Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sao Paulo and Roatan

For one person, living costs are similar in Sao Paulo and in Roatan: $1,235 and $1,229 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 Roatan
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Roatan Living Index

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Sao Paulo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,235

/mo nomad

Roatan

🇭🇳 Honduras

$1,229

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,235 in Sao Paulo versus $1,229 in Roatan.

Sao Paulo $1,235
Roatan $1,229

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,073 in Sao Paulo versus $2,019 in Roatan.

Sao Paulo $2,073
Roatan $2,019

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,911 in Sao Paulo versus $2,809 in Roatan.

Sao Paulo $2,911
Roatan $2,809

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

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.81 R$44.93

$8.20 HNL 220

7.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.37 R$252

$39.42 HNL 1,059

25.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.80 R$44.88

$8.53 HNL 229

3.17%

Cappuccino

$2.49 R$12.70

$4.41 HNL 119

-43.54%

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

$1.42 R$7.23

$1.01 HNL 27.02

40.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.85 R$4.33

$0.82 HNL 22.04

3.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.98 R$15.19

$2.55 HNL 68.5

16.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.34 R$22.14

$5.02 HNL 135

-13.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 R$6.31

$1.43 HNL 38.32

-13.29%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 R$9.71

$3.24 HNL 87.0

-41.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 R$7.29

$2.52 HNL 67.6

-43.25%

Eggs

$2.81 R$14.31

$2.02 HNL 54.3

39.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.74 R$64.9

$10.89 HNL 293

16.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.41 R$27.59

$6.75 HNL 181

-19.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.64 R$54.3

$17.90 HNL 481

-40.56%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 R$14.03

Banana (1kg)

$1.81 R$9.25

$1.07 HNL 28.70

69.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 R$8.31

$1.12 HNL 30.08

45.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.00 R$10.21

$0.53 HNL 14.25

277.36%

Potato (1kg)

$1.40 R$7.14

$1.62 HNL 43.57

-13.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 R$6.47

$1.50 HNL 40.22

-15.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 R$6.51

$1.18 HNL 31.78

8.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 R$4.85

$3.05 HNL 81.8

-68.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.99 R$15.23

$2.93 HNL 78.6

2.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.96 R$50.8

$7.54 HNL 203

32.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 R$9.43

$1.33 HNL 35.78

39.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 R$12.97

$2.52 HNL 67.6

0.79%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.09 R$5.53

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.78 R$249

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.85 R$9.44

$1.96 HNL 52.6

-5.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 R$5.02

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.29 R$52.5

$9.99 HNL 268

3.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 R$6.81

$1.04 HNL 27.97

28.85%

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

$24.4K R$124.5K

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

$33.9K R$173.1K

$29.7K HNL 796.6K

14.47%

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

$104 R$532

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

$16.71 R$85.2

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.18 R$113

$98.5 HNL 2,645

-77.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.82 R$183

$60.5 HNL 1,625

-40.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$47.28 R$241

Cinema Ticket

$10.06 R$51.3

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

$579 R$2,953

$491 HNL 13.2K

17.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K R$87.1K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$65.7 R$335

$40.22 HNL 1,081

63.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.0 R$311

$19.63 HNL 527

210.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 R$512

$40.14 HNL 1,078

150.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.1 R$469

$49.83 HNL 1,339

84.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$659 R$3,360

$840 HNL 22.6K

-21.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$428 R$2,182

$552 HNL 14.8K

-22.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,515 R$7,721

$1,971 HNL 52.9K

-23.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,026 R$5,230

$1,269 HNL 34.1K

-19.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,773 R$14.1K

$1,854 HNL 49.8K

49.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,007 R$10.2K

$1,332 HNL 35.8K

50.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$909 R$4,635

$491 HNL 13.2K

85.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.68

-35.11%

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

Last update for Sao Paulo: October 13, 2026

Last update for Roatan: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sao Paulo

$428 34.7%

Roatan

$552 44.9% 28.9% $124

Groceries & Markets

Sao Paulo

$244 19.8%

Roatan

$274 * 22.3% 12.3% $30

Eating Out

Sao Paulo

$159 12.9%

Roatan

$174 14.2% 9.3% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Sao Paulo

$144 11.6%

Roatan

$67 5.5% 53.1% $76

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sao Paulo

$143 11.6%

Roatan

$98 * 8% 31.3% $45

Getting Around

Sao Paulo

$60 4.9%

Roatan

$2 * 0.2% 96.7% $58

Sport & Entertainment

Sao Paulo

$56 4.5%

Roatan

$61 * 4.9% 8.2% $4.6

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 $840 in Roatan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sao Paulo pays 85% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $49.00 in Sao Paulo vs $39.00 in Roatan. Groceries flip the comparison at $244 vs $274, with Sao Paulo cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Sao Paulo

🇭🇳 Roatan

🕒 Local time

13:48 1:48 PM

10:48 10:48 AM

3 h behind Sao Paulo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,451,999

17,425

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Honduran Lempira HNL L

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.196 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

100 HNL = 3.72 USD

100 HNL = 3.32 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HNL, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 5.1 BRL (1 BRL = 0.196 USD). 1 EUR = 5.72 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

Honduran Lempira exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 26.86 HNL (100 HNL = 3.72 USD). 1 EUR = 30.13 HNL (100 HNL = 3.32 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Sao Paulo Roatan 6,200 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Sao Paulo
Roatan

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 Roatan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Average pay runs 85% 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 $840 in Roatan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Roatan – a meal for two runs $39.00 versus $49.00 in Sao Paulo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Childcare runs $579 in Sao Paulo versus $491 in Roatan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,229 in Roatan versus $1,235 in Sao Paulo, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Roatan but tight or insufficient in Sao Paulo. The gap between the two cities makes Roatan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Roatan 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 Roatan are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

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