Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and Tampico

For one person, living costs are similar in Rio de Janeiro and in Tampico: $1,285 and $1,347 a month, rent and utilities included.

63

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
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Rio de Janeiro Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Tampico
Learn more

Tampico Living Index

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Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,285

/mo nomad

Tampico

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,347

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Rio de Janeiro and in Tampico

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,347 in Tampico.

Rio de Janeiro $1,285
Tampico $1,347

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,888 in Rio de Janeiro versus $2,120 in Tampico.

Rio de Janeiro $1,888
Tampico $2,120

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,491 in Rio de Janeiro versus $2,894 in Tampico.

Rio de Janeiro $2,491
Tampico $2,894

Living in Rio de Janeiro costs roughly 5% less than in Tampico, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Rio de Janeiro is 4% below, Tampico is 1% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.98 R$49.83

$8.12 MX$149

22.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.34 R$201

$55.1 MX$1,012

-26.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.48 R$42.35

$9.60 MX$176

-11.67%

Cappuccino

$2.36 R$11.80

$3.11 MX$57.0

-24.12%

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

$1.63 R$8.13

$1.22 MX$22.33

33.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.01 R$5.06

$0.80 MX$14.64

26.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.44 R$12.19

$4.48 MX$82.2

-45.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R$18.43

$4.77 MX$87.5

-22.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 R$5.72

$1.44 MX$26.45

-20.14%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 R$10.34

$4.20 MX$77.1

-50.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.29 R$6.42

$1.36 MX$25.06

-5.15%

Eggs

$2.27 R$11.32

$4.20 MX$77.1

-45.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.00 R$54.9

$4.84 MX$89.0

127.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.31 R$21.51

$10.29 MX$189

-58.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.74 R$48.63

$13.41 MX$246

-27.37%

Apples (1kg)

$2.83 R$14.12

$3.50 MX$64.2

-19.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.84 R$9.17

$1.18 MX$21.66

55.93%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 R$7.96

$2.07 MX$38.05

-22.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 R$9.00

$2.28 MX$41.78

-21.05%

Potato (1kg)

$1.26 R$6.28

$2.19 MX$40.13

-42.47%

Onion (1kg)

$1.07 R$5.34

$2.79 MX$51.2

-61.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.75 R$3.75

$2.09 MX$38.29

-64.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 R$3.29

$0.95 MX$17.45

-30.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.05 R$15.21

$4.79 MX$88.0

-36.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.18 R$40.84

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 R$5.92

$1.56 MX$28.71

-23.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.39 R$11.92

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.01 R$5.06

$0.78 MX$14.38

29.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.2 R$250

$27.28 MX$501

83.83%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 R$6.33

$2.84 MX$52.1

-55.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R$4.51

$2.71 MX$49.82

-66.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.44 R$47.13

$5.24 MX$96.2

80.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 R$6.65

$1.42 MX$26.05

-6.34%

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

$23.4K R$117.0K

$33.1K MX$608.2K

-29.27%

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

$33.6K R$167.6K

$23.7K MX$436.0K

41.38%

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

$134 R$666

$106 MX$1,940

26.34%

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

$12.23 R$61.0

$28.01 MX$514

-56.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.65 R$113

$24.40 MX$448

-7.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.56 R$158

$43.32 MX$795

-27.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.87 R$154

$16.83 MX$309

83.42%

Cinema Ticket

$8.23 R$41.07

$5.58 MX$102

47.49%

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

$603 R$3,011

$282 MX$5,179

113.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.2K R$66.1K

$8,172 MX$150.0K

62.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$41.62 R$208

$74.7 MX$1,371

-44.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.94 R$249

$66.9 MX$1,228

-25.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.0 R$375

$164 MX$3,016

-54.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.3 R$341

$253 MX$4,642

-72.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$905 R$4,519

$531 MX$9,755

70.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$527 R$2,633

$385 MX$7,066

37.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,346 R$6,720

$946 MX$17.4K

42.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$774 R$3,865

$678 MX$12.5K

14.15%

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

$571 MX$10.5K

12.62%

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 Tampico: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rio de Janeiro

$527 41%

Tampico

$385 28.8% 27% $143

Groceries & Markets

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7%

Tampico

$269 * 20.1% 25.2% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio de Janeiro

$168 13.1%

Tampico

$158 11.8% 6.1% $10

Eating Out

Rio de Janeiro

$164 12.7%

Tampico

$171 12.8% 4.4% $7.2

Clothing & Footwear

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2%

Tampico

$251 18.8% 138% $146

Getting Around

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7%

Tampico

$47 3.5% 22% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Rio de Janeiro

$48 3.7%

Tampico

$54 4.1% 13.4% $6.4

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $905 in Rio de Janeiro and $531 in Tampico. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Rio de Janeiro pays 13% 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 $55.0 in Tampico for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $215 vs $269 per month, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🇲🇽 Tampico

🕒 Local time

10:04 10:04 AM

07:04 7:04 AM

3 h behind Rio de Janeiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,211,223

297,562

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, 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).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.57 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Rio de Janeiro Tampico 7,760 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio de Janeiro
Tampico

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 Tampico: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rio de Janeiro and Tampico differ by about 5% in total monthly costs ($1,285 vs $1,347 including rent). Rio de Janeiro is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 13% 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 $531 in Tampico. 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 $55.0 in Tampico. 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 $1,347 in Tampico – a 5% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,347 in Tampico, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Rio de Janeiro but tight or insufficient in Tampico. 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 5% less than in Tampico. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.