Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Macaé and Somerset West

For one person, living is cheaper in Macaé: $827 a month against $1,160 in Somerset West, rent and utilities included – about $4,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Macaé
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Macaé Living Index
56

Cost of Living Index in Somerset West
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Somerset West Living Index

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Macaé

🇧🇷 Brazil

$827

/mo nomad

Somerset West

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,160

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Macaé and in Somerset West

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $827 in Macaé versus $1,160 in Somerset West.

Macaé $827
Somerset West $1,160

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,398 in Macaé versus $1,888 in Somerset West.

Macaé $1,398
Somerset West $1,888

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,969 in Macaé versus $2,615 in Somerset West.

Macaé $1,969
Somerset West $2,615

Living in Macaé costs roughly 29% less than in Somerset West, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Macaé 39% lower, Somerset West 15% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.32 R$28.44

$12.23 R 204

-56.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.97 R$150

$45.52 R 759

-38.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.78 R$36.26

$5.44 R 90.7

24.63%

Cappuccino

$1.61 R$8.59

$2.06 R 34.34

-21.84%

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

$1.29 R$6.90

$1.06 R 17.74

21.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 R$2.88

$0.84 R 14.01

-35.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.10 R$5.88

$2.58 R 42.91

-57.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.65 R$14.19

$3.27 R 54.5

-18.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.87 R$4.63

$1.03 R 17.13

-15.53%

White Bread (500g)

$1.42 R$7.57

$0.98 R 16.39

44.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 R$7.13

$2.08 R 34.70

-36.06%

Eggs

$1.88 R$10.03

$2.28 R 38.00

-17.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.17 R$43.69

$8.34 R 139

-2.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.19 R$17.06

$5.18 R 86.3

-38.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.60 R$45.99

$9.22 R 154

-6.72%

Apples (1kg)

$1.75 R$9.37

$1.81 R 30.23

-3.31%

Banana (1kg)

$1.08 R$5.75

$1.89 R 31.47

-42.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.86 R$4.60

$1.74 R 29.00

-50.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.13 R$6.07

$1.69 R 28.20

-33.14%

Potato (1kg)

$0.64 R$3.42

$1.51 R 25.23

-57.62%

Onion (1kg)

$0.76 R$4.05

$1.53 R 25.48

-50.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.52 R$2.80

$1.29 R 21.42

-59.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 R$2.62

$1.07 R 17.80

-54.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.52 R$8.11

$3.39 R 56.5

-55.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 R$30.32

$5.89 R 98.1

-3.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 R$5.05

$1.36 R 22.73

-30.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.17 R$6.27

$1.75 R 29.17

-33.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R$8.06

$1.11 R 18.47

36.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.0 R$417

$60.4 R 1,007

29.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 R$6.77

$0.59 R 9.81

115.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.70 R$3.72

$1.54 R 25.72

-54.55%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.42 R$39.66

$4.94 R 82.4

50.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.22 R$6.51

$1.42 R 23.68

-14.08%

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

$19.6K R$104.7K

$29.3K R 487.5K

-33.06%

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

$28.6K R$152.7K

$29.4K R 489.1K

-2.72%

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

$93.8 R$501

$82.1 R 1,368

14.24%

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

$9.06 R$48.44

$29.05 R 484

-68.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.60 R$94.1

$40.47 R 674

-56.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.72 R$202

$44.16 R 736

-14.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$32.29 R$173

$10.43 R 174

209.59%

Cinema Ticket

$6.19 R$33.08

$7.28 R 121

-14.97%

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

$603 R$3,226

$251 R 4,175

140.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,673 R$35.7K

$3,596 R 59.9K

85.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.3 R$312

$30.99 R 516

88.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.91 R$160

$31.32 R 522

-4.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$62.6 R$335

$71.3 R 1,189

-12.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$43.83 R$234

$56.3 R 939

-22.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$346 R$1,847

$643 R 10.7K

-46.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$224 R$1,197

$426 R 7,095

-47.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$851 R$4,550

$1,341 R 22.3K

-36.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$631 R$3,371

$937 R 15.6K

-32.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,164 R$6,222

$1,221 R 20.3K

-4.70%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$752 R$4,023

$892 R 14.9K

-15.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$742 R$3,966

$1,418 R 23.6K

-47.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.67

10.12

5.43%

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

Last update for Macaé: October 25, 2026

Last update for Somerset West: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Macaé

$224 27.1%

Somerset West

$426 36.7% 90.2% $202

Groceries & Markets

Macaé

$156 18.9%

Somerset West

$200 17.2% 27.9% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Macaé

$120 14.6%

Somerset West

$152 13.1% 25.9% $31

Eating Out

Macaé

$100 12.1%

Somerset West

$166 14.3% 65.5% $66

Getting Around

Macaé

$89 10.7%

Somerset West

$73 6.3% 17.5% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Macaé

$88 10.6%

Somerset West

$86 7.4% 2.4% $2.1

Sport & Entertainment

Macaé

$50 6.1%

Somerset West

$59 5.1% 17.2% $8.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $346 in Macaé and $643 in Somerset West. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Somerset West pays 91% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $28 in Macaé vs $46 in Somerset West for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $156 vs $200 per month, with Macaé cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Macaé

🇿🇦 Somerset West

🕒 Local time

14:58 2:58 PM

19:58 7:58 PM

5 h ahead of Macaé

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

246,391

55,166

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.187 USD

1 BRL = 0.168 EUR

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 5.35 BRL (1 BRL = 0.187 USD). 1 EUR = 5.95 BRL (1 BRL = 0.168 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 16.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6 USD). 1 EUR = 18.55 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Macaé Somerset West 6,020 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Macaé
Somerset West

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 Somerset West: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Macaé and Somerset West differ by about 40% in total monthly costs ($827 vs $1,160 including rent). Macaé is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 48% lower in Macaé. 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: $346 in Macaé versus $643 in Somerset West. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Macaé – a meal for two runs $28 versus $46 in Somerset West. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $827 per month in Macaé versus $1,160 in Somerset West – a 40% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Macaé wins on affordability, Somerset West on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.