Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Matamoros and Rio de Janeiro

For one person, living is cheaper in Matamoros: $1,090 a month against $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro, rent and utilities included – about $2,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Rio de Janeiro outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

55

Cost of Living Index in Matamoros
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Matamoros Living Index
63

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

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Matamoros

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,090

/mo nomad

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,289

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Matamoros 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 Matamoros and in Rio de Janeiro actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,090 in Matamoros versus $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro.

Matamoros $1,090
Rio de Janeiro $1,289

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,832 in Matamoros versus $1,868 in Rio de Janeiro.

Matamoros $1,832
Rio de Janeiro $1,868

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,573 in Matamoros versus $2,448 in Rio de Janeiro.

Matamoros $2,573
Rio de Janeiro $2,448

Living in Matamoros costs roughly 15% less than in Rio de Janeiro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Matamoros 19% lower, Rio de Janeiro 5% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.38 MX$229

$10.06 R$51.0

23.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.67 MX$696

$40.44 R$205

-6.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.06 MX$167

$8.55 R$43.35

5.96%

Cappuccino

$3.29 MX$60.8

$2.38 R$12.04

38.24%

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

$1.47 MX$27.18

$1.61 R$8.18

-8.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.05 MX$19.40

$1.03 R$5.22

1.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.26 MX$41.81

$2.47 R$12.54

-8.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 MX$82.8

$3.70 R$18.77

21.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 MX$30.12

$1.19 R$6.05

36.97%

White Bread (500g)

$2.40 MX$44.43

$2.05 R$10.38

17.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 MX$31.43

$1.28 R$6.49

32.81%

Eggs

$2.57 MX$47.54

$2.29 R$11.60

12.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.01 MX$167

$10.76 R$54.5

-16.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.82 MX$144

$4.41 R$22.36

77.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.74 MX$217

$9.84 R$49.86

19.31%

Apples (1kg)

$2.70 MX$49.81

$2.81 R$14.25

-3.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 MX$31.92

$1.78 R$9.03

-2.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 MX$30.82

$1.60 R$8.13

4.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 MX$37.92

$1.80 R$9.11

13.89%

Potato (1kg)

$2.17 MX$40.01

$1.22 R$6.17

77.87%

Onion (1kg)

$2.09 MX$38.70

$1.04 R$5.26

100.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.61 MX$29.73

$0.77 R$3.92

109.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MX$22.48

$0.67 R$3.38

82.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.72 MX$87.2

$3.01 R$15.27

56.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.79 MX$199

$8.08 R$40.94

33.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.02 MX$37.32

$1.19 R$6.03

69.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 MX$58.8

$2.51 R$12.73

26.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.65 MX$12.03

$0.99 R$5.00

-34.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.1 R$254

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.71 MX$50.0

$1.22 R$6.20

122.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.25 MX$41.49

$0.92 R$4.66

144.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.47 MX$212

$8.97 R$45.45

27.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 MX$24.72

$1.30 R$6.57

3.08%

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

$23.5K MX$435.0K

$23.9K R$121.0K

-1.41%

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

$23.9K MX$441.3K

$32.9K R$166.6K

-27.33%

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

$56.2 MX$1,038

$133 R$676

-57.91%

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

$25.44 MX$470

$10.82 R$54.8

135.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.61 MX$492

$22.90 R$116

16.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.88 MX$608

$30.79 R$156

6.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.40 MX$414

$31.85 R$161

-29.67%

Cinema Ticket

$4.48 MX$82.7

$8.05 R$40.83

-44.35%

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

$223 MX$4,114

$598 R$3,029

-62.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,650 MX$85.9K

$13.4K R$68.0K

-65.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.3 MX$986

$42.04 R$213

26.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.50 MX$711

$49.68 R$252

-22.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.1 MX$1,832

$74.5 R$378

33.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.4 MX$1,467

$68.7 R$348

15.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$646 MX$11.9K

$903 R$4,578

-28.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$337 MX$6,220

$529 R$2,684

-36.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$901 MX$16.7K

$1,326 R$6,724

-32.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$826 MX$15.3K

$756 R$3,831

9.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,039 MX$37.7K

$4,010 R$20.3K

-49.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,054 MX$19.5K

$1,560 R$7,910

-32.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$640 R$3,242

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

11.93

-5.28%

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

Last update for Matamoros: October 11, 2026

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Matamoros

$337 30.9%

Rio de Janeiro

$529 41.1% 57.3% $193

Groceries & Markets

Matamoros

$269 24.7%

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7% 20.3% $55

Eating Out

Matamoros

$196 18%

Rio de Janeiro

$165 12.8% 15.8% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Matamoros

$122 11.2%

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2% 13.1% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Matamoros

$108 9.9%

Rio de Janeiro

$167 13% 54.5% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Matamoros

$42 3.8%

Rio de Janeiro

$47 3.6% 12.1% $5.1

Getting Around

Matamoros

$17 * 1.5%

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7% 262% $43

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 $646 in Matamoros and $903 in Rio de Janeiro. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $38.00 in Matamoros vs $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro. Groceries flip the comparison at $269 vs $215, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Matamoros

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🕒 Local time

23:17 11:17 PM

01:17 1:17 AM

2 h ahead of Matamoros

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

510,739

6,211,223

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

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).

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).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Matamoros Rio de Janeiro 7,970 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Matamoros
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

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

Matamoros wins on cost – living expenses run 18% lower than in Rio de Janeiro. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Matamoros the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,635 in Matamoros and $1,933 in Rio de Janeiro to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $646 in Matamoros versus $903 in Rio de Janeiro. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $223 in Matamoros versus $598 in Rio de Janeiro. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Matamoros – a meal for two runs $38.00 versus $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,090 in Matamoros versus $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Matamoros but tight or insufficient in Rio de Janeiro. The gap between the two cities makes Matamoros the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Matamoros delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,090 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Matamoros hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Matamoros gentler on the wallet – expenses run 18% less than in Rio de Janeiro. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.