Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sao Paulo and La Romana

For one person, living is cheaper in La Romana: $631 a month against $1,235 in Sao Paulo, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Sao Paulo
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Sao Paulo Living Index
41

Cost of Living Index in La Romana
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La Romana Living Index

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Sao Paulo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,235

/mo nomad

La Romana

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

$631

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sao Paulo and in La Romana

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 La Romana actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,235 per month in Sao Paulo vs $631 in La Romana, rent included.

Sao Paulo $1,235
La Romana $631

A couple spends around $2,073 per month in Sao Paulo vs $1,014 in La Romana, rent included.

Sao Paulo $2,073
La Romana $1,014

A family of three spends $2,911 per month in Sao Paulo vs $1,398 in La Romana, rent included.

Sao Paulo $2,911
La Romana $1,398

Sao Paulo costs about 96% more than La Romana, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Sao Paulo and La Romana are more affordable than the global median – Sao Paulo 9% lower, La Romana 53% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.81 R$44.68

$8.43 DOP 516

4.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.37 R$250

$40.80 DOP 2,499

21.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.80 R$44.63

$7.16 DOP 439

22.91%

Cappuccino

$2.49 R$12.63

$1.75 DOP 107

42.29%

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

$1.42 R$7.19

$0.71 DOP 43.32

100.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.85 R$4.31

$0.32 DOP 19.33

165.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.98 R$15.11

$2.43 DOP 149

22.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.34 R$22.02

$3.97 DOP 244

9.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 R$6.28

$1.05 DOP 64.1

18.10%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 R$9.66

$1.80 DOP 110

6.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 R$7.25

$1.51 DOP 92.3

-5.30%

Eggs

$2.81 R$14.23

$1.48 DOP 91.0

89.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.74 R$64.6

$6.28 DOP 384

102.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.41 R$27.44

$3.53 DOP 216

53.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.64 R$54.0

$4.62 DOP 283

130.30%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 R$13.95

$3.61 DOP 221

-23.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.81 R$9.19

$1.38 DOP 84.3

31.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 R$8.27

$3.23 DOP 198

-49.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.00 R$10.16

$2.13 DOP 131

-6.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.40 R$7.10

$3.58 DOP 220

-60.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 R$6.43

$2.87 DOP 176

-55.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 R$6.47

$0.88 DOP 53.9

45.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 R$4.83

$1.60 DOP 98.2

-40.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.99 R$15.15

$4.66 DOP 285

-35.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.96 R$50.5

$16.45 DOP 1,007

-39.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 R$9.37

$3.00 DOP 184

-38.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 R$12.90

$3.48 DOP 213

-27.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.09 R$5.50

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.78 R$247

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.85 R$9.39

$2.49 DOP 153

-25.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 R$4.99

$3.23 DOP 198

-69.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.29 R$52.2

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 R$6.78

$1.39 DOP 85.1

-3.60%

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

$24.4K R$123.8K

$15.1K DOP 922.4K

62.13%

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

$33.9K R$172.1K

$25.5K DOP 1.6M

33.20%

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

$104 R$529

$95.3 DOP 5,837

9.62%

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

$16.71 R$84.7

$9.68 DOP 593

72.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.18 R$112

$39.12 DOP 2,397

-43.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.82 R$182

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$47.28 R$240

Cinema Ticket

$10.06 R$51.0

$4.97 DOP 305

102.41%

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

$579 R$2,936

$146 DOP 8,946

296.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K R$86.6K

$5,480 DOP 335.7K

211.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$65.7 R$333

$26.84 DOP 1,644

144.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.0 R$309

$45.24 DOP 2,772

34.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 R$509

$60.6 DOP 3,713

65.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.1 R$467

$67.0 DOP 4,104

37.45%

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

6.18%

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

Last update for Sao Paulo: October 13, 2026

Last update for La Romana: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sao Paulo

$428 34.7%

La Romana

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Sao Paulo

$244 19.8%

La Romana

$235 37.2% 3.9% $9.5

Eating Out

Sao Paulo

$159 12.9%

La Romana

$134 21.2% 16% $25

Clothing & Footwear

Sao Paulo

$144 11.6%

La Romana

$90 14.2% 37.4% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sao Paulo

$143 11.6%

La Romana

$144 22.8% 0.5% $0.8

Getting Around

Sao Paulo

$60 4.9%

La Romana

$19 * 3% 68.9% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Sao Paulo

$56 4.5%

La Romana

$9.9 * 1.6% 82.2% $46

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $49.00 in Sao Paulo versus $41.00 in La Romana. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $244 vs $235 – making La Romana the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Sao Paulo

🇩🇴 La Romana

🕒 Local time

09:25 9:25 AM

08:25 8:25 AM

1 h behind Sao Paulo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,451,999

567,431

💱 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

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Between locations

Sao Paulo La Romana 5,260 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Sao Paulo
La Romana

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 La Romana: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Sao Paulo is pricier by about 96%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,852 per month in Sao Paulo and $947 in La Romana. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,235 in Sao Paulo and $631 in La Romana. That's a gap of about 96%.

Kindergarten costs $579 per month in Sao Paulo and $146 in La Romana. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in La Romana, where all-in costs run around $631, than in Sao Paulo at $1,235. In La Romana it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sao Paulo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward La Romana – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with La Romana. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Sao Paulo makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.