Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and San Pedro Sula

For one person, living is cheaper in San Pedro Sula: $1,214 a month against $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro, rent and utilities included – about $850 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Rio de Janeiro outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

63

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
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Rio de Janeiro Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in San Pedro Sula
Learn more

San Pedro Sula Living Index

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Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,285

/mo nomad

San Pedro Sula

🇭🇳 Honduras

$1,214

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,214 in San Pedro Sula.

Rio de Janeiro $1,285
San Pedro Sula $1,214

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,888 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,834 in San Pedro Sula.

Rio de Janeiro $1,888
San Pedro Sula $1,834

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,491 in Rio de Janeiro versus $2,453 in San Pedro Sula.

Rio de Janeiro $2,491
San Pedro Sula $2,453

Living in Rio de Janeiro is roughly 6% more expensive than in San Pedro Sula, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Rio de Janeiro 4% lower, San Pedro Sula 9% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.98 R$49.83

$7.47 HNL 201

33.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.34 R$201

$33.65 HNL 904

19.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.48 R$42.35

$9.48 HNL 255

-10.55%

Cappuccino

$2.36 R$11.80

$2.37 HNL 63.6

-0.42%

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

$1.63 R$8.13

$1.02 HNL 27.42

59.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.01 R$5.06

$0.83 HNL 22.16

21.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.44 R$12.19

$1.85 HNL 49.68

31.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R$18.43

$3.56 HNL 95.5

3.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 R$5.72

$1.52 HNL 40.86

-24.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 R$10.34

$1.96 HNL 52.6

5.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.29 R$6.42

$1.54 HNL 41.28

-16.23%

Eggs

$2.27 R$11.32

$2.43 HNL 65.3

-6.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.00 R$54.9

$8.63 HNL 232

27.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.31 R$21.51

$6.73 HNL 181

-35.96%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.74 R$48.63

$9.34 HNL 251

4.28%

Apples (1kg)

$2.83 R$14.12

$3.52 HNL 94.5

-19.60%

Banana (1kg)

$1.84 R$9.17

$1.21 HNL 32.45

52.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 R$7.96

$3.30 HNL 88.8

-51.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 R$9.00

$1.64 HNL 44.12

9.76%

Potato (1kg)

$1.26 R$6.28

$2.43 HNL 65.2

-48.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.07 R$5.34

$2.32 HNL 62.3

-53.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.75 R$3.75

$1.43 HNL 38.29

-47.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 R$3.29

$1.61 HNL 43.20

-59.01%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.05 R$15.21

$2.92 HNL 78.4

4.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.18 R$40.84

$13.14 HNL 353

-37.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 R$5.92

$0.79 HNL 21.19

50.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.39 R$11.92

$1.34 HNL 36.06

78.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.01 R$5.06

$0.63 HNL 17.00

60.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.2 R$250

$35.83 HNL 962

39.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 R$6.33

$2.83 HNL 76.1

-55.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R$4.51

$1.88 HNL 50.4

-52.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.44 R$47.13

$11.29 HNL 303

-16.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 R$6.65

$1.01 HNL 27.05

31.68%

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

$23.4K R$117.0K

$22.8K HNL 613.4K

2.60%

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

$33.6K R$167.6K

$25.3K HNL 678.9K

32.84%

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

$134 R$666

$130 HNL 3,497

2.53%

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

$12.23 R$61.0

$11.37 HNL 305

7.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.65 R$113

$43.66 HNL 1,173

-48.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.56 R$158

$37.58 HNL 1,009

-16.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.87 R$154

$13.86 HNL 372

122.73%

Cinema Ticket

$8.23 R$41.07

$5.59 HNL 150

47.23%

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

$603 R$3,011

$146 HNL 3,932

311.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.2K R$66.1K

$3,243 HNL 87.1K

308.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$41.62 R$208

$75.5 HNL 2,029

-44.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.94 R$249

$39.70 HNL 1,066

25.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.0 R$375

$79.7 HNL 2,139

-5.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.3 R$341

$76.2 HNL 2,045

-10.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$905 R$4,519

$560 HNL 15.0K

61.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$527 R$2,633

$422 HNL 11.3K

25.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,346 R$6,720

$814 HNL 21.9K

65.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$774 R$3,865

$710 HNL 19.1K

8.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,981 R$19.9K

$1,017 HNL 27.3K

291.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,562 R$7,798

$436 HNL 11.7K

258.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$643 R$3,210

$604 HNL 16.2K

6.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

12.33

-3.24%

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 San Pedro Sula: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rio de Janeiro

$527 41%

San Pedro Sula

$422 34.5% 20.1% $106

Groceries & Markets

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7%

San Pedro Sula

$254 20.8% 18.5% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio de Janeiro

$168 13.1%

San Pedro Sula

$185 15.2% 10% $17

Eating Out

Rio de Janeiro

$164 12.7%

San Pedro Sula

$140 11.5% 14.4% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2%

San Pedro Sula

$122 10% 15.4% $16

Getting Around

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7%

San Pedro Sula

$51 4.1% 15.7% $9.4

Sport & Entertainment

Rio de Janeiro

$48 3.7%

San Pedro Sula

$49 4% 1.5% $0.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $905 in Rio de Janeiro and $560 in San Pedro Sula. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Rio de Janeiro pays 6% 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 $34.00 in San Pedro Sula. Groceries flip the comparison at $215 vs $254, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🇭🇳 San Pedro Sula

🕒 Local time

05:51 5:51 AM

02:51 2:51 AM

3 h behind Rio de Janeiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,211,223

719,064

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Honduran Lempira HNL L

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

100 HNL = 3.72 USD

100 HNL = 3.32 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HNL, 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 = 5.6 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 EUR).

Honduran Lempira exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 26.86 HNL (100 HNL = 3.72 USD). 1 EUR = 30.12 HNL (100 HNL = 3.32 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Rio de Janeiro San Pedro Sula 6,480 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio de Janeiro
San Pedro Sula

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 Pedro Sula: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rio de Janeiro and San Pedro Sula differ by about 6% in total monthly costs ($1,285 vs $1,214 including rent). San Pedro Sula is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 6% higher in Rio de Janeiro, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $905 in Rio de Janeiro versus $560 in San Pedro Sula. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in San Pedro Sula – a meal for two runs $34.00 versus $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro. 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 $1,214 in San Pedro Sula – a 6% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,214 in San Pedro Sula versus $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro, a $2,000 budget is realistic in San Pedro Sula but tight or insufficient in Rio de Janeiro. The gap between the two cities makes San Pedro Sula 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 San Pedro Sula gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Rio de Janeiro. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.