Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sao Paulo and Simpson Bay

For one person, living is cheaper in Sao Paulo: $1,244 a month against $3,851 in Simpson Bay, rent and utilities included – about $31,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

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Cost of Living Index in Sao Paulo
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Sao Paulo Living Index

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Sao Paulo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,244

/mo nomad

Simpson Bay

🇸🇽 Sint Maarten

$3,851

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sao Paulo and in Simpson Bay

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,244 in Sao Paulo versus $3,851 in Simpson Bay.

Sao Paulo $1,244
Simpson Bay $3,851

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,085 in Sao Paulo versus $6,504 in Simpson Bay.

Sao Paulo $2,085
Simpson Bay $6,504

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,926 in Sao Paulo versus $9,157 in Simpson Bay.

Sao Paulo $2,926
Simpson Bay $9,157

Living in Sao Paulo costs roughly 68% less than in Simpson Bay, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sao Paulo is 7% below, Simpson Bay is 187% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.94 R$44.64

$19.11 ANG 34.22

-53.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.46 R$247

$131 ANG 234

-62.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.22 R$46.01

$12.78 ANG 22.88

-27.86%

Cappuccino

$2.54 R$12.70

$4.44 ANG 7.96

-42.79%

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

$1.45 R$7.25

$2.91 ANG 5.22

-50.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.91 R$4.55

$3.04 ANG 5.44

-70.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.07 R$15.31

$5.43 ANG 9.73

-43.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 R$21.75

$4.11 ANG 7.36

6.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 R$6.32

$4.03 ANG 7.21

-68.49%

White Bread (500g)

$1.84 R$9.17

$2.81 ANG 5.02

-34.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.41 R$7.05

$3.09 ANG 5.53

-54.37%

Eggs

$2.84 R$14.20

$4.49 ANG 8.04

-36.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.56 R$62.7

$24.93 ANG 44.63

-49.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.37 R$26.81

$13.40 ANG 23.98

-59.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.72 R$53.5

$16.98 ANG 30.39

-36.87%

Apples (1kg)

$2.74 R$13.67

$4.26 ANG 7.63

-35.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.81 R$9.03

$3.55 ANG 6.35

-49.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.55 R$7.74

$6.32 ANG 11.31

-75.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.98 R$9.90

$5.06 ANG 9.05

-60.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.47 R$7.34

$3.96 ANG 7.08

-62.88%

Onion (1kg)

$1.24 R$6.20

$3.44 ANG 6.16

-63.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 R$6.35

$3.06 ANG 5.47

-58.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 R$4.79

$1.47 ANG 2.64

-34.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.04 R$15.16

Wine (Bottle)

$10.19 R$50.8

$15.22 ANG 27.24

-33.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 R$8.64

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.64 R$13.19

$1.79 ANG 3.20

47.49%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.04 R$5.18

$3.08 ANG 5.51

-66.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.10 R$240

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.82 R$9.07

$15.22 ANG 27.24

-88.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 R$5.07

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.16 R$50.7

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 R$6.35

$1.27 ANG 2.27

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

$24.3K R$121.4K

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

$34.0K R$169.8K

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

$104 R$519

$502 ANG 899

-79.29%

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

$16.16 R$80.7

$35.56 ANG 63.7

-54.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.59 R$113

$87.6 ANG 157

-74.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.27 R$181

$74.8 ANG 134

-51.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$47.78 R$239

Cinema Ticket

$9.85 R$49.19

$8.18 ANG 14.65

20.42%

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

$525 R$2,622

$761 ANG 1,362

-30.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K R$82.8K

$12.0K ANG 21.6K

37.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$66.9 R$334

$50.6 ANG 90.6

32.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$62.3 R$311

$39.59 ANG 70.9

57.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 R$505

$99.5 ANG 178

1.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.9 R$454

$59.5 ANG 106

52.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$663 R$3,309

$2,330 ANG 4,171

-71.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$423 R$2,110

$2,273 ANG 4,069

-81.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,527 R$7,622

$6,007 ANG 10.8K

-74.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,009 R$5,035

$5,604 ANG 10.0K

-82.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,744 R$13.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,068 R$10.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$881 R$4,396

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.68

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

Last update for Sao Paulo: October 6, 2026

Last update for Simpson Bay: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sao Paulo

$423 34.3%

Simpson Bay

–

Groceries & Markets

Sao Paulo

$243 19.8%

Simpson Bay

–

Eating Out

Sao Paulo

$163 13.3%

Simpson Bay

–

Clothing & Footwear

Sao Paulo

$145 11.7%

Simpson Bay

–

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sao Paulo

$143 11.6%

Simpson Bay

–

Getting Around

Sao Paulo

$59 4.8%

Simpson Bay

–

Sport & Entertainment

Sao Paulo

$56 4.6%

Simpson Bay

–

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $663 in Sao Paulo and $2,330 in Simpson Bay. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $49.00 in Sao Paulo vs $131 in Simpson Bay for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $243 vs $467 per month, with Sao Paulo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Sao Paulo

🇸🇽 Simpson Bay

🕒 Local time

11:16 11:16 AM

10:16 10:16 AM

1 h behind Sao Paulo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,451,999

6,000

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Netherlands Antillean Guilder ANG ƒ

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

1 ANG = 0.559 USD

1 ANG = 0.499 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ANG, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.99 BRL (1 BRL = 0.2 USD). 1 EUR = 5.59 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 EUR).

Netherlands Antillean Guilder exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.79 ANG (1 ANG = 0.559 USD). 1 EUR = 2.01 ANG (1 ANG = 0.499 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

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Between locations

Sao Paulo Simpson Bay 4,960 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Sao Paulo
Simpson Bay

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 Simpson Bay: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sao Paulo is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 210% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,866 in Sao Paulo and $5,776 in Simpson Bay 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: $663 in Sao Paulo versus $2,330 in Simpson Bay. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $525 in Sao Paulo versus $761 in Simpson Bay. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Sao Paulo – a meal for two runs $49.00 versus $131 in Simpson Bay. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,244 in Sao Paulo versus $3,851 in Simpson Bay, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Sao Paulo but tight or insufficient in Simpson Bay. The gap between the two cities makes Sao Paulo the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Expats usually find Sao Paulo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 210% less than in Simpson Bay. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.