Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas: $745 a month against $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro, rent and utilities included – about $6,500 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
32

Cost of Living Index in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas
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Santa Lucía Milpas Altas Living Index

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Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,289

/mo nomad

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

🇬🇹 Guatemala

$745

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Rio de Janeiro and in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

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 Santa Lucía Milpas Altas actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro versus $745 in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas.

Rio de Janeiro $1,289
Santa Lucía Milpas Altas $745

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,868 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,244 in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas.

Rio de Janeiro $1,868
Santa Lucía Milpas Altas $1,244

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,448 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,742 in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas.

Rio de Janeiro $2,448
Santa Lucía Milpas Altas $1,742

Living in Rio de Janeiro is roughly 73% more expensive than in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Rio de Janeiro 5% lower, Santa Lucía Milpas Altas 45% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.06 R$51.0

$6.87 Q 52.6

46.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.44 R$205

$49.85 Q 381

-18.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 R$43.35

$8.01 Q 61.3

6.74%

Cappuccino

$2.38 R$12.04

$3.42 Q 26.11

-30.41%

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

$1.61 R$8.18

$1.11 Q 8.45

45.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R$5.22

$0.96 Q 7.38

7.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.47 R$12.54

$3.23 Q 24.68

-23.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.70 R$18.77

$4.63 Q 35.41

-20.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 R$6.05

$2.01 Q 15.40

-40.80%

White Bread (500g)

$2.05 R$10.38

$3.09 Q 23.61

-33.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.28 R$6.49

$2.01 Q 15.39

-36.32%

Eggs

$2.29 R$11.60

$2.58 Q 19.72

-11.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.76 R$54.5

$6.49 Q 49.62

65.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.41 R$22.36

$9.20 Q 70.3

-52.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.84 R$49.86

$13.01 Q 99.5

-24.37%

Apples (1kg)

$2.81 R$14.25

$3.98 Q 30.40

-29.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.78 R$9.03

$1.72 Q 13.13

3.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 R$8.13

$2.78 Q 21.23

-42.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 R$9.11

$1.65 Q 12.63

9.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.22 R$6.17

$1.47 Q 11.23

-17.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.04 R$5.26

$2.18 Q 16.69

-52.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.77 R$3.92

$0.73 Q 5.59

5.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 R$3.38

$1.16 Q 8.84

-42.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.01 R$15.27

$4.10 Q 31.31

-26.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.08 R$40.94

$8.29 Q 63.4

-2.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 R$6.03

$1.81 Q 13.84

-34.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.51 R$12.73

$2.68 Q 20.48

-6.34%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.99 R$5.00

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.1 R$254

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.22 R$6.20

$5.19 Q 39.68

-76.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 R$4.66

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.97 R$45.45

$10.41 Q 79.6

-13.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 R$6.57

$1.34 Q 10.27

-2.99%

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

$23.9K R$121.0K

$26.9K Q 206.0K

-11.38%

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

$32.9K R$166.6K

$25.2K Q 192.4K

30.56%

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

$133 R$676

$72.3 Q 553

84.46%

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

$10.82 R$54.8

$28.68 Q 219

-62.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.90 R$116

$45.93 Q 351

-50.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.79 R$156

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.85 R$161

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 R$40.83

$6.30 Q 48.15

27.78%

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

$598 R$3,029

$344 Q 2,631

73.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.4K R$68.0K

$6,648 Q 50.8K

101.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.04 R$213

$50.3 Q 385

-16.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.68 R$252

$46.72 Q 357

6.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.5 R$378

$118 Q 900

-36.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.7 R$348

$112 Q 857

-38.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$903 R$4,578

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$529 R$2,684

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,326 R$6,724

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$756 R$3,831

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,010 R$20.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,560 R$7,910

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$640 R$3,242

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

11.62

2.67%

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

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 10, 2026

Last update for Santa Lucía Milpas Altas: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rio de Janeiro

$529 41.1%

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7%

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

$280 37.6% 30.5% $65

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio de Janeiro

$167 13%

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

$147 19.7% 12.1% $20

Eating Out

Rio de Janeiro

$165 12.8%

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

$154 20.6% 6.8% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2%

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

$147 19.7% 39.1% $41

Getting Around

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7%

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

$5.2 * 0.7% 91.3% $55

Sport & Entertainment

Rio de Janeiro

$47 3.6%

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

$13 * 1.7% 73.1% $34

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro vs $50.0 in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $215 vs $280 per month, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🇬🇹 Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

🕒 Local time

08:38 8:38 AM

05:38 5:38 AM

3 h behind Rio de Janeiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,211,223

12,234

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Guatemalan Quetzal GTQ Q

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

1 GTQ = 0.131 USD

1 GTQ = 0.116 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GTQ, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

Guatemalan Quetzal exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 7.65 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.131 USD). 1 EUR = 8.6 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.116 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Rio de Janeiro Santa Lucía Milpas Altas 6,640 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio de Janeiro
Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

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 Santa Lucía Milpas Altas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rio de Janeiro and Santa Lucía Milpas Altas differ by about 73% in total monthly costs ($1,289 vs $745 including rent). Santa Lucía Milpas Altas is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,933 in Rio de Janeiro and $1,118 in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas 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 $598 in Rio de Janeiro versus $344 in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas – a meal for two runs $50.0 versus $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $745 in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas versus $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas but tight or insufficient in Rio de Janeiro. The gap between the two cities makes Santa Lucía Milpas Altas 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 Santa Lucía Milpas Altas 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 Santa Lucía Milpas Altas gentler on the wallet – expenses run 73% less than in Rio de Janeiro. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.