Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and Simpson Bay

For one person, living is cheaper in Rio de Janeiro: $1,285 a month against $3,851 in Simpson Bay, rent and utilities included – about $30,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

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

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Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,285

/mo nomad

Simpson Bay

🇸🇽 Sint Maarten

$3,851

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Rio de Janeiro and in Simpson Bay

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro versus $3,851 in Simpson Bay.

Rio de Janeiro $1,285
Simpson Bay $3,851

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,888 in Rio de Janeiro versus $6,504 in Simpson Bay.

Rio de Janeiro $1,888
Simpson Bay $6,504

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,491 in Rio de Janeiro versus $9,157 in Simpson Bay.

Rio de Janeiro $2,491
Simpson Bay $9,157

Living in Rio de Janeiro costs roughly 67% less than in Simpson Bay, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Rio de Janeiro is 4% below, Simpson Bay is 187% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.98 R$49.83

$19.11 ANG 34.22

-47.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.34 R$201

$131 ANG 234

-69.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.48 R$42.35

$12.78 ANG 22.88

-33.65%

Cappuccino

$2.36 R$11.80

$4.44 ANG 7.96

-46.85%

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

$1.63 R$8.13

$2.91 ANG 5.22

-43.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.01 R$5.06

$3.04 ANG 5.44

-66.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.44 R$12.19

$5.43 ANG 9.73

-55.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R$18.43

$4.11 ANG 7.36

-10.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 R$5.72

$4.03 ANG 7.21

-71.46%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 R$10.34

$2.81 ANG 5.02

-26.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.29 R$6.42

$3.09 ANG 5.53

-58.25%

Eggs

$2.27 R$11.32

$4.49 ANG 8.04

-49.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.00 R$54.9

$24.93 ANG 44.63

-55.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.31 R$21.51

$13.40 ANG 23.98

-67.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.74 R$48.63

$16.98 ANG 30.39

-42.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.83 R$14.12

$4.26 ANG 7.63

-33.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.84 R$9.17

$3.55 ANG 6.35

-48.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 R$7.96

$6.32 ANG 11.31

-74.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 R$9.00

$5.06 ANG 9.05

-64.43%

Potato (1kg)

$1.26 R$6.28

$3.96 ANG 7.08

-68.18%

Onion (1kg)

$1.07 R$5.34

$3.44 ANG 6.16

-68.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.75 R$3.75

$3.06 ANG 5.47

-75.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 R$3.29

$1.47 ANG 2.64

-55.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.05 R$15.21

Wine (Bottle)

$8.18 R$40.84

$15.22 ANG 27.24

-46.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 R$5.92

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.39 R$11.92

$1.79 ANG 3.20

33.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.01 R$5.06

$3.08 ANG 5.51

-67.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.2 R$250

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 R$6.33

$15.22 ANG 27.24

-91.66%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R$4.51

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.44 R$47.13

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 R$6.65

$1.27 ANG 2.27

4.72%

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

$23.4K R$117.0K

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

$33.6K R$167.6K

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

$134 R$666

$502 ANG 899

-73.40%

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

$12.23 R$61.0

$35.56 ANG 63.7

-65.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.65 R$113

$87.6 ANG 157

-74.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.56 R$158

$74.8 ANG 134

-57.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.87 R$154

Cinema Ticket

$8.23 R$41.07

$8.18 ANG 14.65

0.61%

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

$603 R$3,011

$761 ANG 1,362

-20.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.2K R$66.1K

$12.0K ANG 21.6K

9.89%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$41.62 R$208

$50.6 ANG 90.6

-17.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.94 R$249

$39.59 ANG 70.9

26.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.0 R$375

$99.5 ANG 178

-24.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.3 R$341

$59.5 ANG 106

14.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$905 R$4,519

$2,330 ANG 4,171

-61.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$527 R$2,633

$2,273 ANG 4,069

-76.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,346 R$6,720

$6,007 ANG 10.8K

-77.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$774 R$3,865

$5,604 ANG 10.0K

-86.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,981 R$19.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,562 R$7,798

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$643 R$3,210

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

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 Simpson Bay: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rio de Janeiro

$527 41%

Simpson Bay

–

Groceries & Markets

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7%

Simpson Bay

–

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio de Janeiro

$168 13.1%

Simpson Bay

–

Eating Out

Rio de Janeiro

$164 12.7%

Simpson Bay

–

Clothing & Footwear

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2%

Simpson Bay

–

Getting Around

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7%

Simpson Bay

–

Sport & Entertainment

Rio de Janeiro

$48 3.7%

Simpson Bay

–

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $905 in Rio de Janeiro and $2,330 in Simpson Bay. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro vs $131 in Simpson Bay for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $215 vs $467 per month, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🇸🇽 Simpson Bay

🕒 Local time

11:44 11:44 AM

10:44 10:44 AM

1 h behind Rio de Janeiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,211,223

6,000

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Netherlands Antillean Guilder ANG ƒ

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

1 ANG = 0.559 USD

1 ANG = 0.499 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ANG, 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).

Netherlands Antillean Guilder exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.79 ANG (1 ANG = 0.559 USD). 1 EUR = 2.01 ANG (1 ANG = 0.499 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Rio de Janeiro Simpson Bay 5,040 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio de Janeiro
Simpson Bay

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 Simpson Bay: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rio de Janeiro and Simpson Bay differ by about 200% in total monthly costs ($1,285 vs $3,851 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 $1,927 in Rio de Janeiro and $5,776 in Simpson Bay 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $905 in Rio de Janeiro versus $2,330 in Simpson Bay. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $603 in Rio de Janeiro versus $761 in Simpson Bay. 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 $40.00 versus $131 in Simpson Bay. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro versus $3,851 in Simpson Bay, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Rio de Janeiro but tight or insufficient in Simpson Bay. 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 200% less than in Simpson Bay. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.