Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and Matamoros

For one person, living is cheaper in Matamoros: $1,090 a month against $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro, rent and utilities included – about $2,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Rio de Janeiro outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

63

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
Learn more

Rio de Janeiro Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Matamoros
Learn more

Matamoros Living Index

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Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,289

/mo nomad

Matamoros

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,090

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,090 in Matamoros.

Rio de Janeiro $1,289
Matamoros $1,090

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,868 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,832 in Matamoros.

Rio de Janeiro $1,868
Matamoros $1,832

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,448 in Rio de Janeiro versus $2,573 in Matamoros.

Rio de Janeiro $2,448
Matamoros $2,573

Living in Rio de Janeiro is roughly 18% more expensive than in Matamoros, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Rio de Janeiro 5% lower, Matamoros 19% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.06 R$51.0

$12.38 MX$229

-18.74%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.44 R$205

$37.67 MX$696

7.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 R$43.35

$9.06 MX$167

-5.63%

Cappuccino

$2.38 R$12.04

$3.29 MX$60.8

-27.66%

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

$1.61 R$8.18

$1.47 MX$27.18

9.52%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R$5.22

$1.05 MX$19.40

-1.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.47 R$12.54

$2.26 MX$41.81

9.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.70 R$18.77

$4.48 MX$82.8

-17.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 R$6.05

$1.63 MX$30.12

-26.99%

White Bread (500g)

$2.05 R$10.38

$2.40 MX$44.43

-14.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.28 R$6.49

$1.70 MX$31.43

-24.71%

Eggs

$2.29 R$11.60

$2.57 MX$47.54

-10.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.76 R$54.5

$9.01 MX$167

19.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.41 R$22.36

$7.82 MX$144

-43.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.84 R$49.86

$11.74 MX$217

-16.18%

Apples (1kg)

$2.81 R$14.25

$2.70 MX$49.81

4.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.78 R$9.03

$1.73 MX$31.92

2.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 R$8.13

$1.67 MX$30.82

-4.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 R$9.11

$2.05 MX$37.92

-12.20%

Potato (1kg)

$1.22 R$6.17

$2.17 MX$40.01

-43.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.04 R$5.26

$2.09 MX$38.70

-50.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.77 R$3.92

$1.61 MX$29.73

-52.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 R$3.38

$1.22 MX$22.48

-45.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.01 R$15.27

$4.72 MX$87.2

-36.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.08 R$40.94

$10.79 MX$199

-25.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 R$6.03

$2.02 MX$37.32

-41.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.51 R$12.73

$3.18 MX$58.8

-21.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.99 R$5.00

$0.65 MX$12.03

52.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.1 R$254

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.22 R$6.20

$2.71 MX$50.0

-54.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 R$4.66

$2.25 MX$41.49

-59.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.97 R$45.45

$11.47 MX$212

-21.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 R$6.57

$1.34 MX$24.72

-2.99%

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

$23.9K R$121.0K

$23.5K MX$435.0K

1.43%

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

$32.9K R$166.6K

$23.9K MX$441.3K

37.60%

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

$133 R$676

$56.2 MX$1,038

137.58%

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

$10.82 R$54.8

$25.44 MX$470

-57.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.90 R$116

$26.61 MX$492

-13.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.79 R$156

$32.88 MX$608

-6.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.85 R$161

$22.40 MX$414

42.19%

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 R$40.83

$4.48 MX$82.7

79.69%

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

$598 R$3,029

$223 MX$4,114

168.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.4K R$68.0K

$4,650 MX$85.9K

188.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.04 R$213

$53.3 MX$986

-21.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.68 R$252

$38.50 MX$711

29.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.5 R$378

$99.1 MX$1,832

-24.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.7 R$348

$79.4 MX$1,467

-13.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$903 R$4,578

$646 MX$11.9K

39.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$529 R$2,684

$337 MX$6,220

57.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,326 R$6,724

$901 MX$16.7K

47.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$756 R$3,831

$826 MX$15.3K

-8.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,010 R$20.3K

$2,039 MX$37.7K

96.68%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,560 R$7,910

$1,054 MX$19.5K

48.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$640 R$3,242

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

11.3

5.58%

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 Matamoros: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rio de Janeiro

$529 41.1%

Matamoros

$337 30.9% 36.4% $193

Groceries & Markets

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7%

Matamoros

$269 24.7% 25.5% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio de Janeiro

$167 13%

Matamoros

$108 9.9% 35.3% $59

Eating Out

Rio de Janeiro

$165 12.8%

Matamoros

$196 18% 18.8% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2%

Matamoros

$122 11.2% 15.1% $16

Getting Around

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7%

Matamoros

$17 * 1.5% 72.4% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Rio de Janeiro

$47 3.6%

Matamoros

$42 3.8% 10.8% $5.1

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 $646 in Matamoros. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro vs $38.00 in Matamoros. Groceries flip the comparison at $215 vs $269, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🇲🇽 Matamoros

🕒 Local time

04:10 4:10 AM

02:10 2:10 AM

2 h behind Rio de Janeiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,211,223

510,739

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Rio de Janeiro Matamoros 7,970 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio de Janeiro
Matamoros

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 Matamoros: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Matamoros wins on cost – living expenses run 18% lower than in Rio de Janeiro. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Matamoros the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,933 in Rio de Janeiro and $1,635 in Matamoros 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: $903 in Rio de Janeiro versus $646 in Matamoros. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $598 in Rio de Janeiro versus $223 in Matamoros. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Matamoros – a meal for two runs $38.00 versus $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,090 in Matamoros versus $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Matamoros but tight or insufficient in Rio de Janeiro. The gap between the two cities makes Matamoros the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Matamoros delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,090 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Matamoros hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Matamoros gentler on the wallet – expenses run 18% less than in Rio de Janeiro. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.