living Index

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Macaé

🇧🇷 Brazil

$885

/mo nomad

Chapala

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,087

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Macaé and in Chapala

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

A single person spends $885 per month in Macaé vs $1,087 in Chapala, rent included.

Macaé $885
Chapala $1,087

A couple spends around $1,498 per month in Macaé vs $1,619 in Chapala, rent included.

Macaé $1,498
Chapala $1,619

A family of three spends $2,111 per month in Macaé vs $2,151 in Chapala, rent included.

Macaé $2,111
Chapala $2,151

Macaé is about 19% cheaper than Chapala, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Macaé and Chapala are more affordable than the global median – Macaé 34% lower, Chapala 19% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.49 R$27.83

$11.83 MX$219

-53.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.40 R$154

$25.36 MX$469

19.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.09 R$35.95

$7.28 MX$134

-2.61%

Cappuccino

$1.70 R$8.63

$3.29 MX$60.7

-48.33%

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

$1.41 R$7.15

$1.61 MX$29.67

-12.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.59 R$2.99

$1.18 MX$21.76

-50.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.24 R$6.26

$2.25 MX$41.63

-44.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 R$13.93

$3.07 MX$56.8

-10.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.97 R$4.91

$1.43 MX$26.50

-32.17%

White Bread (500g)

$1.53 R$7.73

$2.27 MX$41.89

-32.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.37 R$6.95

$1.55 MX$28.65

-11.61%

Eggs

$1.96 R$9.92

$2.28 MX$42.13

-14.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.22 R$46.73

$8.20 MX$152

12.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.36 R$17.04

$5.46 MX$101

-38.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.58 R$48.57

$7.99 MX$148

19.90%

Apples (1kg)

$1.96 R$9.91

$2.25 MX$41.65

-12.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.21 R$6.12

$1.27 MX$23.39

-4.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.93 R$4.69

$1.54 MX$28.43

-39.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.23 R$6.26

$1.77 MX$32.63

-30.51%

Potato (1kg)

$0.70 R$3.53

$1.55 MX$28.58

-54.84%

Onion (1kg)

$0.86 R$4.33

$1.39 MX$25.67

-38.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.57 R$2.88

$1.02 MX$18.89

-44.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.48 R$2.45

$0.83 MX$15.38

-42.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.58 R$8.00

$4.26 MX$78.7

-62.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.99 R$30.36

$8.42 MX$156

-28.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.03 R$5.21

$0.86 MX$15.83

19.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.23 R$6.24

$3.32 MX$61.3

-62.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.55 R$7.83

$0.69 MX$12.80

124.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$84.2 R$427

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.36 R$6.89

$1.20 MX$22.10

13.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 R$3.96

$3.22 MX$59.5

-75.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.32 R$42.19

$16.48 MX$304

-49.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.26 R$6.41

$1.44 MX$26.55

-12.50%

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

$21.7K R$110.0K

$21.6K MX$399.0K

0.46%

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

$31.4K R$159.2K

$24.0K MX$442.8K

31.07%

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

$99.6 R$505

$49.12 MX$908

102.83%

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

$9.95 R$50.4

$17.02 MX$315

-41.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.03 R$96.5

$24.57 MX$454

-22.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.47 R$205

$23.66 MX$437

71.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.67 R$150

Cinema Ticket

$6.77 R$34.31

$3.09 MX$57.1

119.09%

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

$659 R$3,339

$217 MX$4,003

204.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,291 R$37.0K

$2,920 MX$54.0K

149.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.7 R$323

$54.9 MX$1,014

16.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.54 R$160

$38.33 MX$708

-17.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$67.8 R$343

$52.2 MX$965

29.76%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$48.84 R$248

$35.74 MX$660

36.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$375 R$1,899

$565 MX$10.4K

-33.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$237 R$1,199

$470 MX$8,678

-49.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$911 R$4,620

$1,051 MX$19.4K

-13.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$673 R$3,410

$772 MX$14.3K

-12.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,275 R$6,465

$711 MX$13.1K

79.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$787 R$3,989

$695 MX$12.8K

13.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$809 R$4,104

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.67

11.2

-4.73%

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

Last update for Macaé: October 11, 2026

Last update for Chapala: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Macaé

$237 26.7%

Chapala

$470 43.2% 98.5% $233

Groceries & Markets

Macaé

$170 19.2%

Chapala

$211 19.4% 24.5% $42

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Macaé

$129 14.5%

Chapala

$91 8.3% 29.5% $38

Eating Out

Macaé

$105 11.9%

Chapala

$184 17% 75.1% $79

Getting Around

Macaé

$96 10.8%

Chapala

$20 * 1.9% 79% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Macaé

$95 10.8%

Chapala

$82 7.5% 14.5% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Macaé

$54 6.1%

Chapala

$30 2.7% 44.8% $24

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $375 in Macaé versus $565 in Chapala. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30.00 in Macaé versus $25.00 in Chapala. Groceries tell a different story – $170 in Macaé vs $211 in Chapala – so Macaé wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Macaé

🇲🇽 Chapala

🕒 Local time

04:19 4:19 AM

01:19 1:19 AM

3 h behind Macaé

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

246,391

21,596

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, 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).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Macaé Chapala 8,160 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Macaé
Chapala

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

Macaé vs Chapala: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chapala costs about 23% more than Macaé, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,328 per month in Macaé and $1,631 in Chapala. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Macaé, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30.00 in Macaé and $25.00 in Chapala. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 24% more in Chapala, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Macaé, where all-in costs run around $885, than in Chapala at $1,087. In Macaé it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chapala it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Macaé costs $885 versus $1,087 in Chapala. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Macaé. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chapala makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.