Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Maracaibo and Rio de Janeiro

For one person, living is cheaper in Maracaibo: $781 a month against $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro, rent and utilities included – about $6,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

38

Cost of Living Index in Maracaibo
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Maracaibo Living Index
63

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
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Rio de Janeiro Living Index

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Maracaibo

🇻🇪 Venezuela

$781

/mo nomad

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,285

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Maracaibo and in Rio de Janeiro

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $781 in Maracaibo versus $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro.

Maracaibo $781
Rio de Janeiro $1,285

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,316 in Maracaibo versus $1,888 in Rio de Janeiro.

Maracaibo $1,316
Rio de Janeiro $1,888

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,851 in Maracaibo versus $2,491 in Rio de Janeiro.

Maracaibo $1,851
Rio de Janeiro $2,491

Living in Maracaibo costs roughly 39% less than in Rio de Janeiro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Maracaibo 42% lower, Rio de Janeiro 4% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.69 VES 9,348

$9.98 R$49.83

7.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.44 VES 35.4K

$40.34 R$201

0.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.05 VES 7,917

$8.48 R$42.35

6.72%

Cappuccino

$2.68 VES 2,340

$2.36 R$11.80

13.56%

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

$1.15 VES 1,009

$1.63 R$8.13

-29.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.36 VES 1,188

$1.01 R$5.06

34.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.30 VES 2,012

$2.44 R$12.19

-5.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.96 VES 2,592

$3.69 R$18.43

-19.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 VES 1,704

$1.15 R$5.72

69.57%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 VES 1,927

$2.07 R$10.34

6.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.09 VES 950

$1.29 R$6.42

-15.50%

Eggs

$3.60 VES 3,148

$2.27 R$11.32

58.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.59 VES 5,765

$11.00 R$54.9

-40.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.21 VES 5,434

$4.31 R$21.51

44.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.30 VES 6,387

$9.74 R$48.63

-25.05%

Apples (1kg)

$4.64 VES 4,060

$2.83 R$14.12

63.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 VES 1,223

$1.84 R$9.17

-23.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 VES 1,413

$1.60 R$7.96

1.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.41 VES 1,237

$1.80 R$9.00

-21.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.18 VES 1,036

$1.26 R$6.28

-6.35%

Onion (1kg)

$1.78 VES 1,555

$1.07 R$5.34

66.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.02 VES 891

$0.75 R$3.75

36.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.01 VES 1,762

$0.66 R$3.29

204.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.94 VES 2,574

$3.05 R$15.21

-3.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.87 VES 7,759

$8.18 R$40.84

8.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 VES 946

$1.19 R$5.92

-9.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 VES 2,379

$2.39 R$11.92

13.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.46 VES 403

$1.01 R$5.06

-54.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.91 VES 36.7K

$50.2 R$250

-16.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.95 VES 3,452

$1.27 R$6.33

211.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.04 VES 1,787

$0.90 R$4.51

126.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.18 VES 15.0K

$9.44 R$47.13

81.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.74 VES 650

$1.33 R$6.65

-44.36%

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

$14.7K VES 12.9M

$23.4K R$117.0K

-37.22%

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

$27.9K VES 24.4M

$33.6K R$167.6K

-16.97%

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

$63.5 VES 55.5K

$134 R$666

-52.44%

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

$7.43 VES 6,497

$12.23 R$61.0

-39.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.55 VES 21.5K

$22.65 R$113

8.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.32 VES 29.1K

$31.56 R$158

5.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.43 VES 24.9K

$30.87 R$154

-7.90%

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 VES 4,461

$8.23 R$41.07

-38.03%

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

$153 VES 133.7K

$603 R$3,011

-74.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,068 VES 6.2M

$13.2K R$66.1K

-46.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.67 VES 24.2K

$41.62 R$208

-33.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.70 VES 28.6K

$49.94 R$249

-34.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.6 VES 53.9K

$75.0 R$375

-17.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$58.1 VES 50.8K

$68.3 R$341

-14.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$161 VES 140.5K

$905 R$4,519

-82.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$91.8 VES 80.3K

$527 R$2,633

-82.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$305 VES 266.7K

$1,346 R$6,720

-77.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$198 VES 173.3K

$774 R$3,865

-74.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$751 VES 656.9K

$3,981 R$19.9K

-81.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$508 VES 444.1K

$1,562 R$7,798

-67.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$214 VES 187.2K

$643 R$3,210

-66.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

67.64%

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

Last update for Maracaibo: October 6, 2026

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Maracaibo

$242 30.9%

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7% 11.4% $27

Eating Out

Maracaibo

$172 22%

Rio de Janeiro

$164 12.7% 4.9% $8.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Maracaibo

$95 12.2%

Rio de Janeiro

$168 13.1% 76.4% $73

Accommodation & Living

Maracaibo

$92 11.7%

Rio de Janeiro

$527 41% 475% $436

Clothing & Footwear

Maracaibo

$81 10.3%

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2% 30.5% $25

Getting Around

Maracaibo

$58 7.4%

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7% 3.6% $2.1

Sport & Entertainment

Maracaibo

$44 5.6%

Rio de Janeiro

$48 3.7% 10.3% $4.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $161 in Maracaibo and $905 in Rio de Janeiro. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Rio de Janeiro pays 200% 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 Maracaibo vs $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro. Groceries flip the comparison at $242 vs $215, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇻🇪 Maracaibo

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🕒 Local time

10:13 10:13 AM

11:13 11:13 AM

1 h ahead of Maracaibo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,000,000

6,211,223

💱 Currency

Venezuelan Bolívar VES Bs.S

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 VES = 1.14 USD

1,000 VES = 1.02 EUR

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to VES – Venezuelan Bolívar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇻🇪 Venezuelan Bolívar (Bs.S)

Venezuelan Bolívar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 875 VES (1,000 VES = 1.14 USD). 1 EUR = 980 VES (1,000 VES = 1.02 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.99 BRL (1 BRL = 0.2 USD). 1 EUR = 5.59 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 EUR).

USD to VES in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Maracaibo Rio de Janeiro 4,850 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Maracaibo
Rio de Janeiro

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

Maracaibo vs Rio de Janeiro: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Maracaibo is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, transport, and leisure. The 64% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 200% lower in Rio de Janeiro. 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: $161 in Maracaibo versus $905 in Rio de Janeiro. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $153 in Maracaibo versus $603 in Rio de Janeiro. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Rio de Janeiro pay roughly 13% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $781 in Maracaibo versus $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Maracaibo but tight or insufficient in Rio de Janeiro. The gap between the two cities makes Maracaibo the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Maracaibo is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Rio de Janeiro, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Maracaibo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 64% less than in Rio de Janeiro. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.