Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sao Paulo and Manzanillo

For one person, living costs are similar in Sao Paulo and in Manzanillo: $1,235 and $1,230 a month, rent and utilities included.

60

Cost of Living Index in Sao Paulo
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Sao Paulo Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Manzanillo
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Manzanillo Living Index

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Sao Paulo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,235

/mo nomad

Manzanillo

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,230

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,235 in Sao Paulo versus $1,230 in Manzanillo.

Sao Paulo $1,235
Manzanillo $1,230

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,073 in Sao Paulo versus $2,152 in Manzanillo.

Sao Paulo $2,073
Manzanillo $2,152

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,911 in Sao Paulo versus $3,075 in Manzanillo.

Sao Paulo $2,911
Manzanillo $3,075

Monthly costs are close between Sao Paulo and Manzanillo; which city is cheaper depends on the spending category.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.81 R$44.68

$11.10 MX$205

-20.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.37 R$250

$32.44 MX$599

52.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.80 R$44.63

$10.83 MX$200

-18.74%

Cappuccino

$2.49 R$12.63

$3.58 MX$66.2

-30.45%

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

$1.42 R$7.19

$1.17 MX$21.59

21.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.85 R$4.31

$1.17 MX$21.54

-27.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.98 R$15.11

$2.16 MX$40.00

37.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.34 R$22.02

$4.39 MX$81.1

-1.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 R$6.28

$1.48 MX$27.40

-16.22%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 R$9.66

$2.60 MX$47.96

-26.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 R$7.25

$1.20 MX$22.26

19.17%

Eggs

$2.81 R$14.23

$2.09 MX$38.64

34.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.74 R$64.6

$8.28 MX$153

53.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.41 R$27.44

$5.41 MX$100

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.64 R$54.0

$9.93 MX$184

7.15%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 R$13.95

$2.93 MX$54.2

-6.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.81 R$9.19

$1.42 MX$26.31

27.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 R$8.27

$1.78 MX$32.89

-8.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.00 R$10.16

$1.52 MX$28.14

31.58%

Potato (1kg)

$1.40 R$7.10

$2.23 MX$41.12

-37.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 R$6.43

$1.69 MX$31.24

-24.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 R$6.47

$1.87 MX$34.57

-31.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 R$4.83

$1.20 MX$22.10

-20.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.99 R$15.15

$5.44 MX$100

-45.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.96 R$50.5

$6.62 MX$122

50.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 R$9.37

$1.83 MX$33.77

1.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 R$12.90

$2.52 MX$46.60

0.79%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.09 R$5.50

$0.75 MX$13.90

45.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.78 R$247

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.85 R$9.39

$2.41 MX$44.55

-23.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 R$4.99

$2.43 MX$44.84

-59.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.29 R$52.2

$9.40 MX$174

9.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 R$6.78

$1.36 MX$25.17

-1.47%

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

$24.4K R$123.8K

$20.9K MX$386.6K

16.68%

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

$33.9K R$172.1K

$24.4K MX$450.4K

39.26%

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

$104 R$529

$65.5 MX$1,211

59.42%

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

$16.71 R$84.7

$19.83 MX$367

-15.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.18 R$112

$29.37 MX$543

-24.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.82 R$182

$65.3 MX$1,206

-45.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$47.28 R$240

$33.01 MX$610

43.23%

Cinema Ticket

$10.06 R$51.0

$4.46 MX$82.4

125.56%

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

$579 R$2,936

$163 MX$3,016

254.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K R$86.6K

$7,172 MX$132.5K

138.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$65.7 R$333

$43.02 MX$795

52.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.0 R$309

$24.85 MX$459

145.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 R$509

$75.6 MX$1,397

32.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.1 R$467

$120 MX$2,213

-23.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$659 R$3,341

$684 MX$12.6K

-3.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$428 R$2,170

$479 MX$8,845

-10.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,515 R$7,678

$1,519 MX$28.1K

-0.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,026 R$5,201

$1,373 MX$25.4K

-25.29%

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

$409 MX$7,563

122.15%

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 Manzanillo: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sao Paulo

$428 34.7%

Manzanillo

$479 38.9% 11.8% $51

Groceries & Markets

Sao Paulo

$244 19.8%

Manzanillo

$233 18.9% 4.7% $11

Eating Out

Sao Paulo

$159 12.9%

Manzanillo

$193 15.7% 21.2% $34

Clothing & Footwear

Sao Paulo

$144 11.6%

Manzanillo

$118 9.6% 17.5% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sao Paulo

$143 11.6%

Manzanillo

$115 9.3% 20% $29

Getting Around

Sao Paulo

$60 4.9%

Manzanillo

$18 * 1.4% 70.7% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Sao Paulo

$56 4.5%

Manzanillo

$74 6% 32.7% $18

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 $684 in Manzanillo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sao Paulo pays 122% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $49.00 in Sao Paulo vs $32.00 in Manzanillo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $244 vs $233 per month, with Manzanillo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Sao Paulo

🇲🇽 Manzanillo

🕒 Local time

22:44 10:44 PM

19:44 7:44 PM

3 h behind Sao Paulo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,451,999

159,853

💱 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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Between locations

Sao Paulo Manzanillo 7,850 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Sao Paulo
Manzanillo

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 Manzanillo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Average pay runs 122% higher in Sao Paulo, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $659 in Sao Paulo versus $684 in Manzanillo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $579 in Sao Paulo versus $163 in Manzanillo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 5% higher in Sao Paulo. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,230 in Manzanillo versus $1,235 in Sao Paulo, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Manzanillo but tight or insufficient in Sao Paulo. The gap between the two cities makes Manzanillo 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.

It comes down to priorities – Manzanillo wins on affordability, Sao Paulo on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.