Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Queretaro and Rio de Janeiro

For one person, living is cheaper in Rio de Janeiro: $1,285 a month against $1,458 in Queretaro, rent and utilities included – about $2,100 less a year. The total is higher in Queretaro despite lower rent and utilities.

70

Cost of Living Index in Queretaro
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Queretaro Living Index
63

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
Learn more

Rio de Janeiro Living Index

Jump to prices

Queretaro

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,458

/mo nomad

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,285

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,458 per month in Queretaro vs $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro, rent included.

Queretaro $1,458
Rio de Janeiro $1,285

A couple spends around $2,209 per month in Queretaro vs $1,888 in Rio de Janeiro, rent included.

Queretaro $2,209
Rio de Janeiro $1,888

A family of three spends $2,960 per month in Queretaro vs $2,491 in Rio de Janeiro, rent included.

Queretaro $2,960
Rio de Janeiro $2,491

Queretaro costs about 13% more than Rio de Janeiro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Queretaro sits 9% above the global median, while Rio de Janeiro is 4% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.24 MX$206

$9.98 R$49.83

12.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.3 MX$1,180

$40.34 R$201

59.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.59 MX$176

$8.48 R$42.35

13.09%

Cappuccino

$3.59 MX$65.9

$2.36 R$11.80

52.12%

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

$1.61 MX$29.54

$1.63 R$8.13

-1.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.10 MX$20.20

$1.01 R$5.06

8.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.26 MX$59.8

$2.44 R$12.19

33.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.55 MX$102

$3.69 R$18.43

50.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.96 MX$35.97

$1.15 R$5.72

70.43%

White Bread (500g)

$2.77 MX$50.9

$2.07 R$10.34

33.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.38

$1.29 R$6.42

58.14%

Eggs

$2.70 MX$49.58

$2.27 R$11.32

18.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.21 MX$169

$11.00 R$54.9

-16.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.86 MX$163

$4.31 R$21.51

105.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.80 MX$253

$9.74 R$48.63

41.68%

Apples (1kg)

$3.40 MX$62.4

$2.83 R$14.12

20.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 MX$30.78

$1.84 R$9.17

-8.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.16 MX$39.65

$1.60 R$7.96

35.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.92 MX$35.33

$1.80 R$9.00

6.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 MX$34.06

$1.26 R$6.28

47.62%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.43

$1.07 R$5.34

70.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.55 MX$28.37

$0.75 R$3.75

106.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 MX$22.99

$0.66 R$3.29

89.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.64 MX$85.2

$3.05 R$15.21

52.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.28 MX$336

$8.18 R$40.84

123.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.19 MX$40.22

$1.19 R$5.92

84.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 MX$71.9

$2.39 R$11.92

63.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.60 MX$11.00

$1.01 R$5.06

-40.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.03 MX$478

$50.2 R$250

-48.10%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.25 MX$59.6

$1.27 R$6.33

155.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.57 MX$47.11

$0.90 R$4.51

185.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.88 MX$200

$9.44 R$47.13

15.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 MX$29.07

$1.33 R$6.65

18.80%

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

$21.5K MX$394.9K

$23.4K R$117.0K

-8.20%

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

$24.4K MX$447.5K

$33.6K R$167.6K

-27.42%

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

$58.0 MX$1,065

$134 R$666

-56.57%

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

$27.03 MX$496

$12.23 R$61.0

121.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.66 MX$453

$22.65 R$113

8.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,048

$31.56 R$158

80.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.02 MX$459

$30.87 R$154

-18.95%

Cinema Ticket

$7.54 MX$138

$8.23 R$41.07

-8.38%

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

$269 MX$4,934

$603 R$3,011

-55.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,127 MX$94.1K

$13.2K R$66.1K

-61.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.8 MX$969

$41.62 R$208

26.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.39 MX$815

$49.94 R$249

-11.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 MX$1,871

$75.0 R$375

35.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 MX$1,845

$68.3 R$341

47.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$850 MX$15.6K

$905 R$4,519

-6.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$574 MX$10.5K

$527 R$2,633

8.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,460 MX$26.8K

$1,346 R$6,720

8.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$849 MX$15.6K

$774 R$3,865

9.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,208 MX$40.5K

$3,981 R$19.9K

-44.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,244 MX$22.8K

$1,562 R$7,798

-20.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$943 MX$17.3K

$643 R$3,210

46.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.99

11.93

0.50%

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

Last update for Queretaro: October 3, 2026

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Queretaro

$574 39.7%

Rio de Janeiro

$527 41% 8% $46

Groceries & Markets

Queretaro

$311 21.5%

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7% 30.9% $96

Eating Out

Queretaro

$200 13.8%

Rio de Janeiro

$164 12.7% 18.1% $36

Clothing & Footwear

Queretaro

$135 9.3%

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2% 21.6% $29

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Queretaro

$110 7.6%

Rio de Janeiro

$168 13.1% 53.5% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Queretaro

$72 5%

Rio de Janeiro

$48 3.7% 33.5% $24

Getting Around

Queretaro

$45 3.1%

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7% 34.8% $15

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $850 in Queretaro versus $905 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.

Salaries run about 47% higher in Queretaro, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $64.0 in Queretaro versus $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $311 vs $215 – making Rio de Janeiro the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Queretaro

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🕒 Local time

08:18 8:18 AM

11:18 11:18 AM

3 h ahead of Queretaro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

804,663

6,211,223

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.57 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 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 MXN in detail →

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Between locations

Queretaro Rio de Janeiro 7,860 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Queretaro
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

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

Queretaro costs about 13% more than Rio de Janeiro, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,187 per month in Queretaro and $1,927 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.

Public transport costs about 93% less in Rio de Janeiro. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $269 per month in Queretaro and $603 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 $1,285, than in Queretaro at $1,458. In Rio de Janeiro it covers expenses comfortably, while in Queretaro it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Rio de Janeiro costs $1,285 versus $1,458 in Queretaro. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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