Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio de Janeiro and Yaounde

For one person, living is cheaper in Yaounde: $786 a month against $1,182 in Rio de Janeiro, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
Learn more

Rio de Janeiro Living Index
38

Cost of Living Index in Yaounde
Learn more

Yaounde Living Index

Jump to prices

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,182

/mo nomad

Yaounde

🇨🇲 Cameroon

$786

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,182 in Rio de Janeiro versus $786 in Yaounde.

Rio de Janeiro $1,182
Yaounde $786

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,750 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,209 in Yaounde.

Rio de Janeiro $1,750
Yaounde $1,209

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,318 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,632 in Yaounde.

Rio de Janeiro $2,318
Yaounde $1,632

Living in Rio de Janeiro is roughly 50% more expensive than in Yaounde, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Rio de Janeiro 13% lower, Yaounde 42% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.08 R$49.36

$3.31 FCFA 1,936

174.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.25 R$203

$50.2 FCFA 29.3K

-25.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.02 R$43.60

$5.15 FCFA 3,014

55.73%

Cappuccino

$2.19 R$11.90

$1.95 FCFA 1,139

12.31%

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

$1.46 R$7.95

$1.45 FCFA 849

0.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.99 R$5.36

$0.52 FCFA 304

90.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.03 R$11.02

$1.25 FCFA 734

62.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.45 R$18.75

$1.75 FCFA 1,024

97.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.06 R$5.76

$3.57 FCFA 2,090

-70.31%

White Bread (500g)

$1.98 R$10.79

$1.03 FCFA 602

92.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.17 R$6.38

$1.32 FCFA 773

-11.36%

Eggs

$2.21 R$12.00

$2.08 FCFA 1,215

6.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.11 R$55.0

$13.83 FCFA 8,088

-26.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.12 R$22.38

$5.84 FCFA 3,414

-29.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.17 R$49.87

$6.62 FCFA 3,869

38.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.72 R$14.78

$5.14 FCFA 3,008

-47.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 R$9.30

$1.93 FCFA 1,129

-11.40%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.53 R$8.32

$2.02 FCFA 1,184

-24.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 R$9.04

$1.36 FCFA 796

22.06%

Potato (1kg)

$1.14 R$6.19

$1.63 FCFA 956

-30.06%

Onion (1kg)

$0.99 R$5.41

$1.44 FCFA 844

-31.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.65 R$3.52

$1.12 FCFA 656

-41.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.60 R$3.25

$0.63 FCFA 368

-4.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.79 R$15.20

$1.68 FCFA 983

66.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.48 R$40.67

$8.58 FCFA 5,017

-12.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 R$5.93

$1.37 FCFA 804

-20.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 R$12.69

$1.87 FCFA 1,096

24.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.90 R$4.87

$0.52 FCFA 306

73.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.0 R$288

$17.01 FCFA 9,947

211.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.17 R$6.34

$0.62 FCFA 365

88.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 R$4.24

$0.42 FCFA 245

85.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.37 R$45.51

$5.81 FCFA 3,396

44.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 R$6.59

$1.47 FCFA 859

-17.69%

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

$21.5K R$116.7K

$32.8K FCFA 19.2M

-34.47%

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

$31.1K R$169.3K

$21.6K FCFA 12.7M

43.91%

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

$124 R$677

$79.8 FCFA 46.7K

55.93%

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

$10.03 R$54.6

$17.26 FCFA 10.1K

-41.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.88 R$114

$50.1 FCFA 29.3K

-58.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.35 R$154

$23.56 FCFA 13.8K

20.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.33 R$159

$6.91 FCFA 4,039

324.46%

Cinema Ticket

$7.62 R$41.41

$8.56 FCFA 5,007

-10.98%

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

$563 R$3,061

$609 FCFA 356.1K

-7.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.0K R$65.5K

$2,386 FCFA 1.4M

404.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$39.25 R$213

$16.94 FCFA 9,910

131.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.36 R$252

$27.32 FCFA 16.0K

69.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.4 R$372

$25.78 FCFA 15.1K

165.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$63.4 R$345

$55.5 FCFA 32.5K

14.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$776 R$4,220

$142 FCFA 82.8K

448.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$473 R$2,573

$187 FCFA 109.2K

153.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,391 R$7,562

$410 FCFA 239.8K

239.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$739 R$4,018

$212 FCFA 124.2K

248.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,393 R$18.4K

$852 FCFA 498.2K

298.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R$8,537

$594 FCFA 347.3K

164.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$597 R$3,245

$184 FCFA 107.5K

224.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

-8.23%

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

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 25, 2026

Last update for Yaounde: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rio de Janeiro

$473 40%

Yaounde

$187 23.8% 60.5% $286

Groceries & Markets

Rio de Janeiro

$201 17%

Yaounde

$250 31.8% 24.4% $49

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio de Janeiro

$155 13.1%

Yaounde

$147 18.7% 5.3% $8.2

Eating Out

Rio de Janeiro

$150 12.7%

Yaounde

$83 10.6% 44.6% $67

Clothing & Footwear

Rio de Janeiro

$98 8.3%

Yaounde

$57 7.2% 42.2% $41

Getting Around

Rio de Janeiro

$62 5.2%

Yaounde

$22 2.8% 64.6% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Rio de Janeiro

$44 3.7%

Yaounde

$41 5.2% 6.6% $2.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $776 in Rio de Janeiro and $142 in Yaounde. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Rio de Janeiro pays about 3.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $37 in Rio de Janeiro vs $50 in Yaounde for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $201 vs $250 per month, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🇨🇲 Yaounde

🕒 Local time

11:28 11:28 AM

15:28 3:28 PM

4 h ahead of Rio de Janeiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,211,223

1,817,524 Capital

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Central African CFA Franc XAF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.184 USD

1 BRL = 0.165 EUR

1,000 XAF = 1.71 USD

1,000 XAF = 1.53 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

XAF, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 5.44 BRL (1 BRL = 0.184 USD). 1 EUR = 6.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.165 EUR).

Central African CFA Franc exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 585 XAF (1,000 XAF = 1.71 USD). 1 EUR = 653 XAF (1,000 XAF = 1.53 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Rio de Janeiro Yaounde 6,640 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio de Janeiro
Yaounde

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 Yaounde: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,182 in Rio de Janeiro and $786 in Yaounde, so Yaounde is about 34% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Rio de Janeiro is about 3.2 times higher, 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: $776 in Rio de Janeiro versus $142 in Yaounde. 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 $37 versus $50 in Yaounde. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,182 per month in Rio de Janeiro versus $786 in Yaounde – Yaounde is about 34% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $786 in Yaounde versus $1,182 in Rio de Janeiro, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Yaounde but tight or insufficient in Rio de Janeiro. The gap between the two cities makes Yaounde 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.

It comes down to priorities – Yaounde wins on affordability, Rio de Janeiro on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.