Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santos and Curitiba

For one person, living is cheaper in Curitiba: $1,055 a month against $1,150 in Santos, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Santos outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

55

Cost of Living Index in Santos
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Santos Living Index
51

Cost of Living Index in Curitiba
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Curitiba Living Index

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Santos

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,150

/mo nomad

Curitiba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,055

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Santos and in Curitiba

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Santos and in Curitiba actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,150 in Santos versus $1,055 in Curitiba.

Santos $1,150
Curitiba $1,055

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,736 in Santos versus $1,641 in Curitiba.

Santos $1,736
Curitiba $1,641

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,322 in Santos versus $2,228 in Curitiba.

Santos $2,322
Curitiba $2,228

Living in Santos is roughly 9% more expensive than in Curitiba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Santos 15% lower, Curitiba 22% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.12 R$41.18

$8.08 R$40.95

0.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.84 R$161

$39.04 R$198

-18.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.14 R$36.19

$8.72 R$44.21

-18.12%

Cappuccino

$2.75 R$13.96

$2.64 R$13.40

4.17%

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

$1.43 R$7.24

$1.13 R$5.74

26.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.92 R$4.68

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.52 R$12.76

$2.73 R$13.84

-7.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.92 R$14.79

$3.86 R$19.56

-24.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.09 R$5.50

$1.06 R$5.36

2.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.85 R$9.39

$1.82 R$9.24

1.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.36 R$6.91

$1.37 R$6.92

-0.73%

Eggs

$2.49 R$12.61

$2.54 R$12.87

-1.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.14 R$61.6

$10.07 R$51.1

20.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.86 R$24.63

$5.08 R$25.75

-4.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.91 R$50.2

$10.49 R$53.2

-5.53%

Apples (1kg)

$2.11 R$10.69

$1.72 R$8.70

22.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.23 R$6.23

$1.05 R$5.32

17.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.99 R$10.07

$1.03 R$5.20

93.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.85 R$9.37

$1.39 R$7.03

33.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.35 R$6.86

$0.80 R$4.04

68.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.29 R$6.56

$0.80 R$4.03

61.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.16 R$5.87

$0.81 R$4.09

43.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 R$4.80

$0.82 R$4.17

15.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.35 R$11.89

$2.94 R$14.88

-20.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.98 R$40.46

$7.12 R$36.10

12.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 R$6.76

$1.31 R$6.63

1.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 R$9.83

$2.54 R$12.89

-23.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 R$5.66

$1.17 R$5.91

-4.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$49.37 R$250

$71.0 R$360

-30.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.56 R$7.89

$1.26 R$6.40

23.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.61 R$8.16

$0.76 R$3.87

111.84%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.80 R$90.2

$5.96 R$30.23

198.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.24 R$6.31

$1.30 R$6.60

-4.62%

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

$23.7K R$120.3K

$23.3K R$118.0K

1.95%

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

$33.5K R$169.6K

$33.3K R$169.0K

0.35%

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

$104 R$529

$105 R$534

-1.09%

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

$11.95 R$60.6

$14.51 R$73.6

-17.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.90 R$111

$23.46 R$119

-6.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.96 R$147

$28.95 R$147

0.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$57.0 R$289

$20.08 R$102

183.96%

Cinema Ticket

$8.59 R$43.55

$7.78 R$39.45

10.41%

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

$280 R$1,418

$383 R$1,943

-27.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.2K R$52.0K

$10.9K R$55.4K

-6.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.5 R$281

$57.6 R$292

-3.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.69 R$186

$55.2 R$280

-33.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.7 R$485

$94.7 R$480

1.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.7 R$307

$80.8 R$410

-24.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$543 R$2,754

$515 R$2,612

5.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$424 R$2,148

$304 R$1,540

39.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$992 R$5,031

$851 R$4,316

16.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$686 R$3,478

$549 R$2,785

24.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,413 R$12.2K

$2,472 R$12.5K

-2.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,776 R$9,004

$1,745 R$8,847

1.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$584 R$2,958

$687 R$3,481

-15.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.79

11.54

10.83%

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

Last update for Santos: October 20, 2026

Last update for Curitiba: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santos

$424 36.9%

Curitiba

$304 28.8% 28.3% $120

Groceries & Markets

Santos

$219 19.1%

Curitiba

$200 19% 8.7% $19

Eating Out

Santos

$147 12.8%

Curitiba

$152 14.4% 3.3% $4.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santos

$138 12%

Curitiba

$143 13.6% 3.8% $5.3

Clothing & Footwear

Santos

$112 9.7%

Curitiba

$130 12.3% 16% $18

Getting Around

Santos

$63 5.5%

Curitiba

$81 7.7% 27.2% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Santos

$46 4%

Curitiba

$45 4.2% 3.5% $1.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $543 in Santos and $515 in Curitiba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Curitiba pays 18% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32.00 in Santos vs $39.00 in Curitiba. Groceries flip the comparison at $219 vs $200, with Curitiba cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Santos

🇧🇷 Curitiba

🕒 Local time

09:31 9:31 AM

Same time as Santos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

418,608

1,773,718

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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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

Santos vs Curitiba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Curitiba wins on cost – living expenses run 9% lower than in Santos. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Curitiba the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 18% lower in Curitiba. 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: $543 in Santos versus $515 in Curitiba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Curitiba runs roughly 44% less than in Santos. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $280 in Santos versus $383 in Curitiba. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,055 in Curitiba versus $1,150 in Santos, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Curitiba but tight or insufficient in Santos. The gap between the two cities makes Curitiba the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Curitiba delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,055 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Curitiba hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Curitiba gentler on the wallet – expenses run 9% less than in Santos. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.