Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sao Paulo and Bonao

For one person, living is cheaper in Bonao: $686 a month against $1,235 in Sao Paulo, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Sao Paulo
Learn more

Sao Paulo Living Index
33

Cost of Living Index in Bonao
Learn more

Bonao Living Index

Jump to prices

Sao Paulo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,235

/mo nomad

Bonao

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

$686

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sao Paulo and in Bonao

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,235 in Sao Paulo versus $686 in Bonao.

Sao Paulo $1,235
Bonao $686

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,073 in Sao Paulo versus $1,131 in Bonao.

Sao Paulo $2,073
Bonao $1,131

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,911 in Sao Paulo versus $1,575 in Bonao.

Sao Paulo $2,911
Bonao $1,575

Living in Sao Paulo is roughly 80% more expensive than in Bonao, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Sao Paulo 9% lower, Bonao 49% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.81 R$44.68

$9.71 DOP 595

-9.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.37 R$250

$49.73 DOP 3,047

-0.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.80 R$44.63

$7.65 DOP 468

15.03%

Cappuccino

$2.49 R$12.63

$2.00 DOP 123

24.50%

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

$1.42 R$7.19

$1.05 DOP 64.6

35.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.85 R$4.31

$0.60 DOP 36.58

41.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.98 R$15.11

$2.44 DOP 149

22.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.34 R$22.02

$3.14 DOP 192

38.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 R$6.28

$1.03 DOP 63.3

20.39%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 R$9.66

$1.04 DOP 63.6

83.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 R$7.25

$0.66 DOP 40.65

116.67%

Eggs

$2.81 R$14.23

$1.21 DOP 74.1

132.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.74 R$64.6

$5.01 DOP 307

154.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.41 R$27.44

$5.61 DOP 344

-3.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.64 R$54.0

$6.51 DOP 399

63.44%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 R$13.95

$2.36 DOP 145

16.53%

Banana (1kg)

$1.81 R$9.19

$0.63 DOP 38.55

187.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 R$8.27

$2.69 DOP 165

-39.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.00 R$10.16

$1.37 DOP 83.8

45.99%

Potato (1kg)

$1.40 R$7.10

$1.97 DOP 121

-28.93%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 R$6.43

$1.57 DOP 95.9

-19.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 R$6.47

$1.00 DOP 61.0

28.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 R$4.83

$0.51 DOP 31.40

86.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.99 R$15.15

$5.24 DOP 321

-42.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.96 R$50.5

$7.14 DOP 437

39.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 R$9.37

$2.18 DOP 133

-15.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 R$12.90

$2.91 DOP 178

-12.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.09 R$5.50

$0.58 DOP 35.60

87.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.78 R$247

$34.07 DOP 2,087

43.18%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.85 R$9.39

$3.12 DOP 191

-40.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 R$4.99

$2.17 DOP 133

-54.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.29 R$52.2

$2.41 DOP 147

326.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 R$6.78

$1.40 DOP 85.5

-4.29%

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

$24.4K R$123.8K

$22.8K DOP 1.4M

7.01%

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

$33.9K R$172.1K

$34.1K DOP 2.1M

-0.48%

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

$104 R$529

$92.9 DOP 5,691

12.43%

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

$16.71 R$84.7

$31.91 DOP 1,955

-47.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.18 R$112

$35.96 DOP 2,203

-38.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.82 R$182

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$47.28 R$240

Cinema Ticket

$10.06 R$51.0

$7.33 DOP 449

37.24%

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

$579 R$2,936

$248 DOP 15.2K

133.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K R$86.6K

$7,364 DOP 451.1K

131.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$65.7 R$333

$45.46 DOP 2,785

44.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.0 R$309

$46.18 DOP 2,829

32.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 R$509

$86.4 DOP 5,291

16.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.1 R$467

$126 DOP 7,698

-26.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$659 R$3,341

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$428 R$2,170

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,515 R$7,678

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,026 R$5,201

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,773 R$14.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,007 R$10.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$909 R$4,609

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.68

13.56

-13.86%

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

Last update for Sao Paulo: October 13, 2026

Last update for Bonao: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sao Paulo

$428 34.7%

Bonao

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Sao Paulo

$244 19.8%

Bonao

$174 25.4% 28.7% $70

Eating Out

Sao Paulo

$159 12.9%

Bonao

$150 21.8% 6.1% $9.7

Clothing & Footwear

Sao Paulo

$144 11.6%

Bonao

$137 19.9% 4.9% $7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sao Paulo

$143 11.6%

Bonao

$161 23.4% 12.2% $17

Getting Around

Sao Paulo

$60 4.9%

Bonao

$50 7.3% 15.9% $9.5

Sport & Entertainment

Sao Paulo

$56 4.5%

Bonao

$15 * 2.1% 73.8% $41

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $49.00 in Sao Paulo vs $50.0 in Bonao. Groceries flip the comparison at $244 vs $174, with Bonao cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Sao Paulo

🇩🇴 Bonao

🕒 Local time

12:01 12:01 PM

11:01 11:01 AM

1 h behind Sao Paulo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,451,999

158,034

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Dominican Peso DOP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

100 DOP = 1.63 USD

100 DOP = 1.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

DOP, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

Dominican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 61.26 DOP (100 DOP = 1.63 USD). 1 EUR = 68.87 DOP (100 DOP = 1.45 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Sao Paulo Bonao 5,380 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Sao Paulo
Bonao

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

Sao Paulo vs Bonao: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sao Paulo and Bonao differ by about 80% in total monthly costs ($1,235 vs $686 including rent). Bonao is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,852 in Sao Paulo and $1,029 in Bonao 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.

A monthly transit pass in Bonao runs roughly 43% less than in Sao Paulo. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $579 in Sao Paulo versus $248 in Bonao. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $686 in Bonao versus $1,235 in Sao Paulo, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bonao but tight or insufficient in Sao Paulo. The gap between the two cities makes Bonao 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 Bonao gentler on the wallet – expenses run 80% less than in Sao Paulo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.