Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Pedro Sula and Rio de Janeiro

For one person, living is cheaper in San Pedro Sula: $1,214 a month against $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro, rent and utilities included – about $850 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Rio de Janeiro outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

59

Cost of Living Index in San Pedro Sula
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San Pedro Sula 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 Pedro Sula

🇭🇳 Honduras

$1,214

/mo nomad

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,285

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,214 in San Pedro Sula versus $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro.

San Pedro Sula $1,214
Rio de Janeiro $1,285

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,834 in San Pedro Sula versus $1,888 in Rio de Janeiro.

San Pedro Sula $1,834
Rio de Janeiro $1,888

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,453 in San Pedro Sula versus $2,491 in Rio de Janeiro.

San Pedro Sula $2,453
Rio de Janeiro $2,491

Living in San Pedro Sula costs roughly 6% less than in Rio de Janeiro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: San Pedro Sula 9% lower, Rio de Janeiro 4% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.47 HNL 201

$9.98 R$49.83

-25.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$33.65 HNL 904

$40.34 R$201

-16.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.48 HNL 255

$8.48 R$42.35

11.79%

Cappuccino

$2.37 HNL 63.6

$2.36 R$11.80

0.42%

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

$1.02 HNL 27.42

$1.63 R$8.13

-37.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 HNL 22.16

$1.01 R$5.06

-17.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.85 HNL 49.68

$2.44 R$12.19

-24.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.56 HNL 95.5

$3.69 R$18.43

-3.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.52 HNL 40.86

$1.15 R$5.72

32.17%

White Bread (500g)

$1.96 HNL 52.6

$2.07 R$10.34

-5.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 HNL 41.28

$1.29 R$6.42

19.38%

Eggs

$2.43 HNL 65.3

$2.27 R$11.32

7.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.63 HNL 232

$11.00 R$54.9

-21.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.73 HNL 181

$4.31 R$21.51

56.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.34 HNL 251

$9.74 R$48.63

-4.11%

Apples (1kg)

$3.52 HNL 94.5

$2.83 R$14.12

24.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.21 HNL 32.45

$1.84 R$9.17

-34.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.30 HNL 88.8

$1.60 R$7.96

106.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.64 HNL 44.12

$1.80 R$9.00

-8.89%

Potato (1kg)

$2.43 HNL 65.2

$1.26 R$6.28

92.86%

Onion (1kg)

$2.32 HNL 62.3

$1.07 R$5.34

116.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.43 HNL 38.29

$0.75 R$3.75

90.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 HNL 43.20

$0.66 R$3.29

143.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.92 HNL 78.4

$3.05 R$15.21

-4.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.14 HNL 353

$8.18 R$40.84

60.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.79 HNL 21.19

$1.19 R$5.92

-33.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.34 HNL 36.06

$2.39 R$11.92

-43.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.63 HNL 17.00

$1.01 R$5.06

-37.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$35.83 HNL 962

$50.2 R$250

-28.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.83 HNL 76.1

$1.27 R$6.33

122.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.88 HNL 50.4

$0.90 R$4.51

108.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.29 HNL 303

$9.44 R$47.13

19.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.01 HNL 27.05

$1.33 R$6.65

-24.06%

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

$22.8K HNL 613.4K

$23.4K R$117.0K

-2.53%

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

$25.3K HNL 678.9K

$33.6K R$167.6K

-24.72%

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

$130 HNL 3,497

$134 R$666

-2.47%

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

$11.37 HNL 305

$12.23 R$61.0

-7.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.66 HNL 1,173

$22.65 R$113

92.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.58 HNL 1,009

$31.56 R$158

19.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.86 HNL 372

$30.87 R$154

-55.10%

Cinema Ticket

$5.59 HNL 150

$8.23 R$41.07

-32.08%

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

$146 HNL 3,932

$603 R$3,011

-75.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,243 HNL 87.1K

$13.2K R$66.1K

-75.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$75.5 HNL 2,029

$41.62 R$208

81.48%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.70 HNL 1,066

$49.94 R$249

-20.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.7 HNL 2,139

$75.0 R$375

6.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$76.2 HNL 2,045

$68.3 R$341

11.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$560 HNL 15.0K

$905 R$4,519

-38.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$422 HNL 11.3K

$527 R$2,633

-20.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$814 HNL 21.9K

$1,346 R$6,720

-39.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 HNL 19.1K

$774 R$3,865

-8.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,017 HNL 27.3K

$3,981 R$19.9K

-74.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$436 HNL 11.7K

$1,562 R$7,798

-72.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$604 HNL 16.2K

$643 R$3,210

-6.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.33

11.93

3.35%

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

Last update for San Pedro Sula: October 6, 2026

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Pedro Sula

$422 34.5%

Rio de Janeiro

$527 41% 25.1% $106

Groceries & Markets

San Pedro Sula

$254 20.8%

Rio de Janeiro

$215 16.7% 15.6% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Pedro Sula

$185 15.2%

Rio de Janeiro

$168 13.1% 9.1% $17

Eating Out

San Pedro Sula

$140 11.5%

Rio de Janeiro

$164 12.7% 16.8% $24

Clothing & Footwear

San Pedro Sula

$122 10%

Rio de Janeiro

$106 8.2% 13.3% $16

Getting Around

San Pedro Sula

$51 4.1%

Rio de Janeiro

$60 4.7% 18.6% $9.4

Sport & Entertainment

San Pedro Sula

$49 4%

Rio de Janeiro

$48 3.7% 1.5% $0.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $560 in San Pedro Sula and $905 in Rio de Janeiro. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Rio de Janeiro pays 6% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $34.00 in San Pedro Sula vs $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro. Groceries flip the comparison at $254 vs $215, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇭🇳 San Pedro Sula

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🕒 Local time

01:51 1:51 AM

04:51 4:51 AM

3 h ahead of San Pedro Sula

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

719,064

6,211,223

💱 Currency

Honduran Lempira HNL L

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 HNL = 3.72 USD

100 HNL = 3.32 EUR

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to HNL – Honduran Lempira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇳 Honduran Lempira (L)

Honduran Lempira exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 26.86 HNL (100 HNL = 3.72 USD). 1 EUR = 30.12 HNL (100 HNL = 3.32 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.99 BRL (1 BRL = 0.2 USD). 1 EUR = 5.6 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 EUR).

USD to HNL in detail →

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Between locations

San Pedro Sula Rio de Janeiro 6,480 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

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

San Pedro Sula and Rio de Janeiro differ by about 6% in total monthly costs ($1,214 vs $1,285 including rent). San Pedro Sula is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 6% lower in Rio de Janeiro. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $560 in San Pedro Sula versus $905 in Rio de Janeiro. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in San Pedro Sula – a meal for two runs $34.00 versus $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,214 per month in San Pedro Sula versus $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro – a 6% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,214 in San Pedro Sula versus $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro, a $2,000 budget is realistic in San Pedro Sula but tight or insufficient in Rio de Janeiro. The gap between the two cities makes San Pedro Sula 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 San Pedro Sula gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Rio de Janeiro. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.