Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and Saguenay

For one person, living is cheaper in Rio de Janeiro: $1,285 a month against $1,417 in Saguenay, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. The total is higher in Saguenay despite lower rent and utilities.

63

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
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Rio de Janeiro Living Index
68

Cost of Living Index in Saguenay
Learn more

Saguenay Living Index

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Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,285

/mo nomad

Saguenay

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,417

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,417 in Saguenay.

Rio de Janeiro $1,285
Saguenay $1,417

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,888 in Rio de Janeiro versus $2,221 in Saguenay.

Rio de Janeiro $1,888
Saguenay $2,221

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,491 in Rio de Janeiro versus $3,025 in Saguenay.

Rio de Janeiro $2,491
Saguenay $3,025

Living in Rio de Janeiro costs roughly 9% less than in Saguenay, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Rio de Janeiro is 4% below, Saguenay is 6% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.98 R$49.83

$15.47 CA$22.05

-35.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.34 R$201

$42.88 CA$61.1

-5.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.48 R$42.35

$10.74 CA$15.31

-21.04%

Cappuccino

$2.36 R$11.80

$3.64 CA$5.19

-35.16%

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

$1.63 R$8.13

$1.50 CA$2.14

8.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.01 R$5.06

$1.21 CA$1.73

-16.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.44 R$12.19

$5.21 CA$7.43

-53.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R$18.43

$5.22 CA$7.45

-29.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 R$5.72

$2.05 CA$2.92

-43.90%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 R$10.34

$2.83 CA$4.03

-26.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.29 R$6.42

$4.09 CA$5.83

-68.46%

Eggs

$2.27 R$11.32

$2.74 CA$3.91

-17.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.00 R$54.9

$8.67 CA$12.35

26.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.31 R$21.51

$7.13 CA$10.17

-39.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.74 R$48.63

$10.13 CA$14.44

-3.85%

Apples (1kg)

$2.83 R$14.12

$4.24 CA$6.05

-33.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.84 R$9.17

$1.36 CA$1.94

35.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 R$7.96

$3.70 CA$5.27

-56.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 R$9.00

$3.91 CA$5.57

-53.96%

Potato (1kg)

$1.26 R$6.28

$2.93 CA$4.17

-57.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.07 R$5.34

$2.76 CA$3.93

-61.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.75 R$3.75

$2.42 CA$3.45

-69.01%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 R$3.29

$0.80 CA$1.14

-17.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.05 R$15.21

$11.81 CA$16.84

-74.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.18 R$40.84

$11.29 CA$16.10

-27.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 R$5.92

$3.21 CA$4.57

-62.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.39 R$11.92

$3.36 CA$4.79

-28.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.01 R$5.06

$2.71 CA$3.86

-62.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.2 R$250

$56.1 CA$80.0

-10.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 R$6.33

$2.81 CA$4.01

-54.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R$4.51

$1.40 CA$2.00

-35.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.44 R$47.13

$27.62 CA$39.36

-65.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 R$6.65

$1.14 CA$1.63

16.67%

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

$23.4K R$117.0K

$27.6K CA$39.3K

-15.07%

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

$33.6K R$167.6K

$19.5K CA$27.8K

72.31%

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

$134 R$666

$62.9 CA$89.7

112.21%

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

$12.23 R$61.0

$31.16 CA$44.41

-60.75%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.65 R$113

$44.94 CA$64.1

-49.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.56 R$158

$24.19 CA$34.48

30.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.87 R$154

$18.72 CA$26.68

64.90%

Cinema Ticket

$8.23 R$41.07

$8.87 CA$12.64

-7.22%

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

$603 R$3,011

$681 CA$970

-11.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.2K R$66.1K

$9,086 CA$13.0K

45.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$41.62 R$208

$56.9 CA$81.2

-26.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.94 R$249

$34.40 CA$49.03

45.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.0 R$375

$85.6 CA$122

-12.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.3 R$341

$107 CA$153

-36.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$905 R$4,519

$609 CA$868

48.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$527 R$2,633

$459 CA$654

14.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,346 R$6,720

$1,177 CA$1,678

14.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$774 R$3,865

$930 CA$1,326

-16.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,981 R$19.9K

$5,613 CA$8,001

-29.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,562 R$7,798

$3,390 CA$4,832

-53.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$643 R$3,210

$2,552 CA$3,638

-74.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

4.44

168.69%

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

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 6, 2026

Last update for Saguenay: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rio de Janeiro

$527 41%

Saguenay

$459 32.7% 13% $69

Groceries & Markets

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7%

Saguenay

$311 22.2% 44.8% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio de Janeiro

$168 13.1%

Saguenay

$139 9.9% 17.4% $29

Eating Out

Rio de Janeiro

$164 12.7%

Saguenay

$247 17.6% 50.8% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2%

Saguenay

$128 9.1% 21% $22

Getting Around

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7%

Saguenay

$77 5.5% 27.9% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Rio de Janeiro

$48 3.7%

Saguenay

$42 3% 12.7% $6.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $905 in Rio de Janeiro and $609 in Saguenay. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Saguenay pays 297% 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 $43.00 in Saguenay for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $215 vs $311 per month, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🇨🇦 Saguenay

🕒 Local time

17:02 5:02 PM

16:02 4:02 PM

1 h behind Rio de Janeiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,211,223

144,723

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

1 CAD = 0.702 USD

1 CAD = 0.626 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.99 BRL (1 BRL = 0.2 USD). 1 EUR = 5.59 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 CAD (1 CAD = 0.702 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 CAD (1 CAD = 0.626 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Rio de Janeiro Saguenay 8,400 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio de Janeiro
Saguenay

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 Saguenay: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rio de Janeiro and Saguenay differ by about 10% in total monthly costs ($1,285 vs $1,417 including rent). Rio de Janeiro is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 297% lower in Saguenay. 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: $905 in Rio de Janeiro versus $609 in Saguenay. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Rio de Janeiro – a meal for two runs $40.00 versus $43.00 in Saguenay. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,285 per month in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,417 in Saguenay – a 10% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,417 in Saguenay, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Rio de Janeiro but tight or insufficient in Saguenay. The gap between the two cities makes Rio de Janeiro the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Expats usually find Rio de Janeiro gentler on the wallet – expenses run 10% less than in Saguenay. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.