Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Juan and Rio de Janeiro

For one person, living is cheaper in Rio de Janeiro: $1,289 a month against $1,684 in San Juan, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

84

Cost of Living Index in San Juan
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San Juan Living Index
63

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

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San Juan

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,684

/mo nomad

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,289

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in San Juan 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 San Juan and in Rio de Janeiro actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,684 in San Juan versus $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro.

San Juan $1,684
Rio de Janeiro $1,289

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,772 in San Juan versus $1,868 in Rio de Janeiro.

San Juan $2,772
Rio de Janeiro $1,868

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,861 in San Juan versus $2,448 in Rio de Janeiro.

San Juan $3,861
Rio de Janeiro $2,448

Living in San Juan is roughly 31% more expensive than in Rio de Janeiro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: San Juan is 25% above, Rio de Janeiro is 5% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.36 ₡5,541

$10.06 R$51.0

22.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 ₡27.5K

$40.44 R$205

51.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.46 ₡5,139

$8.55 R$43.35

34.04%

Cappuccino

$4.42 ₡1,982

$2.38 R$12.04

85.71%

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

$2.77 ₡1,240

$1.61 R$8.18

72.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 ₡870

$1.03 R$5.22

88.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.31 ₡1,483

$2.47 R$12.54

34.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.45 ₡1,996

$3.70 R$18.77

20.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.34 ₡1,052

$1.19 R$6.05

96.64%

White Bread (500g)

$3.18 ₡1,425

$2.05 R$10.38

55.12%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$1.28 R$6.49

96.09%

Eggs

$3.46 ₡1,551

$2.29 R$11.60

51.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.66 ₡4,782

$10.76 R$54.5

-0.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.33 ₡4,633

$4.41 R$22.36

134.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.90 ₡6,233

$9.84 R$49.86

41.26%

Apples (1kg)

$4.97 ₡2,230

$2.81 R$14.25

76.87%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 ₡714

$1.78 R$9.03

-10.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.64 ₡2,079

$1.60 R$8.13

190.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.95 ₡1,771

$1.80 R$9.11

119.44%

Potato (1kg)

$3.86 ₡1,731

$1.22 R$6.17

216.39%

Onion (1kg)

$3.75 ₡1,684

$1.04 R$5.26

260.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ₡479

$0.77 R$3.92

38.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.08 ₡1,379

$0.67 R$3.38

359.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.00 ₡2,691

$3.01 R$15.27

99.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.72 ₡8,844

$8.08 R$40.94

144.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.76 ₡1,236

$1.19 R$6.03

131.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 ₡1,654

$2.51 R$12.73

47.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.37 ₡614

$0.99 R$5.00

38.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.1 R$254

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.41 ₡1,079

$1.22 R$6.20

97.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.54 ₡693

$0.92 R$4.66

67.39%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.58 ₡3,849

$8.97 R$45.45

-4.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 ₡695

$1.30 R$6.57

19.23%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$23.9K R$121.0K

-9.39%

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

$34.9K ₡15.6M

$32.9K R$166.6K

6.09%

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

$96.4 ₡43.2K

$133 R$676

-27.76%

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

$35.06 ₡15.7K

$10.82 R$54.8

224.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$59.3 ₡26.6K

$22.90 R$116

159.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.9 ₡30.0K

$30.79 R$156

117.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.85 R$161

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ₡3,362

$8.05 R$40.83

-6.83%

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

$1,001 ₡449.1K

$598 R$3,029

67.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K ₡7.6M

$13.4K R$68.0K

25.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.9 ₡31.8K

$42.04 R$213

68.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.3 ₡24.8K

$49.68 R$252

11.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$126 ₡56.6K

$74.5 R$378

69.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 ₡60.2K

$68.7 R$348

95.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$717 ₡321.3K

$903 R$4,578

-20.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$593 ₡266.1K

$529 R$2,684

12.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,850 ₡829.6K

$1,326 R$6,724

39.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,386 ₡621.4K

$756 R$3,831

83.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,010 R$20.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,560 R$7,910

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$640 R$3,242

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

11.93

-27.75%

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

Last update for San Juan: October 13, 2026

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Juan

$593 35.2%

Rio de Janeiro

$529 41.1% 10.8% $64

Groceries & Markets

San Juan

$398 23.6%

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7% 46.1% $183

Eating Out

San Juan

$231 13.7%

Rio de Janeiro

$165 12.8% 28.4% $66

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Juan

$191 11.3%

Rio de Janeiro

$167 13% 12.4% $24

Clothing & Footwear

San Juan

$174 10.3%

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2% 39.2% $68

Sport & Entertainment

San Juan

$82 4.9%

Rio de Janeiro

$47 3.6% 42.7% $35

Getting Around

San Juan

$16 * 0.9%

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7% 284% $44

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 $717 in San Juan and $903 in Rio de Janeiro. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61.0 in San Juan vs $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $398 vs $215 per month, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 San Juan

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🕒 Local time

07:24 7:24 AM

10:24 10:24 AM

3 h ahead of San Juan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

27,000

6,211,223

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

San Juan Rio de Janeiro 5,760 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

San Juan
Rio de Janeiro

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

San Juan vs Rio de Janeiro: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Juan and Rio de Janeiro differ by about 31% in total monthly costs ($1,684 vs $1,289 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 $2,526 in San Juan and $1,933 in Rio de Janeiro 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: $717 in San Juan versus $903 in Rio de Janeiro. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,001 in San Juan versus $598 in Rio de Janeiro. 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 $61.0 in San Juan. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,289 in Rio de Janeiro versus $1,684 in San Juan, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Rio de Janeiro but tight or insufficient in San Juan. 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.

Safety-wise, San Juan and Rio de Janeiro are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Rio de Janeiro gentler on the wallet – expenses run 31% less than in San Juan. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.