Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sao Paulo and Cuautitlan Izcalli

For one person, living is cheaper in Cuautitlan Izcalli: $1,069 a month against $1,235 in Sao Paulo, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Sao Paulo
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Sao Paulo Living Index
52

Cost of Living Index in Cuautitlan Izcalli
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Cuautitlan Izcalli Living Index

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Sao Paulo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,235

/mo nomad

Cuautitlan Izcalli

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,069

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sao Paulo and in Cuautitlan Izcalli

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 Cuautitlan Izcalli actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,235 in Sao Paulo versus $1,069 in Cuautitlan Izcalli.

Sao Paulo $1,235
Cuautitlan Izcalli $1,069

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,073 in Sao Paulo versus $1,673 in Cuautitlan Izcalli.

Sao Paulo $2,073
Cuautitlan Izcalli $1,673

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,911 in Sao Paulo versus $2,276 in Cuautitlan Izcalli.

Sao Paulo $2,911
Cuautitlan Izcalli $2,276

Living in Sao Paulo is roughly 15% more expensive than in Cuautitlan Izcalli, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Sao Paulo 9% lower, Cuautitlan Izcalli 21% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.81 R$44.68

$10.87 MX$201

-18.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.37 R$250

$26.47 MX$489

86.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.80 R$44.63

$8.24 MX$152

6.80%

Cappuccino

$2.49 R$12.63

$3.38 MX$62.5

-26.33%

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

$1.42 R$7.19

$1.60 MX$29.49

-11.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.85 R$4.31

$1.30 MX$24.00

-34.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.98 R$15.11

$2.43 MX$44.82

22.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.34 R$22.02

$4.86 MX$89.9

-10.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 R$6.28

$1.66 MX$30.71

-25.30%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 R$9.66

$2.70 MX$49.86

-29.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 R$7.25

$1.34 MX$24.74

6.72%

Eggs

$2.81 R$14.23

$2.85 MX$52.6

-1.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.74 R$64.6

$2.71 MX$50.1

370.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.41 R$27.44

$5.27 MX$97.4

2.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.64 R$54.0

$7.29 MX$135

45.95%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 R$13.95

$2.50 MX$46.13

10.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.81 R$9.19

$1.57 MX$29.04

15.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 R$8.27

$1.39 MX$25.77

17.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.00 R$10.16

$2.23 MX$41.23

-10.31%

Potato (1kg)

$1.40 R$7.10

$1.95 MX$36.10

-28.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 R$6.43

$1.81 MX$33.47

-29.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 R$6.47

$1.52 MX$28.10

-15.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 R$4.83

$1.08 MX$19.92

-12.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.99 R$15.15

$4.14 MX$76.6

-27.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.96 R$50.5

$10.02 MX$185

-0.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 R$9.37

$1.64 MX$30.25

12.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 R$12.90

$4.42 MX$81.7

-42.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.09 R$5.50

$0.77 MX$14.19

41.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.78 R$247

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.85 R$9.39

$0.84 MX$15.47

120.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 R$4.99

$0.58 MX$10.63

70.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.29 R$52.2

$5.64 MX$104

82.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 R$6.78

$1.38 MX$25.44

-2.90%

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

$24.4K R$123.8K

$21.5K MX$397.5K

13.49%

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

$33.9K R$172.1K

$24.5K MX$453.4K

38.36%

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

$104 R$529

$62.1 MX$1,148

68.09%

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

$16.71 R$84.7

$28.21 MX$521

-40.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.18 R$112

$19.08 MX$353

16.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.82 R$182

$33.66 MX$622

6.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$47.28 R$240

$19.06 MX$352

148.06%

Cinema Ticket

$10.06 R$51.0

$4.44 MX$82.0

126.58%

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

$579 R$2,936

$430 MX$7,943

34.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K R$86.6K

$4,547 MX$84.0K

275.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$65.7 R$333

$54.6 MX$1,010

20.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.0 R$309

$26.84 MX$496

127.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 R$509

$108 MX$1,997

-7.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.1 R$467

$53.9 MX$996

70.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$659 R$3,341

$611 MX$11.3K

7.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$428 R$2,170

$395 MX$7,291

8.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,515 R$7,678

$1,055 MX$19.5K

43.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,026 R$5,201

$768 MX$14.2K

33.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,773 R$14.1K

$1,929 MX$35.7K

43.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,007 R$10.2K

$1,203 MX$22.2K

66.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$909 R$4,609

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.68

11.3

3.36%

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

Last update for Sao Paulo: October 13, 2026

Last update for Cuautitlan Izcalli: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sao Paulo

$428 34.7%

Cuautitlan Izcalli

$395 36.9% 7.8% $34

Groceries & Markets

Sao Paulo

$244 19.8%

Cuautitlan Izcalli

$221 20.7% 9.6% $23

Eating Out

Sao Paulo

$159 12.9%

Cuautitlan Izcalli

$186 17.4% 16.4% $26

Clothing & Footwear

Sao Paulo

$144 11.6%

Cuautitlan Izcalli

$110 10.2% 23.7% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sao Paulo

$143 11.6%

Cuautitlan Izcalli

$109 10.2% 23.7% $34

Getting Around

Sao Paulo

$60 4.9%

Cuautitlan Izcalli

$6.8 * 0.6% 88.7% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Sao Paulo

$56 4.5%

Cuautitlan Izcalli

$43 4% 24% $13

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 $659 in Sao Paulo and $611 in Cuautitlan Izcalli. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $49.00 in Sao Paulo vs $26.00 in Cuautitlan Izcalli for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $244 vs $221 per month, with Cuautitlan Izcalli cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Sao Paulo

🇲🇽 Cuautitlan Izcalli

🕒 Local time

06:33 6:33 AM

03:33 3:33 AM

3 h behind Sao Paulo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,451,999

484,573

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, 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).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Sao Paulo Cuautitlan Izcalli 7,450 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Sao Paulo
Cuautitlan Izcalli

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 Cuautitlan Izcalli: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cuautitlan Izcalli is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and transport. The 15% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,852 in Sao Paulo and $1,604 in Cuautitlan Izcalli 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: $659 in Sao Paulo versus $611 in Cuautitlan Izcalli. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $579 in Sao Paulo versus $430 in Cuautitlan Izcalli. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Cuautitlan Izcalli – a meal for two runs $26.00 versus $49.00 in Sao Paulo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,069 in Cuautitlan Izcalli versus $1,235 in Sao Paulo, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cuautitlan Izcalli but tight or insufficient in Sao Paulo. The gap between the two cities makes Cuautitlan Izcalli the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Cuautitlan Izcalli is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Sao Paulo, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Sao Paulo and Cuautitlan Izcalli 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 Cuautitlan Izcalli gentler on the wallet – expenses run 15% less than in Sao Paulo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.