Last update: Oct 2026
Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and the British Virgin Islands
For one person, living is cheaper in Rio de Janeiro: $1,285 a month against $2,930 in the British Virgin Islands, rent and utilities included – about $19,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.
-
Rio de Janeiro Living Index63Cost of Living Index in Rio de JaneiroLearn more -
British Virgin Islands Living Index140Cost of Living Index in the British Virgin IslandsLearn more
🙂 Solo nomad: Rio de Janeiro is 58% cheaper than the British Virgin Islands without rent, and 56.2% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Rio de Janeiro is 53.9% cheaper than the British Virgin Islands without rent, and 63.3% cheaper with rent.
🍽 Eating Out
Rio de Janeiro
British Virgin Islands
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$9.98 R$49.83
$19.46 $19.46
-48.72%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$40.34 R$201
$81.5 $81.5
-50.47%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.48 R$42.35
$11.52 $11.52
-26.39%
Cappuccino
$2.36 R$11.80
$6.89 $6.89
-65.75%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.63 R$8.13
$1.85 $1.85
-11.89%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.01 R$5.06
$1.01 $1.01
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.44 R$12.19
$3.95 $3.95
-38.23%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.69 R$18.43
$5.14 $5.14
-28.21%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Rio de Janeiro
British Virgin Islands
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.15 R$5.72
$2.14 $2.14
-46.26%
White Bread (500g)
$2.07 R$10.34
$4.66 $4.66
-55.58%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.29 R$6.42
$4.40 $4.40
-70.68%
Eggs
$2.27 R$11.32
$5.97 $5.97
-61.98%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.00 R$54.9
$12.75 $12.75
-13.73%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.31 R$21.51
$12.82 $12.82
-66.38%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$9.74 R$48.63
$19.84 $19.84
-50.91%
Apples (1kg)
$2.83 R$14.12
$3.09 $3.09
-8.41%
Banana (1kg)
$1.84 R$9.17
$3.59 $3.59
-48.75%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.60 R$7.96
$1.96 $1.96
-18.37%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.80 R$9.00
$7.21 $7.21
-75.03%
Potato (1kg)
$1.26 R$6.28
$5.95 $5.95
-78.82%
Onion (1kg)
$1.07 R$5.34
$4.75 $4.75
-77.47%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.75 R$3.75
$8.93 $8.93
-91.60%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.66 R$3.29
$1.85 $1.85
-64.32%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.05 R$15.21
$5.40 $5.40
-43.52%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.18 R$40.84
$10.80 $10.80
-24.26%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.19 R$5.92
$3.96 $3.96
-69.95%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.39 R$11.92
-
-
🚌 Getting Around
Rio de Janeiro
British Virgin Islands
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.01 R$5.06
$4.41 $4.41
-77.10%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$50.2 R$250
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.27 R$6.33
-
-
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.90 R$4.51
-
-
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$9.44 R$47.13
-
-
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.33 R$6.65
$1.28 $1.28
3.91%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$23.4K R$117.0K
-
-
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$33.6K R$167.6K
-
-
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Rio de Janeiro
British Virgin Islands
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$134 R$666
$165 $165
-19.32%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$12.23 R$61.0
$90.9 $90.9
-86.55%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$22.65 R$113
$117 $117
-80.62%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Rio de Janeiro
British Virgin Islands
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$31.56 R$158
$119 $119
-73.56%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$30.87 R$154
$20.29 $20.29
52.14%
Cinema Ticket
$8.23 R$41.07
$9.98 $9.98
-17.54%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Rio de Janeiro
British Virgin Islands
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$603 R$3,011
$380 $380
58.73%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$13.2K R$66.1K
$15.5K $15.5K
-14.41%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Rio de Janeiro
British Virgin Islands
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$41.62 R$208
$46.68 $46.68
-10.84%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$49.94 R$249
$55.7 $55.7
-10.28%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$75.0 R$375
$128 $128
-41.42%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$68.3 R$341
$143 $143
-52.13%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Rio de Janeiro
British Virgin Islands
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$905 R$4,519
$1,338 $1,338
-32.32%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$527 R$2,633
$1,426 $1,426
-63.01%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,346 R$6,720
$3,758 $3,758
-64.18%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$774 R$3,865
$3,542 $3,542
-78.14%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,981 R$19.9K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,562 R$7,798
$10.9K $10.9K
-85.68%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Rio de Janeiro
British Virgin Islands
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$643 R$3,210
$1,628 $1,628
-60.51%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.93
0
-
CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.
Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 6, 2026
Last update for the British Virgin Islands: October 4, 2026
Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Share of the monthly basket for a family of three, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Rio de Janeiro $527 41%
British Virgin Islands $1.4K 48.9% 170% $899
Groceries & Markets
Rio de Janeiro $215 16.7%
British Virgin Islands $479 * 16.4% 123% $264
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Rio de Janeiro $168 13.1%
British Virgin Islands $373 12.8% 122% $205
Eating Out
Rio de Janeiro $164 12.7%
British Virgin Islands $314 10.8% 91.9% $151
Clothing & Footwear
Rio de Janeiro $106 8.2%
British Virgin Islands $168 5.8% 58.8% $62
Getting Around
Rio de Janeiro $60 4.7%
British Virgin Islands $18 * 0.6% 70.6% $42
Sport & Entertainment
Rio de Janeiro $48 3.7%
British Virgin Islands $139 4.8% 190% $91
Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.
Accommodation & Living
Rio de Janeiro $774 31.4%
British Virgin Islands $3.5K 51.6% 357% $2.8K
Groceries & Markets
Rio de Janeiro $498 20.2%
British Virgin Islands $1.1K * 16% 121% $600
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Rio de Janeiro $181 7.3%
British Virgin Islands $464 6.8% 157% $284
Eating Out
Rio de Janeiro $531 21.5%
British Virgin Islands $1K 15.3% 97.8% $519
Clothing & Footwear
Rio de Janeiro $235 9.5%
British Virgin Islands $373 5.4% 58.8% $138
Getting Around
Rio de Janeiro $122 4.9%
British Virgin Islands $44 * 0.6% 63.9% $78
Sport & Entertainment
Rio de Janeiro $127 5.1%
British Virgin Islands $299 4.4% 136% $172
Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.
Good to know
🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro
🇻🇬 British Virgin Islands
Weather
Population
6,211,223
39,369
Exchange rates and currency converter
On the map
Lowest
Highest
Between locations
- Rio de Janeiro British Virgin Islands 5,150 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight
From you
- Rio de Janeiro
- British Virgin Islands
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 de Janeiro vs other spots: cost of living compared
Rio de Janeiro
🇧🇷 Brazil
$1,285
/mo nomad
Buenos Aires
🇦🇷 Argentina
$1,685
/mo nomad
Rio de Janeiro
🇧🇷 Brazil
$1,285
/mo nomad
Sao Paulo
🇧🇷 Brazil
$1,244
/mo nomad
Rio de Janeiro
🇧🇷 Brazil
$1,285
/mo nomad
Brasilia
🇧🇷 Brazil
$994
/mo nomad
Rio de Janeiro
🇧🇷 Brazil
$1,285
/mo nomad
Florianopolis
🇧🇷 Brazil
$1,276
/mo nomad
Similar cities
🇬🇪 Georgia
61
Cost of Living Index in Tbilisi
Learn more
Bucharest
🇷🇴 Romania
65
Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
Learn more
Jimbaran, Bali
🇮🇩 Indonesia
64
Cost of Living Index in Jimbaran, Bali
Learn more
Shanghai
🇨🇳 China
61
Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
Learn more
Bogota
🇨🇴 Colombia
62
Cost of Living Index in Bogota
Learn more
Tirana
🇦🇱 Albania
66
Cost of Living Index in Tirana
Learn more
Chisinau
🇲🇩 Moldova
63
Cost of Living Index in Chisinau
Learn more
Saint Petersburg
🇷🇺 Russia
63
Cost of Living Index in Saint Petersburg
Learn more