Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Saint John, New Brunswick and Rio de Janeiro

For one person, living is cheaper in Rio de Janeiro: $1,185 a month against $1,977 in Saint John, New Brunswick, rent and utilities included – about $9,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

95

Cost of Living Index in Saint John, New Brunswick
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Saint John, New Brunswick Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
Learn more

Rio de Janeiro Living Index

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Saint John, New Brunswick

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,977

/mo nomad

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,185

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Saint John, New Brunswick and in Rio de Janeiro

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Saint John, New Brunswick and in Rio de Janeiro actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,977 in Saint John, New Brunswick versus $1,185 in Rio de Janeiro.

Saint John, New Brunswick $1,977
Rio de Janeiro $1,185

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,872 in Saint John, New Brunswick versus $1,737 in Rio de Janeiro.

Saint John, New Brunswick $2,872
Rio de Janeiro $1,737

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,767 in Saint John, New Brunswick versus $2,289 in Rio de Janeiro.

Saint John, New Brunswick $3,767
Rio de Janeiro $2,289

Living in Saint John, New Brunswick is roughly 67% more expensive than in Rio de Janeiro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Saint John, New Brunswick is 46% above, Rio de Janeiro is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.03 CA$26.77

$8.16 R$44.89

133.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.8 CA$85.5

$37.20 R$205

63.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.65 CA$14.98

$7.52 R$41.40

41.62%

Cappuccino

$3.05 CA$4.29

$2.10 R$11.58

45.24%

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

$1.73 CA$2.44

$1.36 R$7.49

27.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.12 CA$1.58

$0.96 R$5.29

16.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.55 CA$6.40

$1.98 R$10.88

129.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.13 CA$7.21

$3.26 R$17.94

57.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.53 CA$3.55

$1.09 R$5.97

132.11%

White Bread (500g)

$2.72 CA$3.82

$1.87 R$10.27

45.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.16 CA$4.45

$1.12 R$6.19

182.14%

Eggs

$3.63 CA$5.11

$2.20 R$12.12

65.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.41 CA$18.86

$9.91 R$54.6

35.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.16 CA$12.88

$4.11 R$22.62

122.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.97 CA$18.24

$9.25 R$50.9

40.22%

Apples (1kg)

$4.92 CA$6.92

$2.59 R$14.26

89.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 CA$2.20

$1.69 R$9.28

-7.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.13 CA$5.81

$1.47 R$8.08

180.95%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.12 CA$5.80

$1.72 R$9.45

139.53%

Potato (1kg)

$2.01 CA$2.83

$1.16 R$6.36

73.28%

Onion (1kg)

$2.14 CA$3.01

$1.00 R$5.50

114.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.60 CA$3.66

$0.66 R$3.61

293.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 CA$1.95

$0.61 R$3.35

127.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.19 CA$19.95

$2.69 R$14.81

427.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.19 CA$14.33

$7.20 R$39.64

41.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 CA$2.45

$1.07 R$5.90

62.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.16 CA$3.04

$2.24 R$12.32

-3.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.18 CA$3.07

$0.88 R$4.82

147.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$58.2 CA$81.9

$52.3 R$288

11.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.82 CA$3.97

$1.18 R$6.49

138.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.20 CA$1.69

$0.68 R$3.72

76.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.49 CA$30.23

$8.71 R$47.94

146.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.23 CA$1.73

$1.20 R$6.59

2.50%

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

$26.6K CA$37.3K

$21.9K R$120.4K

21.40%

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

$21.6K CA$30.3K

$31.0K R$170.7K

-30.47%

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

$122 CA$171

$126 R$691

-2.98%

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

$41.38 CA$58.2

$10.14 R$55.8

308.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$65.7 CA$92.4

$20.95 R$115

213.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.77 CA$51.7

$28.51 R$157

28.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$36.38 CA$51.2

$28.87 R$159

26.01%

Cinema Ticket

$12.49 CA$17.57

$7.40 R$40.75

68.78%

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

$386 CA$543

$537 R$2,955

-28.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K CA$15.9K

$15.9K R$87.4K

-29.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.43 CA$69.5

$38.68 R$213

27.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.24 CA$51.0

$45.06 R$248

-19.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 CA$143

$68.6 R$378

48.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 CA$150

$64.1 R$353

66.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,053 CA$1,481

$768 R$4,225

37.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$867 CA$1,219

$491 R$2,701

76.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,514 CA$2,129

$1,458 R$8,026

3.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,236 CA$1,738

$743 R$4,088

66.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,290 CA$3,220

$3,325 R$18.3K

-31.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,746 CA$2,455

$1,552 R$8,542

12.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,608 CA$3,668

$674 R$3,708

287.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.69

11.93

-60.69%

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

Last update for Saint John, New Brunswick: November 1, 2026

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Saint John, New Brunswick

$867 43.8%

Rio de Janeiro

$491 41.4% 43.4% $376

Groceries & Markets

Saint John, New Brunswick

$346 17.5%

Rio de Janeiro

$198 16.7% 42.8% $148

Eating Out

Saint John, New Brunswick

$265 13.4%

Rio de Janeiro

$139 11.7% 47.7% $127

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Saint John, New Brunswick

$229 11.6%

Rio de Janeiro

$157 13.2% 31.5% $72

Clothing & Footwear

Saint John, New Brunswick

$132 6.7%

Rio de Janeiro

$97 8.2% 26.5% $35

Getting Around

Saint John, New Brunswick

$76 3.8%

Rio de Janeiro

$60 5.1% 20.3% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Saint John, New Brunswick

$62 3.1%

Rio de Janeiro

$43 3.7% 29.9% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,053 in Saint John, New Brunswick and $768 in Rio de Janeiro. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Saint John, New Brunswick pays about 3.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $61 in Saint John, New Brunswick vs $37 in Rio de Janeiro for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $346 vs $198 per month, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Saint John, New Brunswick

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🕒 Local time

19:03 7:03 PM

20:03 8:03 PM

1 h ahead of Saint John, New Brunswick

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

70,063

6,211,223

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.711 USD

1 CAD = 0.636 EUR

1 BRL = 0.182 USD

1 BRL = 0.163 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.711 USD). 1 EUR = 1.57 CAD (1 CAD = 0.636 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 5.5 BRL (1 BRL = 0.182 USD). 1 EUR = 6.15 BRL (1 BRL = 0.163 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Saint John, New Brunswick Rio de Janeiro 7,930 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Saint John, New Brunswick
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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

Saint John, New Brunswick vs Rio de Janeiro: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,977 in Saint John, New Brunswick and $1,185 in Rio de Janeiro, so Rio de Janeiro is about 40% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Saint John, New Brunswick is about 3.9 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: $1,053 in Saint John, New Brunswick versus $768 in Rio de Janeiro. 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 $61 in Saint John, New Brunswick. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,977 per month in Saint John, New Brunswick versus $1,185 in Rio de Janeiro – Rio de Janeiro is about 40% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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 40% less than in Saint John, New Brunswick. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.