Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mazar-i-Sharif and Sao Paulo

For one person, living is cheaper in Mazar-i-Sharif: $297 a month against $1,244 in Sao Paulo, rent and utilities included – about $11,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

33

Cost of Living Index in Mazar-i-Sharif
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Mazar-i-Sharif Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Sao Paulo
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Sao Paulo Living Index

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Mazar-i-Sharif

🇦🇫 Afghanistan

$297

/mo nomad

Sao Paulo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,244

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mazar-i-Sharif 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 Mazar-i-Sharif and in Sao Paulo actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $297 in Mazar-i-Sharif versus $1,244 in Sao Paulo.

Mazar-i-Sharif $297
Sao Paulo $1,244

Estimated couple costs with rent: $470 in Mazar-i-Sharif versus $2,085 in Sao Paulo.

Mazar-i-Sharif $470
Sao Paulo $2,085

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $643 in Mazar-i-Sharif versus $2,926 in Sao Paulo.

Mazar-i-Sharif $643
Sao Paulo $2,926

Living in Mazar-i-Sharif costs roughly 76% less than in Sao Paulo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Mazar-i-Sharif 78% lower, Sao Paulo 7% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.31 ؋149

$8.94 R$44.87

-74.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$15.68 ؋1,015

$49.46 R$248

-68.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.90 ؋252

$9.22 R$46.25

-57.70%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.53 ؋487

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.76 ؋503

Cappuccino

$1.19 ؋77.3

$2.54 R$12.77

-53.15%

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

$0.56 ؋36.07

$1.45 R$7.29

-61.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 ؋20.97

$0.91 R$4.57

-64.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.07 R$15.39

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 R$21.87

Milk (1 liter)

$0.60 ؋38.87

$1.27 R$6.36

-52.76%

White Bread (500g)

$0.15 ؋9.41

$1.84 R$9.22

-91.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.15 ؋139

$1.41 R$7.08

52.48%

Eggs

$1.59 ؋103

$2.84 R$14.27

-44.01%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.92 ؋513

$12.56 R$63.0

-36.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.37 ؋218

$5.37 R$26.95

-37.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.23 ؋404

$10.72 R$53.8

-41.88%

Apples (1kg)

$0.59 ؋38.23

$2.74 R$13.74

-78.47%

Banana (1kg)

$1.17 ؋76.0

$1.81 R$9.08

-35.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.81 ؋52.6

$1.55 R$7.78

-47.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.61 ؋39.57

$1.98 R$9.95

-69.19%

Potato (1kg)

$0.51 ؋33.06

$1.47 R$7.38

-65.31%

Onion (1kg)

$0.40 ؋25.83

$1.24 R$6.23

-67.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.52 ؋33.75

$1.27 R$6.38

-59.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.32 ؋20.76

$0.96 R$4.82

-66.67%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.82 ؋118

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.56 ؋101

$3.04 R$15.24

-48.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.19 R$51.1

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 R$8.69

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.64 R$13.26

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.80 ؋52.0

$1.04 R$5.20

-23.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.10 R$241

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.82 R$9.12

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 R$5.10

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.52 ؋98.7

$10.16 R$51.0

-85.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ؋96.3

$1.27 R$6.38

17.32%

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

$9,933 ؋643.3K

$24.3K R$122.0K

-59.16%

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

$34.0K R$170.6K

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

$83.8 ؋5,425

$104 R$522

-19.42%

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

$16.94 ؋1,097

$16.16 R$81.1

4.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.59 R$113

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$11.69 ؋757

$36.27 R$182

-67.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.91 ؋253

$47.78 R$240

-91.82%

Cinema Ticket

$4.72 ؋306

$9.85 R$49.45

-52.08%

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

$78.1 ؋5,058

$525 R$2,635

-85.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K R$83.2K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$13.14 ؋851

$66.9 R$336

-80.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$62.3 R$312

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 R$507

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$18.75 ؋1,214

$90.9 R$456

-79.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$663 R$3,326

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$423 R$2,121

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,527 R$7,662

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,009 R$5,061

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,744 R$13.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,068 R$10.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$231 ؋15.0K

$881 R$4,419

-73.78%

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 Mazar-i-Sharif: October 5, 2026

Last update for Sao Paulo: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Mazar-i-Sharif

$106 36.2%

Sao Paulo

$243 19.8% 129% $137

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mazar-i-Sharif

$101 * 34.3%

Sao Paulo

$143 11.6% 41.7% $42

Eating Out

Mazar-i-Sharif

$48 16.3%

Sao Paulo

$163 13.3% 240% $115

Sport & Entertainment

Mazar-i-Sharif

$21 7.2%

Sao Paulo

$56 4.6% 165% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Mazar-i-Sharif

$14 * 4.9%

Sao Paulo

$145 11.7% 907% $130

Getting Around

Mazar-i-Sharif

$3.2 * 1.1%

Sao Paulo

$59 4.8% 1743% $56

Accommodation & Living

Mazar-i-Sharif

- * 0%

Sao Paulo

$423 34.3%

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

Cost Breakdown

Sao Paulo pays 281% 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: $16.00 in Mazar-i-Sharif vs $49.00 in Sao Paulo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $106 vs $243 per month, with Mazar-i-Sharif cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇫 Mazar-i-Sharif

🇧🇷 Sao Paulo

🕒 Local time

08:26 8:26 AM

00:56 12:56 AM

7 h 30 min behind Mazar-i-Sharif

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

300,600

11,451,999

💱 Currency

Afghanistan Afghani AFN ؋

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 AFN = 1.54 USD

100 AFN = 1.38 EUR

1 BRL = 0.199 USD

1 BRL = 0.178 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to AFN – Afghanistan Afghani Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇫 Afghanistan Afghani (؋)

Afghanistan Afghani exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 64.76 AFN (100 AFN = 1.54 USD). 1 EUR = 72.64 AFN (100 AFN = 1.38 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 5.02 BRL (1 BRL = 0.199 USD). 1 EUR = 5.63 BRL (1 BRL = 0.178 EUR).

USD to AFN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mazar-i-Sharif Sao Paulo 13,600 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Mazar-i-Sharif
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

Mazar-i-Sharif vs Sao Paulo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mazar-i-Sharif is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 319% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 281% 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.

Supermarket bills run roughly 129% higher in Sao Paulo. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $297 per month in Mazar-i-Sharif versus $1,244 in Sao Paulo – a 319% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $297 in Mazar-i-Sharif versus $1,244 in Sao Paulo, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Mazar-i-Sharif but tight or insufficient in Sao Paulo. The gap between the two cities makes Mazar-i-Sharif the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Mazar-i-Sharif is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Sao Paulo, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Mazar-i-Sharif gentler on the wallet – expenses run 319% less than in Sao Paulo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.