Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Perez Zeledon and Rio de Janeiro

For one person, living costs are similar in Perez Zeledon and in Rio de Janeiro: $1,328 and $1,273 a month, rent and utilities included.

64

Cost of Living Index in Perez Zeledon
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Perez Zeledon Living Index
62

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

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Perez Zeledon

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,328

/mo nomad

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,273

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,328 per month in Perez Zeledon vs $1,273 in Rio de Janeiro, rent included.

Perez Zeledon $1,328
Rio de Janeiro $1,273

A couple spends around $2,371 per month in Perez Zeledon vs $1,841 in Rio de Janeiro, rent included.

Perez Zeledon $2,371
Rio de Janeiro $1,841

A family of three spends $3,414 per month in Perez Zeledon vs $2,409 in Rio de Janeiro, rent included.

Perez Zeledon $3,414
Rio de Janeiro $2,409

Perez Zeledon costs about 4% more than Rio de Janeiro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Perez Zeledon and Rio de Janeiro are more affordable than the global median – Perez Zeledon 2% lower, Rio de Janeiro 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.34 ₡4,188

$9.38 R$47.54

-0.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$36.62 ₡16.4K

$40.00 R$203

-8.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.23 ₡3,689

$8.34 R$42.28

-1.32%

Cappuccino

$2.70 ₡1,210

$2.29 R$11.62

17.90%

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

$1.96 ₡880

$1.59 R$8.05

23.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.71 ₡766

$1.01 R$5.10

69.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.79 ₡804

$2.14 R$10.85

-16.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 ₡1,380

$3.66 R$18.55

-15.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 ₡735

$1.13 R$5.72

45.13%

White Bread (500g)

$3.03 ₡1,357

$2.09 R$10.60

44.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.47 ₡1,109

$1.25 R$6.36

97.60%

Eggs

$2.48 ₡1,113

$2.25 R$11.39

10.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.62 ₡4,763

$10.92 R$55.3

-2.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.36 ₡4,646

$4.36 R$22.10

137.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.82 ₡6,196

$9.60 R$48.66

43.96%

Apples (1kg)

$4.99 ₡2,238

$2.85 R$14.46

75.09%

Banana (1kg)

$1.08 ₡483

$1.81 R$9.16

-40.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.85 ₡2,174

$1.58 R$8.02

206.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.96 ₡1,777

$1.83 R$9.28

116.39%

Potato (1kg)

$3.86 ₡1,730

$1.20 R$6.10

221.67%

Onion (1kg)

$3.78 ₡1,693

$1.06 R$5.35

256.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.46 ₡205

$0.75 R$3.81

-38.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.21 ₡1,441

$0.68 R$3.45

372.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.76 ₡2,582

$2.94 R$14.90

95.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.78 ₡8,870

$7.98 R$40.43

147.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.77 ₡1,240

$1.18 R$5.98

134.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.50 ₡1,572

$2.42 R$12.26

44.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.77 ₡344

$0.94 R$4.78

-18.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.3 R$255

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$1.20 R$6.10

109.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.61 ₡720

$0.83 R$4.20

93.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.81 ₡3,952

$8.97 R$45.48

-1.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 ₡689

$1.29 R$6.53

19.38%

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

$22.3K ₡10.0M

$22.8K R$115.5K

-2.04%

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

$34.8K ₡15.6M

$34.0K R$172.1K

2.37%

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

$92.9 ₡41.7K

$134 R$681

-30.84%

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

$23.91 ₡10.7K

$10.73 R$54.4

122.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$58.7 ₡26.3K

$22.84 R$116

156.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$72.4 ₡32.5K

$30.16 R$153

140.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.49 R$160

Cinema Ticket

$7.46 ₡3,346

$7.73 R$39.17

-3.49%

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

$508 ₡227.7K

$584 R$2,960

-13.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K ₡7.6M

$12.8K R$64.9K

31.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.9 ₡32.7K

$41.12 R$208

77.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.8 ₡25.5K

$49.26 R$250

15.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$129 ₡58.0K

$73.7 R$373

75.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 ₡58.1K

$65.9 R$334

96.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$401 ₡180.0K

$900 R$4,561

-55.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$333 ₡149.4K

$527 R$2,673

-36.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,898 ₡851.1K

$1,332 R$6,754

42.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,258 ₡564.0K

$748 R$3,790

68.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,990 R$20.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,560 R$7,908

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$640 R$3,246

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

11.93

-27.75%

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

Last update for Perez Zeledon: October 20, 2026

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Perez Zeledon

$382 28.8%

Rio de Janeiro

$214 16.8% 44.1% $168

Accommodation & Living

Perez Zeledon

$333 25.1%

Rio de Janeiro

$527 41.4% 58.2% $194

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Perez Zeledon

$176 13.2%

Rio de Janeiro

$168 13.2% 4.3% $7.6

Clothing & Footwear

Perez Zeledon

$175 13.2%

Rio de Janeiro

$103 8.1% 40.8% $71

Eating Out

Perez Zeledon

$162 12.2%

Rio de Janeiro

$156 12.3% 3.5% $5.6

Sport & Entertainment

Perez Zeledon

$87 6.6%

Rio de Janeiro

$46 3.6% 47.8% $42

Getting Around

Perez Zeledon

$14 * 1%

Rio de Janeiro

$59 4.7% 337% $46

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $401 in Perez Zeledon versus $900 in Rio de Janeiro. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $37.00 in Perez Zeledon versus $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro. Groceries tell a different story – $382 in Perez Zeledon vs $214 in Rio de Janeiro – so Rio de Janeiro wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Perez Zeledon

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🕒 Local time

21:16 9:16 PM

00:16 12:16 AM

3 h ahead of Perez Zeledon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

135,000

6,211,223

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Perez Zeledon Rio de Janeiro 5,660 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Perez Zeledon
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

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

Yes – Perez Zeledon is pricier by about 4%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,992 per month in Perez Zeledon and $1,910 in Rio de Janeiro. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Rio de Janeiro, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,328 in Perez Zeledon and $1,273 in Rio de Janeiro. That's a gap of about 4%.

Kindergarten costs $508 per month in Perez Zeledon and $584 in Rio de Janeiro. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Rio de Janeiro, where all-in costs run around $1,273, than in Perez Zeledon at $1,328. In Rio de Janeiro it covers expenses comfortably, while in Perez Zeledon it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Rio de Janeiro – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Rio de Janeiro. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Perez Zeledon makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.