Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mahé and Sao Paulo

For one person, living is cheaper in Sao Paulo: $1,244 a month against $1,799 in Mahé, rent and utilities included – about $6,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

91

Cost of Living Index in Mahé
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Mahé Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Sao Paulo
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Sao Paulo Living Index

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Mahé

🇸🇨 Seychelles

$1,799

/mo nomad

Sao Paulo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,244

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mahé and in Sao Paulo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,799 in Mahé versus $1,244 in Sao Paulo.

Mahé $1,799
Sao Paulo $1,244

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,618 in Mahé versus $2,085 in Sao Paulo.

Mahé $2,618
Sao Paulo $2,085

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,438 in Mahé versus $2,926 in Sao Paulo.

Mahé $3,438
Sao Paulo $2,926

Living in Mahé is roughly 45% more expensive than in Sao Paulo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mahé is 34% above, Sao Paulo is 7% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.55 SCR 254

$8.94 R$44.64

96.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 SCR 1,564

$49.46 R$247

118.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.66 SCR 82.0

$9.22 R$46.01

-38.61%

Cappuccino

$6.59 SCR 95.4

$2.54 R$12.70

159.45%

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

$1.62 SCR 23.47

$1.45 R$7.25

11.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.91 R$4.55

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$12.68 SCR 184

$3.07 R$15.31

313.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.10 SCR 132

$4.36 R$21.75

108.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 SCR 22.84

$1.27 R$6.32

24.41%

White Bread (500g)

$1.09 SCR 15.83

$1.84 R$9.17

-40.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.84 SCR 26.66

$1.41 R$7.05

30.50%

Eggs

$4.29 SCR 62.1

$2.84 R$14.20

51.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.89 SCR 230

$12.56 R$62.7

26.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.28 SCR 120

$5.37 R$26.81

54.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.96 SCR 188

$10.72 R$53.5

20.90%

Apples (1kg)

$2.07 SCR 29.93

$2.74 R$13.67

-24.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.81 R$9.03

Oranges (1kg)

$2.42 SCR 35.04

$1.55 R$7.74

56.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.59 SCR 95.4

$1.98 R$9.90

232.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.06 SCR 15.33

$1.47 R$7.34

-27.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.05 SCR 15.23

$1.24 R$6.20

-15.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 SCR 15.81

$1.27 R$6.35

-14.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 R$4.79

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.50 SCR 210

$3.04 R$15.16

376.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.19 R$50.8

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 R$8.64

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 SCR 31.75

$2.64 R$13.19

-17.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.76 SCR 11.03

$1.04 R$5.18

-26.92%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$35.50 SCR 514

$48.10 R$240

-26.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.82 R$9.07

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 R$5.07

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.40 SCR 209

$10.16 R$50.7

41.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 SCR 21.40

$1.27 R$6.35

16.54%

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

$24.3K R$121.4K

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

$34.0K R$169.8K

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

$49.22 SCR 713

$104 R$519

-52.65%

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

$21.81 SCR 316

$16.16 R$80.7

34.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$105 SCR 1,523

$22.59 R$113

365.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.9 SCR 766

$36.27 R$181

45.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$47.78 R$239

Cinema Ticket

$6.26 SCR 90.6

$9.85 R$49.19

-36.45%

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

$525 R$2,622

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K R$82.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$29.88 SCR 433

$66.9 R$334

-55.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$11.99 SCR 174

$62.3 R$311

-80.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$47.18 SCR 683

$101 R$505

-53.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$58.8 SCR 851

$90.9 R$454

-35.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$871 SCR 12.6K

$663 R$3,309

31.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$842 SCR 12.2K

$423 R$2,110

99.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,772 SCR 25.7K

$1,527 R$7,622

16.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,058 SCR 15.3K

$1,009 R$5,035

4.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,744 R$13.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,068 R$10.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$855 SCR 12.4K

$881 R$4,396

-2.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.68

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

Last update for Mahé: October 3, 2026

Last update for Sao Paulo: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mahé

$842 47.9%

Sao Paulo

$423 34.3% 49.8% $419

Eating Out

Mahé

$324 * 18.5%

Sao Paulo

$163 13.3% 49.7% $161

Groceries & Markets

Mahé

$246 * 14%

Sao Paulo

$243 19.8% 1.2% $2.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mahé

$176 10%

Sao Paulo

$143 11.6% 19% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Mahé

$67 3.8%

Sao Paulo

$145 11.7% 117% $78

Sport & Entertainment

Mahé

$65 3.7%

Sao Paulo

$56 4.6% 14.4% $9.5

Getting Around

Mahé

$39 * 2.2%

Sao Paulo

$59 4.8% 53.4% $21

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 $871 in Mahé and $663 in Sao Paulo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sao Paulo pays 3% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $108 in Mahé vs $49.00 in Sao Paulo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $246 vs $243 per month, with Sao Paulo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇨 Mahé

🇧🇷 Sao Paulo

🕒 Local time

09:38 9:38 AM

02:38 2:38 AM

7 h behind Mahé

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

78,539

11,451,999

💱 Currency

Seychellois Rupee SCR ₨

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 SCR = 6.91 USD

100 SCR = 6.16 EUR

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to SCR – Seychellois Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇨 Seychellois Rupee (₨)

Seychellois Rupee exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 14.48 SCR (100 SCR = 6.91 USD). 1 EUR = 16.24 SCR (100 SCR = 6.16 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.99 BRL (1 BRL = 0.2 USD). 1 EUR = 5.6 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 EUR).

USD to SCR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mahé Sao Paulo 11,030 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Mahé
Sao Paulo

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

Mahé vs Sao Paulo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sao Paulo wins on cost – living expenses run 45% lower than in Mahé. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Sao Paulo the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 3% lower in Sao Paulo. 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: $871 in Mahé versus $663 in Sao Paulo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 1% higher in Mahé. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,799 per month in Mahé versus $1,244 in Sao Paulo – a 45% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,244 in Sao Paulo versus $1,799 in Mahé, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Sao Paulo but tight or insufficient in Mahé. The gap between the two cities makes Sao Paulo the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Sao Paulo delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,244 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Sao Paulo hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Mahé and Sao Paulo 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 Sao Paulo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 45% less than in Mahé. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.