Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and Sao Carlos Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and Sao Carlos

😐 Solo nomad: Rio de Janeiro is 0.4% more expensive than Sao Carlos without rent, and 18.8% more expensive with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Rio de Janeiro is 0.2% cheaper than Sao Carlos without rent, and 6.8% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.31 R$38.38

$4.39 R$23.06

66.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$36.07 R$189

$32.64 R$171

10.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.33 R$33.25

$6.80 R$35.72

-6.91%

Cappuccino

$1.90 R$9.98

$1.74 R$9.16

9.20%

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

$1.33 R$6.99

$1.16 R$6.09

14.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.85 R$4.45

$0.68 R$3.56

25.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.77 R$9.29

$1.45 R$7.63

22.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.74 R$14.38

$3.03 R$15.89

-9.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 R$6.05

$1.09 R$5.74

5.50%

White Bread (500g)

$1.72 R$9.05

$1.50 R$7.90

14.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 R$7.74

$2.68 R$14.06

-45.15%

Eggs

$2.03 R$10.66

$2.32 R$12.19

-12.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.85 R$41.21

$9.25 R$48.57

-15.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.50 R$18.36

$4.31 R$22.61

-18.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.31 R$43.64

$7.84 R$41.17

5.99%

Apples (1kg)

$2.40 R$12.61

$2.38 R$12.48

0.84%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 R$8.15

$1.49 R$7.80

4.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.50 R$7.85

$1.49 R$7.80

0.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.54 R$8.10

$1.99 R$10.43

-22.61%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 R$6.49

$1.58 R$8.28

-21.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 R$5.81

$1.24 R$6.49

-10.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.69 R$3.63

$0.88 R$4.62

-21.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.57 R$3.00

$0.76 R$3.99

-25.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.96 R$10.27

$2.13 R$11.18

-7.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.55 R$39.64

$8.15 R$42.76

-7.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 R$6.45

$1.30 R$6.83

-5.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 R$10.83

$2.55 R$13.41

-19.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.29 R$6.79

$0.87 R$4.59

48.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$38.76 R$204

$21.81 R$115

77.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.12 R$5.89

$1.39 R$7.28

-19.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.70 R$3.69

$0.91 R$4.76

-23.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.47 R$39.22

$3.34 R$17.51

123.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.12 R$5.89

$1.00 R$5.28

12.00%

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

$20.4K R$107.2K

$29.5K R$155.0K

-30.88%

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

$27.3K R$143.1K

$29.9K R$156.9K

-8.78%

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

$105 R$550

$72.5 R$380

44.49%

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

$12.03 R$63.2

$14.82 R$77.8

-18.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.56 R$97.4

$18.51 R$97.2

0.27%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.24 R$138

$20.72 R$109

26.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.71 R$124

$38.88 R$204

-39.02%

Cinema Ticket

$6.47 R$33.96

$4.31 R$22.62

50.12%

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

$542 R$2,844

$313 R$1,645

72.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.7K R$61.3K

$2,730 R$14.3K

327.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.73 R$235

$45.87 R$241

-2.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.51 R$223

$37.24 R$195

14.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.9 R$399

$101 R$529

-24.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$62.1 R$326

$89.1 R$468

-30.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$430 R$2,256

$222 R$1,167

93.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$328 R$1,721

$221 R$1,162

48.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$853 R$4,479

$431 R$2,261

98.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$585 R$3,069

$478 R$2,512

22.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,775 R$14.6K

$709 R$3,722

291.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,274 R$6,691

$867 R$4,552

46.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$506 R$2,657

$649 R$3,409

-22.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.33

10.67

6.19%

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

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: March 1, 2026

Last update for Sao Carlos: February 28, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Similar cities

Bansko

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

Denpasar, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

Amed, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

Kyiv

🇺🇦 Ukraine

Baku

🇦🇿 Azerbaijan

Bogota

🇨🇴 Colombia

Tashkent

🇺🇿 Uzbekistan

Batumi, Ajara

🇬🇪 Georgia