Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and Markham

For one person, living is cheaper in Rio de Janeiro: $1,289 a month against $2,416 in Markham, rent and utilities included – about $13,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

63

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
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Rio de Janeiro Living Index
118

Cost of Living Index in Markham
Learn more

Markham Living Index

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Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,289

/mo nomad

Markham

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,416

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Rio de Janeiro and in Markham

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 Markham actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro versus $2,416 in Markham.

Rio de Janeiro $1,289
Markham $2,416

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,868 in Rio de Janeiro versus $3,465 in Markham.

Rio de Janeiro $1,868
Markham $3,465

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,448 in Rio de Janeiro versus $4,514 in Markham.

Rio de Janeiro $2,448
Markham $4,514

Living in Rio de Janeiro costs roughly 47% less than in Markham, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Rio de Janeiro is 5% below, Markham is 79% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.06 R$50.5

$17.37 CA$24.70

-42.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.44 R$203

$53.4 CA$76.0

-24.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 R$42.90

$10.47 CA$14.89

-18.34%

Cappuccino

$2.38 R$11.92

$3.81 CA$5.42

-37.53%

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

$1.61 R$8.09

$1.70 CA$2.42

-5.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R$5.17

$1.17 CA$1.67

-11.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.47 R$12.41

$3.59 CA$5.10

-31.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.70 R$18.58

$5.62 CA$7.99

-34.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 R$5.99

$1.94 CA$2.76

-38.66%

White Bread (500g)

$2.05 R$10.28

$2.22 CA$3.16

-7.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.28 R$6.42

$1.90 CA$2.70

-32.63%

Eggs

$2.29 R$11.48

$2.99 CA$4.25

-23.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.76 R$54.0

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.41 R$22.13

$11.70 CA$16.64

-62.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.84 R$49.35

$6.81 CA$9.68

44.49%

Apples (1kg)

$2.81 R$14.11

$3.69 CA$5.25

-23.85%

Banana (1kg)

$1.78 R$8.94

$1.26 CA$1.80

41.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 R$8.05

$2.33 CA$3.31

-31.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 R$9.02

$3.26 CA$4.63

-44.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.22 R$6.11

$2.05 CA$2.92

-40.49%

Onion (1kg)

$1.04 R$5.21

$1.96 CA$2.79

-46.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.77 R$3.88

$2.87 CA$4.08

-73.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 R$3.34

$1.48 CA$2.11

-54.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.01 R$15.12

$13.44 CA$19.11

-77.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.08 R$40.52

$14.53 CA$20.66

-44.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 R$5.97

$2.40 CA$3.41

-50.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.51 R$12.60

$3.19 CA$4.54

-21.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.99 R$4.95

$3.04 CA$4.32

-67.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.1 R$251

$89.3 CA$127

-43.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.22 R$6.14

$3.31 CA$4.71

-63.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 R$4.61

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.97 R$44.98

$18.60 CA$26.44

-51.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 R$6.51

$1.13 CA$1.61

15.04%

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

$23.9K R$119.8K

$28.1K CA$40.0K

-15.08%

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

$32.9K R$164.9K

$18.1K CA$25.8K

81.31%

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

$133 R$669

$125 CA$178

6.38%

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

$10.82 R$54.3

$26.20 CA$37.26

-58.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.90 R$115

$45.69 CA$65.0

-49.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.79 R$154

$42.62 CA$60.6

-27.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.85 R$160

$21.28 CA$30.26

49.67%

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 R$40.41

$10.19 CA$14.49

-21.00%

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

$598 R$2,998

$870 CA$1,237

-31.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.4K R$67.3K

$27.5K CA$39.0K

-51.13%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.04 R$211

$43.21 CA$61.4

-2.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.68 R$249

$37.22 CA$52.9

33.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.5 R$374

$91.1 CA$130

-18.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.7 R$345

$105 CA$149

-34.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$903 R$4,531

$1,554 CA$2,210

-41.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$529 R$2,656

$1,391 CA$1,978

-61.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,326 R$6,655

$2,699 CA$3,838

-50.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$756 R$3,792

$2,236 CA$3,179

-66.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,010 R$20.1K

$5,896 CA$8,382

-31.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,560 R$7,829

$5,309 CA$7,549

-70.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$640 R$3,209

$3,132 CA$4,453

-79.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

4.56

161.62%

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

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 10, 2026

Last update for Markham: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rio de Janeiro

$529 41.1%

Markham

$1.4K 57.6% 163% $862

Groceries & Markets

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7%

Markham

$279 * 11.5% 29.8% $64

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio de Janeiro

$167 13%

Markham

$197 8.2% 18.1% $30

Eating Out

Rio de Janeiro

$165 12.8%

Markham

$257 10.6% 55.7% $92

Clothing & Footwear

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2%

Markham

$124 5.2% 17.7% $19

Getting Around

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7%

Markham

$105 * 4.3% 75% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Rio de Janeiro

$47 3.6%

Markham

$63 2.6% 34.4% $16

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 $903 in Rio de Janeiro and $1,554 in Markham. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Markham pays 390% 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: $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro vs $53.0 in Markham for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $215 vs $279 per month, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🇨🇦 Markham

🕒 Local time

20:58 8:58 PM

19:58 7:58 PM

1 h behind Rio de Janeiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,211,223

338,503

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.199 USD

1 BRL = 0.178 EUR

1 CAD = 0.703 USD

1 CAD = 0.628 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 5.02 BRL (1 BRL = 0.199 USD). 1 EUR = 5.62 BRL (1 BRL = 0.178 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 CAD (1 CAD = 0.703 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.628 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Rio de Janeiro Markham 8,290 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio de Janeiro
Markham

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 Markham: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rio de Janeiro wins on cost – living expenses run 87% lower than in Markham. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Rio de Janeiro the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 390% lower in Markham. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $903 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,554 in Markham. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $598 in Rio de Janeiro versus $870 in Markham. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 30% higher in Markham. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro versus $2,416 in Markham, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Rio de Janeiro but tight or insufficient in Markham. The gap between the two cities makes Rio de Janeiro the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Rio de Janeiro delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,289 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Rio de Janeiro hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Rio de Janeiro and Markham 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 87% less than in Markham. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.