Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and San Salvador

For one person, living is cheaper in Rio de Janeiro: $1,285 a month against $1,666 in San Salvador, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 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
80

Cost of Living Index in San Salvador
Learn more

San Salvador Living Index

Jump to prices

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,285

/mo nomad

San Salvador

🇸🇻 El Salvador

$1,666

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,666 in San Salvador.

Rio de Janeiro $1,285
San Salvador $1,666

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,888 in Rio de Janeiro versus $2,465 in San Salvador.

Rio de Janeiro $1,888
San Salvador $2,465

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,491 in Rio de Janeiro versus $3,263 in San Salvador.

Rio de Janeiro $2,491
San Salvador $3,263

Living in Rio de Janeiro costs roughly 23% less than in San Salvador, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Rio de Janeiro is 4% below, San Salvador is 24% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.98 R$49.83

$6.72 $6.72

48.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.34 R$201

$45.39 $45.39

-11.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.48 R$42.35

$7.07 $7.07

19.94%

Cappuccino

$2.36 R$11.80

$3.53 $3.53

-33.14%

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

$1.63 R$8.13

$1.13 $1.13

44.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.01 R$5.06

$0.85 $0.85

18.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.44 R$12.19

$2.04 $2.04

19.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R$18.43

$3.51 $3.51

5.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 R$5.72

$1.87 $1.87

-38.50%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 R$10.34

$2.89 $2.89

-28.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.29 R$6.42

$1.40 $1.40

-7.86%

Eggs

$2.27 R$11.32

$3.09 $3.09

-26.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.00 R$54.9

$7.88 $7.88

39.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.31 R$21.51

$6.93 $6.93

-37.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.74 R$48.63

$10.05 $10.05

-3.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.83 R$14.12

$5.08 $5.08

-44.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.84 R$9.17

$1.39 $1.39

32.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 R$7.96

$2.53 $2.53

-36.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 R$9.00

$3.40 $3.40

-47.06%

Potato (1kg)

$1.26 R$6.28

$2.87 $2.87

-56.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.07 R$5.34

$3.28 $3.28

-67.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.75 R$3.75

$0.97 $0.97

-22.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 R$3.29

$0.97 $0.97

-31.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.05 R$15.21

$4.07 $4.07

-25.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.18 R$40.84

$12.21 $12.21

-33.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 R$5.92

$2.19 $2.19

-45.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.39 R$11.92

$2.86 $2.86

-16.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.01 R$5.06

$0.34 $0.34

197.06%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.2 R$250

$37.66 $37.66

33.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 R$6.33

$6.04 $6.04

-78.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R$4.51

$3.03 $3.03

-70.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.44 R$47.13

$20.11 $20.11

-53.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 R$6.65

$1.29 $1.29

3.10%

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

$23.4K R$117.0K

$24.8K $24.8K

-5.34%

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

$33.6K R$167.6K

$27.0K $27.0K

24.48%

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

$134 R$666

$130 $130

2.32%

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

$12.23 R$61.0

$21.57 $21.57

-43.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.65 R$113

$43.03 $43.03

-47.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.56 R$158

$31.99 $31.99

-1.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.87 R$154

$21.57 $21.57

43.12%

Cinema Ticket

$8.23 R$41.07

$5.06 $5.06

62.65%

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

$603 R$3,011

$165 $165

265.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.2K R$66.1K

$4,640 $4,640

185.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$41.62 R$208

$68.2 $68.2

-38.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.94 R$249

$46.79 $46.79

6.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.0 R$375

$120 $120

-37.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.3 R$341

$117 $117

-41.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$905 R$4,519

$906 $906

-0.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$527 R$2,633

$755 $755

-30.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,346 R$6,720

$1,804 $1,804

-25.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$774 R$3,865

$1,343 $1,343

-42.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,981 R$19.9K

$2,813 $2,813

41.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,562 R$7,798

$1,845 $1,845

-15.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$643 R$3,210

$372 $372

72.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

8.5

40.35%

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 Salvador: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rio de Janeiro

$527 41%

San Salvador

$755 46.1% 43.2% $228

Groceries & Markets

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7%

San Salvador

$287 17.5% 33.6% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio de Janeiro

$168 13.1%

San Salvador

$195 11.9% 15.8% $27

Eating Out

Rio de Janeiro

$164 12.7%

San Salvador

$142 8.7% 13.1% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2%

San Salvador

$158 9.7% 49.7% $53

Getting Around

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7%

San Salvador

$60 3.7% 0.4% $0.2

Sport & Entertainment

Rio de Janeiro

$48 3.7%

San Salvador

$42 2.6% 12.3% $5.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $905 in Rio de Janeiro and $906 in San Salvador. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Rio de Janeiro pays 73% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro vs $45.00 in San Salvador for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $215 vs $287 per month, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🇸🇻 San Salvador

🕒 Local time

06:54 6:54 AM

03:54 3:54 AM

3 h behind Rio de Janeiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,211,223

316,090 Capital

💱 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 San Salvador 6,450 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio de Janeiro
San Salvador

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 Salvador: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rio de Janeiro and San Salvador differ by about 30% in total monthly costs ($1,285 vs $1,666 including rent). Rio de Janeiro is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 73% 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 $906 in San Salvador. 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 $45.00 in San Salvador. 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 $1,666 in San Salvador – a 30% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,666 in San Salvador, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Rio de Janeiro but tight or insufficient in San Salvador. 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 30% less than in San Salvador. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.