Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and San Lorenzo, Puerto Rico

For one person, living is cheaper in Rio de Janeiro: $1,182 a month against $1,264 in San Lorenzo, rent and utilities included – about $980 less a year. The total is higher in San Lorenzo despite lower rent and utilities.

57

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
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Rio de Janeiro Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in San Lorenzo
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San Lorenzo Living Index

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Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,182

/mo nomad

San Lorenzo

🇵🇷 Puerto Rico

$1,264

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Rio de Janeiro and in San Lorenzo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,182 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,264 in San Lorenzo.

Rio de Janeiro $1,182
San Lorenzo $1,264

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,750 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,992 in San Lorenzo.

Rio de Janeiro $1,750
San Lorenzo $1,992

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,318 in Rio de Janeiro versus $2,720 in San Lorenzo.

Rio de Janeiro $2,318
San Lorenzo $2,720

Living in Rio de Janeiro costs roughly 6% less than in San Lorenzo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Rio de Janeiro 13% lower, San Lorenzo 7% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.08 R$48.54

$11.76 $11.76

-22.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.25 R$199

$83.4 $83.4

-55.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.02 R$42.87

$9.33 $9.33

-14.04%

Cappuccino

$2.19 R$11.71

$3.69 $3.69

-40.65%

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

$1.46 R$7.82

$1.90 $1.90

-23.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.99 R$5.27

$1.44 $1.44

-31.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.03 R$10.84

$3.09 $3.09

-34.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.45 R$18.43

$4.89 $4.89

-29.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.06 R$5.66

$2.18 $2.18

-51.38%

White Bread (500g)

$1.98 R$10.61

$3.61 $3.61

-45.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.17 R$6.27

$2.43 $2.43

-51.85%

Eggs

$2.21 R$11.80

$7.54 $7.54

-70.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.11 R$54.1

$12.78 $12.78

-20.89%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.12 R$22.00

$9.44 $9.44

-56.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.17 R$49.04

$13.57 $13.57

-32.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.72 R$14.54

$5.19 $5.19

-47.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 R$9.15

$2.52 $2.52

-32.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.53 R$8.18

$4.85 $4.85

-68.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 R$8.89

$4.78 $4.78

-65.27%

Potato (1kg)

$1.14 R$6.09

$3.75 $3.75

-69.60%

Onion (1kg)

$0.99 R$5.32

$3.90 $3.90

-74.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.65 R$3.46

$3.42 $3.42

-80.99%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.60 R$3.20

$1.67 $1.67

-64.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.79 R$14.94

$11.76 $11.76

-76.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.48 R$39.99

$15.41 $15.41

-51.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 R$5.83

$2.99 $2.99

-63.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 R$12.48

$4.05 $4.05

-42.47%

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

$2.55 $2.55

-54.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 R$4.17

$1.53 $1.53

-49.02%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.37 R$44.75

$42.67 $42.67

-80.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 R$6.48

$1.19 $1.19

1.68%

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

$21.5K R$114.8K

$34.9K $34.9K

-38.57%

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

$31.1K R$166.5K

$28.2K $28.2K

10.55%

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

$124 R$665

$323 $323

-61.46%

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

$10.03 R$53.7

$69.2 $69.2

-85.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.88 R$112

$69.1 $69.1

-69.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.35 R$152

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.33 R$157

Cinema Ticket

$7.62 R$40.72

$10.45 $10.45

-27.08%

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

$563 R$3,010

$835 $835

-32.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.0K R$64.4K

$12.4K $12.4K

-3.00%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$39.25 R$210

$55.2 $55.2

-28.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.36 R$248

$60.2 $60.2

-22.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.4 R$366

$110 $110

-37.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$63.4 R$339

$112 $112

-43.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$776 R$4,150

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

6.55

82.14%

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 San Lorenzo: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rio de Janeiro

$473 40%

San Lorenzo

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Rio de Janeiro

$201 17%

San Lorenzo

$415 32.8% 107% $214

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio de Janeiro

$155 13.1%

San Lorenzo

$461 36.5% 197% $306

Eating Out

Rio de Janeiro

$150 12.7%

San Lorenzo

$205 16.2% 36.8% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Rio de Janeiro

$98 8.3%

San Lorenzo

$152 12% 55.2% $54

Getting Around

Rio de Janeiro

$62 5.2%

San Lorenzo

$10 * 0.8% 83.4% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Rio de Janeiro

$44 3.7%

San Lorenzo

$21 * 1.7% 52.1% $23

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $37 in Rio de Janeiro vs $83 in San Lorenzo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $201 vs $415 per month, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🇵🇷 San Lorenzo

🕒 Local time

13:05 1:05 PM

12:05 12:05 PM

1 h behind Rio de Janeiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,211,223

9,373

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.187 USD

1 BRL = 0.168 EUR

1 USD = 0.899 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 5.35 BRL (1 BRL = 0.187 USD). 1 EUR = 5.95 BRL (1 BRL = 0.168 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.899 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Rio de Janeiro San Lorenzo 5,200 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio de Janeiro
San Lorenzo

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 San Lorenzo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rio de Janeiro and San Lorenzo differ by about 7% in total monthly costs ($1,182 vs $1,264 including rent). Rio de Janeiro 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 $1,897 in San Lorenzo 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.

Childcare runs $563 in Rio de Janeiro versus $835 in San Lorenzo. 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 $83 in San Lorenzo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Rio de Janeiro gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.