Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and Saint John Island

For one person, living is cheaper in Rio de Janeiro: $1,285 a month against $6,201 in Saint John Island, rent and utilities included – about $59,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

63

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
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Rio de Janeiro Living Index
297

Cost of Living Index in Saint John Island
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Saint John Island Living Index

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Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,285

/mo nomad

Saint John Island

🇻🇮 U.S. Virgin Islands

$6,201

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Rio de Janeiro and in Saint John Island

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 Saint John Island actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro versus $6,201 in Saint John Island.

Rio de Janeiro $1,285
Saint John Island $6,201

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,888 in Rio de Janeiro versus $8,382 in Saint John Island.

Rio de Janeiro $1,888
Saint John Island $8,382

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,491 in Rio de Janeiro versus $10.6K in Saint John Island.

Rio de Janeiro $2,491
Saint John Island $10.6K

Living in Rio de Janeiro costs roughly 79% less than in Saint John Island, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Rio de Janeiro is 4% below, Saint John Island is 363% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.98 R$49.83

$69.9 $69.9

-85.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.34 R$201

$150 $150

-73.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.48 R$42.35

$15.14 $15.14

-43.99%

Cappuccino

$2.36 R$11.80

$9.16 $9.16

-74.24%

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

$1.63 R$8.13

$3.41 $3.41

-52.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.01 R$5.06

$3.48 $3.48

-70.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.44 R$12.19

$5.13 $5.13

-52.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R$18.43

$6.87 $6.87

-46.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 R$5.72

$3.15 $3.15

-63.49%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 R$10.34

$7.96 $7.96

-73.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.29 R$6.42

$12.02 $12.02

-89.27%

Eggs

$2.27 R$11.32

$12.07 $12.07

-81.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.00 R$54.9

$32.43 $32.43

-66.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.31 R$21.51

$33.00 $33.00

-86.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.74 R$48.63

$24.11 $24.11

-59.60%

Apples (1kg)

$2.83 R$14.12

$21.82 $21.82

-87.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.84 R$9.17

$3.91 $3.91

-52.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 R$7.96

$17.29 $17.29

-90.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 R$9.00

$11.89 $11.89

-84.86%

Potato (1kg)

$1.26 R$6.28

$7.74 $7.74

-83.72%

Onion (1kg)

$1.07 R$5.34

$7.86 $7.86

-86.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.75 R$3.75

$4.95 $4.95

-84.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 R$3.29

$3.55 $3.55

-81.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.05 R$15.21

$8.86 $8.86

-65.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.18 R$40.84

$23.36 $23.36

-64.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 R$5.92

$4.58 $4.58

-74.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.39 R$11.92

$6.17 $6.17

-61.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.01 R$5.06

$7.15 $7.15

-85.87%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.2 R$250

$149 $149

-66.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 R$6.33

$30.31 $30.31

-95.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R$4.51

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.44 R$47.13

$50.2 $50.2

-81.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 R$6.65

$1.56 $1.56

-14.74%

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

$23.4K R$117.0K

$47.1K $47.1K

-50.29%

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

$33.6K R$167.6K

$52.2K $52.2K

-35.71%

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

$134 R$666

$297 $297

-55.00%

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

$12.23 R$61.0

$98.4 $98.4

-87.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.65 R$113

$101 $101

-77.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.56 R$158

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.87 R$154

Cinema Ticket

$8.23 R$41.07

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

$603 R$3,011

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.2K R$66.1K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$41.62 R$208

$80.4 $80.4

-48.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.94 R$249

$49.69 $49.69

0.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.0 R$375

$84.9 $84.9

-11.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.3 R$341

$100 $100

-31.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$905 R$4,519

$4,020 $4,020

-77.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$527 R$2,633

$3,511 $3,511

-84.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,346 R$6,720

$5,081 $5,081

-73.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$774 R$3,865

$4,566 $4,566

-83.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,981 R$19.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,562 R$7,798

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$643 R$3,210

$4,412 $4,412

-85.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

70.43%

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 Saint John Island: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rio de Janeiro

$527 41%

Saint John Island

$3.5K 57.3% 566% $3K

Groceries & Markets

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7%

Saint John Island

$987 16.1% 360% $772

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio de Janeiro

$168 13.1%

Saint John Island

$496 8.1% 195% $328

Eating Out

Rio de Janeiro

$164 12.7%

Saint John Island

$781 12.8% 377% $617

Clothing & Footwear

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2%

Saint John Island

$142 2.3% 34.2% $36

Getting Around

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7%

Saint John Island

$208 * 3.4% 246% $148

Sport & Entertainment

Rio de Janeiro

$48 3.7%

Saint John Island

- * 0% 100%

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 $905 in Rio de Janeiro and $4,020 in Saint John Island. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Saint John Island pays 586% 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 $150 in Saint John Island for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $215 vs $987 per month, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🇻🇮 Saint John Island

🕒 Local time

09:56 9:56 AM

08:56 8:56 AM

1 h behind Rio de Janeiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,211,223

4,170

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Rio de Janeiro Saint John Island 5,150 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio de Janeiro
Saint John Island

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 Saint John Island: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rio de Janeiro and Saint John Island differ by about 383% in total monthly costs ($1,285 vs $6,201 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 586% lower in Saint John Island. 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 $4,020 in Saint John Island. 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 $150 in Saint John Island. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

A monthly transit pass in Rio de Janeiro runs roughly 196% less than in Saint John Island. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro versus $6,201 in Saint John Island, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Rio de Janeiro but tight or insufficient in Saint John Island. 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.

Safety-wise, Rio de Janeiro and Saint John Island are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Rio de Janeiro gentler on the wallet – expenses run 383% less than in Saint John Island. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.