Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and Negril

For one person, living is cheaper in Negril: $927 a month against $1,182 in Rio de Janeiro, rent and utilities included – about $3,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Rio de Janeiro outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

57

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
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Rio de Janeiro Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Negril
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Negril Living Index

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Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,182

/mo nomad

Negril

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$927

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,182 in Rio de Janeiro versus $927 in Negril.

Rio de Janeiro $1,182
Negril $927

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,750 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,478 in Negril.

Rio de Janeiro $1,750
Negril $1,478

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,318 in Rio de Janeiro versus $2,029 in Negril.

Rio de Janeiro $2,318
Negril $2,029

Living in Rio de Janeiro is roughly 28% more expensive than in Negril, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Rio de Janeiro 13% lower, Negril 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.08 R$48.54

$9.68 JMD 1,526

-6.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.25 R$199

$49.26 JMD 7,767

-24.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.02 R$42.87

$8.05 JMD 1,269

-0.37%

Cappuccino

$2.19 R$11.71

$2.05 JMD 323

6.83%

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

$1.46 R$7.82

$1.15 JMD 181

26.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.99 R$5.27

$0.74 JMD 117

33.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.03 R$10.84

$2.16 JMD 341

-6.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.45 R$18.43

$3.19 JMD 503

8.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.06 R$5.66

$4.02 JMD 634

-73.63%

White Bread (500g)

$1.98 R$10.61

$3.37 JMD 532

-41.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.17 R$6.27

$1.58 JMD 249

-25.95%

Eggs

$2.21 R$11.80

$3.51 JMD 554

-37.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.11 R$54.1

$11.25 JMD 1,773

-10.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.12 R$22.00

$6.33 JMD 998

-34.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.17 R$49.04

$10.19 JMD 1,606

-10.01%

Apples (1kg)

$2.72 R$14.54

$6.06 JMD 956

-55.12%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 R$9.15

$3.96 JMD 624

-56.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.53 R$8.18

$7.47 JMD 1,177

-79.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 R$8.89

$2.99 JMD 471

-44.48%

Potato (1kg)

$1.14 R$6.09

$3.15 JMD 497

-63.81%

Onion (1kg)

$0.99 R$5.32

$2.58 JMD 406

-61.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.65 R$3.46

$2.99 JMD 472

-78.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.60 R$3.20

$1.44 JMD 227

-58.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.79 R$14.94

$9.33 JMD 1,471

-70.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.48 R$39.99

$11.27 JMD 1,776

-33.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 R$5.83

$2.92 JMD 460

-62.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 R$12.48

$3.94 JMD 622

-40.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.90 R$4.79

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.0 R$283

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.17 R$6.24

$1.22 JMD 193

-4.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 R$4.17

$3.23 JMD 509

-75.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.37 R$44.75

$6.36 JMD 1,002

31.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 R$6.48

$1.47 JMD 232

-17.69%

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

$21.5K R$114.8K

$43.7K JMD 6.9M

-50.89%

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

$31.1K R$166.5K

$32.6K JMD 5.1M

-4.55%

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

$124 R$665

$166 JMD 26.2K

-25.15%

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

$10.03 R$53.7

$29.95 JMD 4,722

-66.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.88 R$112

$51.9 JMD 8,179

-59.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.35 R$152

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.33 R$157

Cinema Ticket

$7.62 R$40.72

$13.26 JMD 2,090

-42.53%

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

$563 R$3,010

$362 JMD 57.0K

55.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.0K R$64.4K

$8,121 JMD 1.3M

48.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$39.25 R$210

$23.75 JMD 3,745

65.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.36 R$248

$30.90 JMD 4,873

50.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.4 R$366

$76.9 JMD 12.1K

-11.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$63.4 R$339

$104 JMD 16.4K

-38.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$776 R$4,150

$1,005 JMD 158.5K

-22.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$473 R$2,530

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,391 R$7,437

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$739 R$3,951

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,393 R$18.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R$8,396

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$597 R$3,192

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

9.45

26.24%

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

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 25, 2026

Last update for Negril: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rio de Janeiro

$473 40%

Negril

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Rio de Janeiro

$201 17%

Negril

$378 40.8% 88.1% $177

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio de Janeiro

$155 13.1%

Negril

$248 26.8% 59.7% $93

Eating Out

Rio de Janeiro

$150 12.7%

Negril

$151 16.3% 0.7% $1.1

Clothing & Footwear

Rio de Janeiro

$98 8.3%

Negril

$106 11.4% 8.2% $8

Getting Around

Rio de Janeiro

$62 5.2%

Negril

$17 * 1.9% 71.9% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Rio de Janeiro

$44 3.7%

Negril

$27 * 2.9% 39.2% $17

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 $776 in Rio de Janeiro and $1,005 in Negril. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $37 in Rio de Janeiro vs $49 in Negril for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $201 vs $378 per month, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🇯🇲 Negril

🕒 Local time

13:06 1:06 PM

11:06 11:06 AM

2 h behind Rio de Janeiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,211,223

13,779

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.187 USD

1 BRL = 0.168 EUR

1,000 JMD = 6.34 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.7 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JMD, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 5.35 BRL (1 BRL = 0.187 USD). 1 EUR = 5.95 BRL (1 BRL = 0.168 EUR).

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.34 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.7 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Rio de Janeiro Negril 5,960 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio de Janeiro
Negril

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 Negril: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rio de Janeiro and Negril differ by about 28% in total monthly costs ($1,182 vs $927 including rent). Negril is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,774 in Rio de Janeiro and $1,390 in Negril 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: $776 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,005 in Negril. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $563 in Rio de Janeiro versus $362 in Negril. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Rio de Janeiro – a meal for two runs $37 versus $49 in Negril. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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.