Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and Lexington, MA

For one person, living is cheaper in Rio de Janeiro: $1,273 a month against $2,672 in Lexington, MA, rent and utilities included – about $16,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
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Rio de Janeiro Living Index
125

Cost of Living Index in Lexington, MA
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Lexington, MA Living Index

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Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,273

/mo nomad

Lexington, MA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,672

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Rio de Janeiro and in Lexington, MA

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,273 in Rio de Janeiro versus $2,672 in Lexington, MA.

Rio de Janeiro $1,273
Lexington, MA $2,672

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,841 in Rio de Janeiro versus $4,542 in Lexington, MA.

Rio de Janeiro $1,841
Lexington, MA $4,542

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,409 in Rio de Janeiro versus $6,412 in Lexington, MA.

Rio de Janeiro $2,409
Lexington, MA $6,412

Living in Rio de Janeiro costs roughly 52% less than in Lexington, MA, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Rio de Janeiro is 6% below, Lexington, MA is 97% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.38 R$47.54

$20.23 $20.23

-53.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.00 R$203

$74.1 $74.1

-45.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.34 R$42.28

$15.84 $15.84

-47.35%

Cappuccino

$2.29 R$11.62

$4.89 $4.89

-53.17%

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

$1.59 R$8.05

$2.86 $2.86

-44.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.01 R$5.10

$2.05 $2.05

-50.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.14 R$10.85

$6.81 $6.81

-68.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R$18.55

$7.98 $7.98

-54.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 R$5.72

$1.17 $1.17

-3.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.09 R$10.60

$3.93 $3.93

-46.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.25 R$6.36

$4.72 $4.72

-73.52%

Eggs

$2.25 R$11.39

$4.18 $4.18

-46.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.92 R$55.3

$12.65 $12.65

-13.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.36 R$22.10

$12.65 $12.65

-65.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.60 R$48.66

$17.08 $17.08

-43.79%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 R$14.46

$4.32 $4.32

-34.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.81 R$9.16

$1.83 $1.83

-1.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.58 R$8.02

$4.53 $4.53

-65.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.83 R$9.28

$5.17 $5.17

-64.60%

Potato (1kg)

$1.20 R$6.10

$2.39 $2.39

-49.79%

Onion (1kg)

$1.06 R$5.35

$2.93 $2.93

-63.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.75 R$3.81

$1.99 $1.99

-62.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 R$3.45

$2.21 $2.21

-69.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.94 R$14.90

$8.55 $8.55

-65.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.98 R$40.43

$16.74 $16.74

-52.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 R$5.98

$1.82 $1.82

-35.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.42 R$12.26

$3.42 $3.42

-29.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.94 R$4.78

$2.20 $2.20

-57.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.3 R$255

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.20 R$6.10

$2.73 $2.73

-56.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.83 R$4.20

$1.74 $1.74

-52.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.97 R$45.48

$28.81 $28.81

-68.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.29 R$6.53

$1.04 $1.04

24.04%

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

$22.8K R$115.5K

$27.7K $27.7K

-17.90%

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

$34.0K R$172.1K

$28.1K $28.1K

20.86%

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

$134 R$681

$189 $189

-29.00%

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

$10.73 R$54.4

$59.2 $59.2

-81.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.84 R$116

$70.5 $70.5

-67.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.16 R$153

$42.12 $42.12

-28.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.49 R$160

Cinema Ticket

$7.73 R$39.17

$13.93 $13.93

-44.51%

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

$584 R$2,960

$1,400 $1,400

-58.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.8K R$64.9K

$23.6K $23.6K

-45.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$41.12 R$208

$58.6 $58.6

-29.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.26 R$250

$36.47 $36.47

35.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.7 R$373

$88.4 $88.4

-16.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$65.9 R$334

$111 $111

-40.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$900 R$4,561

$1,530 $1,530

-41.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$527 R$2,673

$1,380 $1,380

-61.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,332 R$6,754

$2,878 $2,878

-53.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$748 R$3,790

$3,564 $3,564

-79.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,990 R$20.2K

$2,775 $2,775

43.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,560 R$7,908

$2,356 $2,356

-33.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$640 R$3,246

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

6.79

75.70%

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

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 18, 2026

Last update for Lexington, MA: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rio de Janeiro

$527 41.4%

Lexington, MA

$1.4K 51.6% 162% $852

Groceries & Markets

Rio de Janeiro

$214 16.8%

Lexington, MA

$413 15.4% 93% $199

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio de Janeiro

$168 13.2%

Lexington, MA

$319 11.9% 90% $151

Eating Out

Rio de Janeiro

$156 12.3%

Lexington, MA

$338 12.6% 117% $182

Clothing & Footwear

Rio de Janeiro

$103 8.1%

Lexington, MA

$133 5% 28.2% $29

Getting Around

Rio de Janeiro

$59 4.7%

Lexington, MA

$20 * 0.8% 66% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Rio de Janeiro

$46 3.6%

Lexington, MA

$70 2.6% 53.4% $24

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $900 in Rio de Janeiro and $1,530 in Lexington, MA. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro vs $74.0 in Lexington, MA for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $214 vs $413 per month, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🇺🇸 Lexington, MA

🕒 Local time

15:51 3:51 PM

14:51 2:51 PM

1 h behind Rio de Janeiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,211,223

322,570

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Rio de Janeiro Lexington, MA 7,820 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio de Janeiro
Lexington, MA

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 Lexington, MA: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rio de Janeiro and Lexington, MA differ by about 110% in total monthly costs ($1,273 vs $2,672 including rent). Rio de Janeiro is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,910 in Rio de Janeiro and $4,007 in Lexington, MA to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $900 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,530 in Lexington, MA. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 93% higher in Lexington, MA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,273 per month in Rio de Janeiro versus $2,672 in Lexington, MA – a 110% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,273 in Rio de Janeiro versus $2,672 in Lexington, MA, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Rio de Janeiro but tight or insufficient in Lexington, MA. The gap between the two cities makes Rio de Janeiro 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, Rio de Janeiro and Lexington, MA 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 Rio de Janeiro gentler on the wallet – expenses run 110% less than in Lexington, MA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.