Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and Palmas

For one person, living is cheaper in Palmas: $830 a month against $1,185 in Rio de Janeiro, rent and utilities included – about $4,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
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Rio de Janeiro Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in Palmas
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Palmas Living Index

Jump to prices

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,185

/mo nomad

Palmas

🇧🇷 Brazil

$830

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,185 per month in Rio de Janeiro vs $830 in Palmas, rent included.

Rio de Janeiro $1,185
Palmas $830

A couple spends around $1,737 per month in Rio de Janeiro vs $1,281 in Palmas, rent included.

Rio de Janeiro $1,737
Palmas $1,281

A family of three spends $2,289 per month in Rio de Janeiro vs $1,733 in Palmas, rent included.

Rio de Janeiro $2,289
Palmas $1,733

Rio de Janeiro costs about 43% more than Palmas, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Rio de Janeiro and Palmas are more affordable than the global median – Rio de Janeiro 12% lower, Palmas 39% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.16 R$44.54

$3.83 R$20.91

113.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.20 R$203

$21.86 R$119

70.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 R$41.08

$7.41 R$40.45

1.48%

Cappuccino

$2.10 R$11.49

$1.73 R$9.43

21.39%

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

$1.36 R$7.44

$1.63 R$8.92

-16.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.96 R$5.25

$0.81 R$4.43

18.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.98 R$10.79

$1.46 R$7.95

35.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.26 R$17.80

$2.72 R$14.84

19.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.09 R$5.93

$1.02 R$5.57

6.86%

White Bread (500g)

$1.87 R$10.19

$1.34 R$7.32

39.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.12 R$6.14

$2.76 R$15.07

-59.42%

Eggs

$2.20 R$12.03

$2.41 R$13.17

-8.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.91 R$54.1

$6.62 R$36.18

49.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.11 R$22.44

$2.95 R$16.12

39.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.25 R$50.5

$5.75 R$31.42

60.87%

Apples (1kg)

$2.59 R$14.15

$2.18 R$11.91

18.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 R$9.21

$1.56 R$8.53

8.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.47 R$8.02

$1.13 R$6.18

30.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.72 R$9.37

$1.08 R$5.90

59.26%

Potato (1kg)

$1.16 R$6.31

$1.19 R$6.48

-2.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.00 R$5.45

$1.04 R$5.69

-3.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.66 R$3.59

$0.75 R$4.11

-12.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.61 R$3.33

$0.71 R$3.88

-14.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.69 R$14.70

$2.06 R$11.24

30.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.20 R$39.33

$6.42 R$35.07

12.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 R$5.86

$1.24 R$6.78

-13.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.24 R$12.22

$2.01 R$10.97

11.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 R$4.78

$0.74 R$4.07

18.92%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.3 R$286

$41.72 R$228

25.41%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.18 R$6.44

$1.30 R$7.10

-9.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.68 R$3.69

$0.70 R$3.81

-2.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.71 R$47.56

$6.26 R$34.18

39.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.20 R$6.54

$1.11 R$6.05

8.11%

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

$21.9K R$119.4K

$19.7K R$107.5K

11.15%

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

$31.0K R$169.3K

$30.8K R$168.5K

0.52%

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

$126 R$686

$106 R$578

18.70%

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

$10.14 R$55.4

$10.92 R$59.6

-7.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.95 R$114

$18.50 R$101

13.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.51 R$156

$21.99 R$120

29.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.87 R$158

$26.12 R$143

10.53%

Cinema Ticket

$7.40 R$40.43

$6.13 R$33.45

20.72%

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

$537 R$2,932

$142 R$775

278.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.9K R$86.8K

$6,428 R$35.1K

147.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$38.68 R$211

$33.94 R$185

13.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.06 R$246

$49.29 R$269

-8.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.6 R$375

$106 R$579

-35.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$64.1 R$350

$66.9 R$365

-4.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$768 R$4,192

$309 R$1,688

148.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 R$2,680

$233 R$1,270

111.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,458 R$7,964

$611 R$3,337

138.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$743 R$4,056

$461 R$2,519

61.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,325 R$18.2K

$1,616 R$8,825

105.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,552 R$8,475

$1,140 R$6,225

36.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$674 R$3,679

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

8.45%

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

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: November 3, 2026

Last update for Palmas: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rio de Janeiro

$491 41.4%

Palmas

$233 28% 52.6% $258

Groceries & Markets

Rio de Janeiro

$198 16.7%

Palmas

$167 20.1% 15.8% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio de Janeiro

$157 13.2%

Palmas

$135 16.3% 13.7% $21

Eating Out

Rio de Janeiro

$139 11.7%

Palmas

$96 11.6% 30.8% $43

Clothing & Footwear

Rio de Janeiro

$97 8.2%

Palmas

$115 13.9% 18.4% $18

Getting Around

Rio de Janeiro

$60 5.1%

Palmas

$49 6% 18% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Rio de Janeiro

$43 3.7%

Palmas

$34 4.1% 20.9% $9.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $768 in Rio de Janeiro versus $309 in Palmas. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $37 in Rio de Janeiro versus $22 in Palmas. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $198 vs $167 – making Palmas the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Palmas

🕒 Local time

03:22 3:22 AM

Same time as Rio de Janeiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,211,223

302,692

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.183 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 EUR

1 BRL = 0.183 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Rio de Janeiro Palmas 1,520 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Rio de Janeiro
Palmas

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 Palmas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,185 in Rio de Janeiro, $830 in Palmas – Palmas comes out roughly 30% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,778 per month in Rio de Janeiro and $1,244 in Palmas. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Palmas, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $309 there versus $768 in Rio de Janeiro.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $37 in Rio de Janeiro and $22 in Palmas. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,185 in Rio de Janeiro and $830 in Palmas. That makes Palmas about 30% cheaper.

Families tend to lean toward Palmas – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

For expats, Palmas is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 30% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.