Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Reykjavik and Montes Claros

For one person, living is cheaper in Montes Claros: $844 a month against $4,023 in Reykjavik, rent and utilities included – about $38,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

193

Cost of Living Index in Reykjavik
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Reykjavik Living Index
41

Cost of Living Index in Montes Claros
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Montes Claros Living Index

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Reykjavik

🇮🇸 Iceland

$4,023

/mo nomad

Montes Claros

🇧🇷 Brazil

$844

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Reykjavik and in Montes Claros

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,023 in Reykjavik versus $844 in Montes Claros.

Reykjavik $4,023
Montes Claros $844

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,708 in Reykjavik versus $1,344 in Montes Claros.

Reykjavik $5,708
Montes Claros $1,344

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,393 in Reykjavik versus $1,843 in Montes Claros.

Reykjavik $7,393
Montes Claros $1,843

Living in Reykjavik is roughly 377% more expensive than in Montes Claros, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Reykjavik is 197% above, Montes Claros is 38% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$31.00 ISK 3,760

$3.40 R$17.22

811.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$123 ISK 14.9K

$32.15 R$163

283.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$27.21 ISK 3,300

$7.91 R$40.08

243.99%

Cappuccino

$6.90 ISK 837

$2.05 R$10.41

236.59%

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

$3.30 ISK 401

$1.33 R$6.72

148.12%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.16 ISK 384

$0.79 R$4.03

300.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.84 ISK 1,678

$1.48 R$7.51

835.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$12.46 ISK 1,512

$3.02 R$15.33

312.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.06 ISK 250

$1.05 R$5.33

96.19%

White Bread (500g)

$4.11 ISK 498

$1.64 R$8.33

150.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.68 ISK 446

$1.20 R$6.11

206.67%

Eggs

$7.27 ISK 882

$2.11 R$10.72

244.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$21.79 ISK 2,643

$8.75 R$44.36

149.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$23.95 ISK 2,905

$4.39 R$22.24

445.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$41.43 ISK 5,025

$8.31 R$42.13

398.56%

Apples (1kg)

$3.42 ISK 414

$2.30 R$11.65

48.70%

Banana (1kg)

$2.84 ISK 344

$1.27 R$6.46

123.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.23 ISK 391

$1.26 R$6.41

156.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.46 ISK 783

$1.55 R$7.87

316.77%

Potato (1kg)

$4.05 ISK 491

$1.17 R$5.92

246.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.66 ISK 202

$1.03 R$5.21

61.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.86 ISK 468

$0.84 R$4.25

359.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.84 ISK 223

$0.80 R$4.07

130.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.96 ISK 1,693

$2.31 R$11.69

504.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$23.76 ISK 2,882

$8.04 R$40.76

195.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.54 ISK 430

$1.26 R$6.41

180.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.44 ISK 418

$1.97 R$10.00

74.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.81 ISK 705

$0.76 R$3.85

664.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$95.3 ISK 11.6K

$38.30 R$194

148.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.72 ISK 815

$1.34 R$6.81

401.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.81 ISK 340

$0.86 R$4.34

226.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$81.3 ISK 9,866

$6.97 R$35.35

1067.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.12 ISK 257

$1.03 R$5.23

105.83%

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

$68.9K ISK 8.4M

$25.8K R$131.0K

166.81%

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

$55.8K ISK 6.8M

$30.9K R$156.4K

80.83%

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

$95.8 ISK 11.6K

$78.3 R$397

22.36%

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

$33.11 ISK 4,016

$13.80 R$70.0

139.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$87.2 ISK 10.6K

$19.30 R$97.9

351.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$101 ISK 12.3K

$25.26 R$128

300.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$50.7 ISK 6,155

$24.74 R$125

105.09%

Cinema Ticket

$19.85 ISK 2,407

$7.71 R$39.11

157.46%

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

$1,195 ISK 144.9K

$242 R$1,225

394.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$26.2K ISK 3.2M

$7,287 R$36.9K

259.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$148 ISK 18.0K

$55.9 R$283

165.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$66.8 ISK 8,096

$50.4 R$255

32.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$187 ISK 22.6K

$90.5 R$459

106.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$253 ISK 30.6K

$69.5 R$352

263.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,579 ISK 312.8K

$354 R$1,793

628.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,080 ISK 252.3K

$238 R$1,205

775.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,455 ISK 419.0K

$655 R$3,323

427.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,752 ISK 333.8K

$466 R$2,363

490.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,933 ISK 962.2K

$1,599 R$8,106

396.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,377 ISK 773.5K

$1,006 R$5,100

533.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,695 ISK 569.5K

$414 R$2,097

1035.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.81

-19.91%

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

Last update for Reykjavik: October 20, 2026

Last update for Montes Claros: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Reykjavik

$2.1K 51.7%

Montes Claros

$238 28.2% 88.6% $1.8K

Groceries & Markets

Reykjavik

$619 15.4%

Montes Claros

$190 22.5% 69.3% $429

Eating Out

Reykjavik

$532 13.2%

Montes Claros

$97 11.6% 81.7% $435

Clothing & Footwear

Reykjavik

$294 7.3%

Montes Claros

$120 14.2% 59.3% $175

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Reykjavik

$216 5.4%

Montes Claros

$111 13.2% 48.4% $105

Sport & Entertainment

Reykjavik

$141 3.5%

Montes Claros

$41 4.8% 71.1% $100

Getting Around

Reykjavik

$139 3.5%

Montes Claros

$47 5.6% 66.3% $92

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,579 in Reykjavik and $354 in Montes Claros. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Reykjavik pays 1035% 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: $123 in Reykjavik vs $32.00 in Montes Claros for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $619 vs $190 per month, with Montes Claros cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇸 Reykjavik

🇧🇷 Montes Claros

🕒 Local time

22:09 10:09 PM

19:09 7:09 PM

3 h behind Reykjavik

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

136,894 Capital

414,240

💱 Currency

Icelandic Króna ISK kr

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 ISK = 8.24 USD

1,000 ISK = 7.33 EUR

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to ISK – Icelandic Króna Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇸 Icelandic Króna (kr)

Icelandic Króna exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 121 ISK (1,000 ISK = 8.24 USD). 1 EUR = 136 ISK (1,000 ISK = 7.33 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

USD to ISK in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Reykjavik Montes Claros 9,190 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Reykjavik
Montes Claros

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

Reykjavik vs Montes Claros: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Reykjavik and Montes Claros differ by about 377% in total monthly costs ($4,023 vs $844 including rent). Montes Claros is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 1035% higher in Reykjavik, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $2,579 in Reykjavik versus $354 in Montes Claros. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Montes Claros runs roughly 149% less than in Reykjavik. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $1,195 in Reykjavik versus $242 in Montes Claros. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $844 in Montes Claros versus $4,023 in Reykjavik, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Montes Claros but tight or insufficient in Reykjavik. The gap between the two cities makes Montes Claros the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Reykjavik and Montes Claros are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Montes Claros gentler on the wallet – expenses run 377% less than in Reykjavik. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.