Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and Pisco

For one person, living is cheaper in Pisco: $658 a month against $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro, rent and utilities included – about $7,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

63

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
Learn more

Rio de Janeiro Living Index
32

Cost of Living Index in Pisco
Learn more

Pisco Living Index

Jump to prices

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,289

/mo nomad

Pisco

🇵🇪 Peru

$658

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,289 per month in Rio de Janeiro vs $658 in Pisco, rent included.

Rio de Janeiro $1,289
Pisco $658

A couple spends around $1,868 per month in Rio de Janeiro vs $1,019 in Pisco, rent included.

Rio de Janeiro $1,868
Pisco $1,019

A family of three spends $2,448 per month in Rio de Janeiro vs $1,380 in Pisco, rent included.

Rio de Janeiro $2,448
Pisco $1,380

Rio de Janeiro costs about 96% more than Pisco, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Rio de Janeiro and Pisco are more affordable than the global median – Rio de Janeiro 5% lower, Pisco 51% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.06 R$51.0

$4.37 PEN 15.02

130.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.44 R$205

$34.60 PEN 119

16.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 R$43.35

$6.86 PEN 23.56

24.64%

Cappuccino

$2.38 R$12.04

$3.18 PEN 10.93

-25.16%

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

$1.61 R$8.18

$1.06 PEN 3.64

51.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R$5.22

$0.65 PEN 2.22

58.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.47 R$12.54

$2.69 PEN 9.23

-8.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.70 R$18.77

$4.48 PEN 15.38

-17.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 R$6.05

$1.64 PEN 5.64

-27.44%

White Bread (500g)

$2.05 R$10.38

$2.27 PEN 7.80

-9.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.28 R$6.49

$1.25 PEN 4.28

2.40%

Eggs

$2.29 R$11.60

$1.29 PEN 4.44

77.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.76 R$54.5

$6.22 PEN 21.36

72.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.41 R$22.36

$4.82 PEN 16.56

-8.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.84 R$49.86

$6.40 PEN 21.98

53.75%

Apples (1kg)

$2.81 R$14.25

$1.32 PEN 4.54

112.88%

Banana (1kg)

$1.78 R$9.03

$0.99 PEN 3.41

79.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 R$8.13

$1.36 PEN 4.66

17.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 R$9.11

$0.61 PEN 2.08

195.08%

Potato (1kg)

$1.22 R$6.17

$0.45 PEN 1.55

171.11%

Onion (1kg)

$1.04 R$5.26

$0.92 PEN 3.14

13.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.77 R$3.92

$0.82 PEN 2.81

-6.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 R$3.38

$0.93 PEN 3.18

-27.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.01 R$15.27

$5.74 PEN 19.72

-47.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.08 R$40.94

$8.54 PEN 29.34

-5.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 R$6.03

$1.85 PEN 6.34

-35.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.51 R$12.73

$2.43 PEN 8.34

3.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.99 R$5.00

$0.85 PEN 2.93

16.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.1 R$254

$35.08 PEN 120

42.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.22 R$6.20

$3.87 PEN 13.29

-68.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 R$4.66

$2.07 PEN 7.10

-55.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.97 R$45.45

$7.43 PEN 25.52

20.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 R$6.57

$1.64 PEN 5.64

-20.73%

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

$23.9K R$121.0K

$22.4K PEN 77.0K

6.45%

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

$32.9K R$166.6K

$25.3K PEN 86.9K

29.93%

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

$133 R$676

$43.24 PEN 149

208.51%

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

$10.82 R$54.8

$16.04 PEN 55.1

-32.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.90 R$116

$11.49 PEN 39.46

99.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.79 R$156

$20.15 PEN 69.2

52.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.85 R$161

$8.94 PEN 30.72

256.26%

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 R$40.83

$7.38 PEN 25.36

9.08%

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

$598 R$3,029

$176 PEN 604

239.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.4K R$68.0K

$13.3K PEN 45.6K

1.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.04 R$213

$53.7 PEN 185

-21.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.68 R$252

$13.00 PEN 44.65

282.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.5 R$378

$45.65 PEN 157

63.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.7 R$348

$35.25 PEN 121

94.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$903 R$4,578

$161 PEN 554

460.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$529 R$2,684

$129 PEN 443

310.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,326 R$6,724

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$756 R$3,831

$144 PEN 494

425.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,010 R$20.3K

$1,834 PEN 6,300

118.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,560 R$7,910

$1,331 PEN 4,572

17.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$640 R$3,242

$565 PEN 1,941

13.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

8.94

33.45%

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 Pisco: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rio de Janeiro

$529 41.1%

Pisco

$129 19.6% 75.6% $401

Groceries & Markets

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7%

Pisco

$181 27.5% 15.6% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio de Janeiro

$167 13%

Pisco

$71 10.8% 57.6% $96

Eating Out

Rio de Janeiro

$165 12.8%

Pisco

$123 18.7% 25.5% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2%

Pisco

$66 10.1% 37.2% $39

Getting Around

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7%

Pisco

$53 8% 12% $7.2

Sport & Entertainment

Rio de Janeiro

$47 3.6%

Pisco

$35 5.3% 25.5% $12

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $903 in Rio de Janeiro versus $161 in Pisco. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 13% higher in Rio de Janeiro, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro versus $35.00 in Pisco. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $215 vs $181 – making Pisco the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🇵🇪 Pisco

🕒 Local time

16:04 4:04 PM

14:04 2:04 PM

2 h behind Rio de Janeiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,211,223

14,917

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Rio de Janeiro Pisco 3,620 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio de Janeiro
Pisco

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 Pisco: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro, $658 in Pisco – roughly 96% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,933 per month in Rio de Janeiro and $987 in Pisco. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Pisco, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 43% less in Pisco. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $598 per month in Rio de Janeiro and $176 in Pisco. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Pisco, where all-in costs run around $658, than in Rio de Janeiro at $1,289. In Pisco it covers expenses comfortably, while in Rio de Janeiro it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Rio de Janeiro has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $658 in Pisco to $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Pisco. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Rio de Janeiro makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.