Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sao Paulo and Marathon

For one person, living is cheaper in Sao Paulo: $1,222 a month against $2,218 in Marathon, rent and utilities included – about $12,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Sao Paulo
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Sao Paulo Living Index
108

Cost of Living Index in Marathon
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Marathon Living Index

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Sao Paulo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,222

/mo nomad

Marathon

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,218

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,222 per month in Sao Paulo vs $2,218 in Marathon, rent included.

Sao Paulo $1,222
Marathon $2,218

A couple spends around $2,044 per month in Sao Paulo vs $3,213 in Marathon, rent included.

Sao Paulo $2,044
Marathon $3,213

A family of three spends $2,867 per month in Sao Paulo vs $4,209 in Marathon, rent included.

Sao Paulo $2,867
Marathon $4,209

Sao Paulo is about 45% cheaper than Marathon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sao Paulo sits 10% below the global median, while Marathon is 64% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.71 R$44.15

$17.17 CA$24.27

-49.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.61 R$246

$66.1 CA$93.4

-26.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.03 R$45.77

$10.61 CA$15.00

-14.89%

Cappuccino

$2.55 R$12.94

$3.65 CA$5.16

-30.14%

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

$1.35 R$6.83

$1.93 CA$2.72

-30.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.91 R$4.63

$1.60 CA$2.26

-43.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.07 R$15.55

$5.13 CA$7.25

-40.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 R$22.21

$5.57 CA$7.88

-21.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 R$6.05

$1.99 CA$2.81

-40.20%

White Bread (500g)

$1.80 R$9.14

$2.52 CA$3.56

-28.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 R$7.51

$3.27 CA$4.62

-54.74%

Eggs

$2.82 R$14.31

$3.42 CA$4.83

-17.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.61 R$63.9

$10.04 CA$14.19

25.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.40 R$27.36

$11.16 CA$15.78

-51.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.76 R$54.6

$14.71 CA$20.80

-26.85%

Apples (1kg)

$2.82 R$14.28

$3.85 CA$5.44

-26.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.82 R$9.25

$1.29 CA$1.82

41.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 R$8.14

$3.69 CA$5.21

-56.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 R$10.28

$3.77 CA$5.32

-46.15%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 R$7.40

$2.48 CA$3.51

-41.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.25 R$6.35

$2.13 CA$3.01

-41.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 R$6.32

$2.44 CA$3.45

-48.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 R$4.98

$1.55 CA$2.19

-36.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 R$15.18

$14.15 CA$20.01

-78.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.71 R$49.22

$12.51 CA$17.68

-22.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.84 R$9.32

$2.55 CA$3.60

-27.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 R$12.80

$3.01 CA$4.25

-16.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.07 R$5.41

$2.32 CA$3.28

-53.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$47.26 R$240

$62.1 CA$87.8

-23.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 R$9.16

$2.95 CA$4.18

-38.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.01 R$5.14

$1.41 CA$1.99

-28.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.24 R$51.9

$23.24 CA$32.86

-55.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.29 R$6.52

$1.13 CA$1.60

14.16%

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

$23.5K R$119.3K

$27.6K CA$39.0K

-14.76%

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

$34.5K R$174.9K

$19.1K CA$27.0K

80.57%

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

$104 R$527

$132 CA$187

-21.18%

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

$16.60 R$84.1

$38.75 CA$54.8

-57.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.04 R$112

$54.5 CA$77.1

-59.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.43 R$185

$39.87 CA$56.4

-8.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$47.29 R$240

$17.63 CA$24.92

168.24%

Cinema Ticket

$9.69 R$49.12

$11.17 CA$15.79

-13.25%

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

$573 R$2,906

$760 CA$1,074

-24.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K R$85.8K

$12.8K CA$18.0K

32.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$66.3 R$336

$53.5 CA$75.6

23.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.1 R$310

$37.54 CA$53.1

62.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.8 R$501

$84.0 CA$119

17.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.4 R$463

$103 CA$145

-10.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$654 R$3,316

$1,241 CA$1,754

-47.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$418 R$2,120

$1,114 CA$1,575

-62.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,524 R$7,724

$1,930 CA$2,728

-21.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$992 R$5,028

$1,701 CA$2,405

-41.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,670 R$13.5K

$4,211 CA$5,953

-36.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,019 R$10.2K

$3,537 CA$5,000

-42.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$900 R$4,563

$1,720 CA$2,431

-47.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.68

4.66

150.64%

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

Last update for Sao Paulo: October 18, 2026

Last update for Marathon: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sao Paulo

$418 34.2%

Marathon

$1.1K 50.2% 166% $696

Groceries & Markets

Sao Paulo

$243 19.9%

Marathon

$346 15.6% 42.4% $103

Eating Out

Sao Paulo

$161 13.1%

Marathon

$264 11.9% 64.3% $103

Clothing & Footwear

Sao Paulo

$143 11.7%

Marathon

$125 5.6% 12.6% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sao Paulo

$143 11.7%

Marathon

$225 10.2% 57.9% $83

Getting Around

Sao Paulo

$58 4.8%

Marathon

$81 3.7% 39.3% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Sao Paulo

$56 4.6%

Marathon

$62 2.8% 11.5% $6.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $654 in Sao Paulo versus $1,241 in Marathon. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 91% higher in Marathon, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $49.00 in Sao Paulo versus $66.0 in Marathon. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $243 vs $346 – making Sao Paulo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Sao Paulo

🇨🇦 Marathon

🕒 Local time

12:31 12:31 PM

11:31 11:31 AM

1 h behind Sao Paulo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,451,999

3,300

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sao Paulo Marathon 8,950 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Sao Paulo
Marathon

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 Marathon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Marathon is pricier by about 82%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,833 per month in Sao Paulo and $3,326 in Marathon. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sao Paulo, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $573 per month in Sao Paulo and $760 in Marathon. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 42% more in Marathon, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Sao Paulo, where all-in costs run around $1,222, than in Marathon at $2,218. In Sao Paulo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Marathon it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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