Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Maria and Rio de Janeiro

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Maria: $732 a month against $1,182 in Rio de Janeiro, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Santa Maria
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Santa Maria Living Index
57

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

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Santa Maria

🇧🇷 Brazil

$732

/mo nomad

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,182

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $732 in Santa Maria versus $1,182 in Rio de Janeiro.

Santa Maria $732
Rio de Janeiro $1,182

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,224 in Santa Maria versus $1,750 in Rio de Janeiro.

Santa Maria $1,224
Rio de Janeiro $1,750

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,715 in Santa Maria versus $2,318 in Rio de Janeiro.

Santa Maria $1,715
Rio de Janeiro $2,318

Living in Santa Maria costs roughly 38% less than in Rio de Janeiro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Santa Maria 46% lower, Rio de Janeiro 13% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.61 R$30.54

$9.08 R$49.39

-38.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$33.42 R$182

$37.25 R$203

-10.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.46 R$35.14

$8.02 R$43.62

-19.45%

Cappuccino

$1.70 R$9.26

$2.19 R$11.91

-22.37%

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

$1.03 R$5.60

$1.46 R$7.96

-29.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 R$3.35

$0.99 R$5.37

-37.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.51 R$8.20

$2.03 R$11.03

-25.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.26 R$23.16

$3.45 R$18.75

23.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.02 R$5.53

$1.06 R$5.76

-3.77%

White Bread (500g)

$1.48 R$8.03

$1.98 R$10.79

-25.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 R$7.72

$1.17 R$6.38

21.37%

Eggs

$1.74 R$9.49

$2.21 R$12.01

-21.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.55 R$46.50

$10.11 R$55.0

-15.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.71 R$20.17

$4.12 R$22.39

-9.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.82 R$42.52

$9.17 R$49.89

-14.72%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 R$12.31

$2.72 R$14.79

-16.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 R$7.51

$1.71 R$9.31

-19.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.01 R$10.95

$1.53 R$8.32

31.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.37 R$7.48

$1.66 R$9.04

-17.47%

Potato (1kg)

$1.13 R$6.15

$1.14 R$6.19

-0.88%

Onion (1kg)

$1.28 R$6.98

$0.99 R$5.41

29.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 R$4.73

$0.65 R$3.52

33.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 R$4.46

$0.60 R$3.26

36.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.20 R$11.98

$2.79 R$15.20

-21.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.58 R$41.23

$7.48 R$40.69

1.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 R$6.57

$1.09 R$5.93

11.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 R$14.99

$2.33 R$12.69

18.03%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.22 R$6.65

$0.90 R$4.87

35.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$42.50 R$231

$53.0 R$288

-19.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.18 R$6.41

$1.17 R$6.35

0.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 R$4.28

$0.78 R$4.24

1.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.72 R$41.98

$8.37 R$45.53

-7.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.17 R$6.36

$1.21 R$6.60

-3.31%

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

$22.9K R$124.7K

$21.5K R$116.8K

6.82%

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

$30.0K R$163.5K

$31.1K R$169.4K

-3.48%

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

$51.1 R$278

$124 R$677

-58.93%

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

$15.89 R$86.4

$10.03 R$54.6

58.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.02 R$92.6

$20.88 R$114

-18.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$22.47 R$122

$28.35 R$154

-20.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.14 R$60.6

$29.33 R$160

-62.02%

Cinema Ticket

$5.46 R$29.70

$7.62 R$41.43

-28.35%

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

$147 R$799

$563 R$3,062

-73.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,764 R$15.0K

$12.0K R$65.5K

-77.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.1 R$321

$39.25 R$213

50.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.62 R$226

$46.36 R$252

-10.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.8 R$505

$68.4 R$372

35.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.1 R$327

$63.4 R$345

-5.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$282 R$1,533

$776 R$4,222

-63.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$155 R$844

$473 R$2,574

-67.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$608 R$3,305

$1,391 R$7,566

-56.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$370 R$2,013

$739 R$4,020

-49.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,633 R$8,882

$3,393 R$18.5K

-51.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$677 R$3,685

$1,570 R$8,541

-56.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$591 R$3,213

$597 R$3,247

-1.05%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

-16.18%

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

Last update for Santa Maria: October 27, 2026

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Santa Maria

$186 25.4%

Rio de Janeiro

$201 17% 8.2% $15

Accommodation & Living

Santa Maria

$155 21.2%

Rio de Janeiro

$473 40% 205% $318

Clothing & Footwear

Santa Maria

$114 15.6%

Rio de Janeiro

$98 8.3% 14.2% $16

Eating Out

Santa Maria

$107 14.7%

Rio de Janeiro

$150 12.7% 39.5% $42

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santa Maria

$84 11.5%

Rio de Janeiro

$155 13.1% 84.9% $71

Getting Around

Santa Maria

$53 7.2%

Rio de Janeiro

$62 5.2% 17.4% $9.1

Sport & Entertainment

Santa Maria

$33 4.6%

Rio de Janeiro

$44 3.7% 30.5% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $282 in Santa Maria and $776 in Rio de Janeiro. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $33 in Santa Maria vs $37 in Rio de Janeiro for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $186 vs $201 per month, with Santa Maria cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Santa Maria

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🕒 Local time

21:11 9:11 PM

Same time as Santa Maria

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

271,735

6,211,223

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.184 USD

1 BRL = 0.165 EUR

1 BRL = 0.184 USD

1 BRL = 0.165 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Santa Maria Rio de Janeiro 1,300 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Santa Maria
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

Santa Maria vs Rio de Janeiro: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $732 in Santa Maria and $1,182 in Rio de Janeiro, so Santa Maria is about 38% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,098 in Santa Maria and $1,774 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: $282 in Santa Maria versus $776 in Rio de Janeiro. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Santa Maria – a meal for two runs $33 versus $37 in Rio de Janeiro. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $732 per month in Santa Maria versus $1,182 in Rio de Janeiro – Santa Maria is about 38% 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 Santa Maria gentler on the wallet – expenses run 38% less than in Rio de Janeiro. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.