Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio das Ostras and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Rio das Ostras: $669 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $10,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

32

Cost of Living Index in Rio das Ostras
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Rio das Ostras Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index

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Rio das Ostras

🇧🇷 Brazil

$669

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Rio das Ostras and in Cape Town

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

A single person spends $669 per month in Rio das Ostras vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Rio das Ostras $669
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $1,128 per month in Rio das Ostras vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Rio das Ostras $1,128
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $1,588 per month in Rio das Ostras vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Rio das Ostras $1,588
Cape Town $3,306

Rio das Ostras is about 56% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Rio das Ostras sits 51% below the global median, while Cape Town is 13% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.47 R$30.11

$12.01 R 199

-54.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.71 R$152

$42.92 R 709

-35.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.37 R$35.08

$6.15 R 102

3.58%

Cappuccino

$1.64 R$9.04

$2.37 R 39.16

-30.80%

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

$1.25 R$6.88

$1.27 R 21.03

-1.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 R$2.98

$0.94 R 15.50

-42.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.10 R$6.08

$2.96 R 48.92

-62.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 R$15.53

$3.69 R 61.0

-23.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.96 R$5.26

$1.32 R 21.80

-27.27%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 R$7.96

$1.21 R 19.93

19.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.20 R$6.58

$2.20 R 36.37

-45.45%

Eggs

$1.82 R$10.01

$3.10 R 51.3

-41.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.54 R$41.48

$8.73 R 144

-13.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.24 R$17.81

$6.89 R 114

-52.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.19 R$45.07

$9.26 R 153

-11.56%

Apples (1kg)

$1.73 R$9.52

$1.83 R 30.17

-5.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 R$6.11

$1.95 R 32.22

-43.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.85 R$4.69

$1.66 R 27.40

-48.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.19 R$6.56

$2.14 R 35.30

-44.39%

Potato (1kg)

$0.61 R$3.36

$1.58 R 26.09

-61.39%

Onion (1kg)

$0.81 R$4.46

$1.47 R 24.37

-44.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.49 R$2.69

$1.35 R 22.25

-63.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.70 R$3.84

$1.14 R 18.91

-38.60%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.09 R$11.53

$3.58 R 59.1

-41.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.50 R$46.76

$6.05 R 100

40.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 R$10.34

$1.39 R 23.02

35.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.33 R$7.32

$2.18 R 36.01

-38.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.95 R$5.23

$1.40 R 23.09

-32.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.11 R$226

$60.8 R 1,004

-32.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 R$6.99

$0.93 R 15.31

36.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 R$3.91

$0.90 R 14.88

-21.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.68 R$42.25

$4.96 R 82.0

54.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 R$5.83

$1.54 R 25.45

-31.17%

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

$19.7K R$108.3K

$35.4K R 584.6K

-44.36%

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

$28.5K R$156.6K

$33.4K R 551.6K

-14.73%

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

$65.2 R$359

$117 R 1,935

-44.32%

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

$9.52 R$52.4

$25.71 R 425

-62.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.94 R$98.8

$39.41 R 651

-54.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$22.75 R$125

$51.6 R 853

-55.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.51 R$140

$11.35 R 188

124.76%

Cinema Ticket

$6.10 R$33.57

$8.89 R 147

-31.38%

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

$308 R$1,698

$308 R 5,085

0.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,171 R$39.5K

$8,141 R 134.6K

-11.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.0 R$292

$57.4 R 948

-7.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$26.27 R$145

$31.75 R 525

-17.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$63.9 R$352

$116 R 1,917

-44.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$43.83 R$241

$101 R 1,665

-56.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$186 R$1,023

$1,047 R 17.3K

-82.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$139 R$767

$669 R 11.1K

-79.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$487 R$2,680

$1,861 R 30.8K

-73.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$386 R$2,123

$1,407 R 23.3K

-72.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,583 R$8,712

$2,410 R 39.8K

-34.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,145 R$6,302

$1,570 R 25.9K

-27.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$512 R$2,819

$1,630 R 26.9K

-68.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

-8.17%

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

Last update for Rio das Ostras: November 3, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Rio das Ostras

$167 25%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 33.7% $56

Accommodation & Living

Rio das Ostras

$139 20.8%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 380% $530

Eating Out

Rio das Ostras

$101 15.1%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 72.4% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio das Ostras

$93 13.9%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 96.6% $90

Clothing & Footwear

Rio das Ostras

$84 12.6%

Cape Town

$138 9% 63.5% $53

Getting Around

Rio das Ostras

$50 7.4%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 44.3% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Rio das Ostras

$35 5.2%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 98.5% $34

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $186 in Rio das Ostras versus $1,047 in Cape Town. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Cape Town are about 3.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $28 in Rio das Ostras versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $167 vs $223 – making Rio das Ostras the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio das Ostras

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

16:01 4:01 PM

21:01 9:01 PM

5 h ahead of Rio das Ostras

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

156,491

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.182 USD

1 BRL = 0.162 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.05 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 5.5 BRL (1 BRL = 0.182 USD). 1 EUR = 6.18 BRL (1 BRL = 0.162 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.53 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.05 USD). 1 EUR = 18.56 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Rio das Ostras Cape Town 5,960 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio das Ostras
Cape Town

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

Rio das Ostras vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 128% more than Rio das Ostras, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,003 per month in Rio das Ostras and $2,291 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Rio das Ostras, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $186 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $669 in Rio das Ostras and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Rio das Ostras about 56% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 32% less in Rio das Ostras. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Rio das Ostras, where all-in costs run around $669, than in Cape Town at $1,527. In Rio das Ostras it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $669 in Rio das Ostras to $1,527 in Cape Town. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Rio das Ostras. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cape Town makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.