Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sao Paulo and Thetford Mines

For one person, living is cheaper in Sao Paulo: $1,235 a month against $1,961 in Thetford Mines, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 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
95

Cost of Living Index in Thetford Mines
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Thetford Mines Living Index

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Sao Paulo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,235

/mo nomad

Thetford Mines

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,961

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sao Paulo and in Thetford Mines

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,235 in Sao Paulo versus $1,961 in Thetford Mines.

Sao Paulo $1,235
Thetford Mines $1,961

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,073 in Sao Paulo versus $2,382 in Thetford Mines.

Sao Paulo $2,073
Thetford Mines $2,382

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,911 in Sao Paulo versus $2,803 in Thetford Mines.

Sao Paulo $2,911
Thetford Mines $2,803

Living in Sao Paulo costs roughly 37% less than in Thetford Mines, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sao Paulo is 9% below, Thetford Mines is 45% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.81 R$44.68

$11.05 CA$15.62

-20.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.37 R$250

$40.97 CA$57.9

20.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.80 R$44.63

$8.49 CA$12.00

3.65%

Cappuccino

$2.49 R$12.63

$3.48 CA$4.92

-28.45%

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

$1.42 R$7.19

$2.01 CA$2.84

-29.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.85 R$4.31

$0.92 CA$1.30

-7.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.98 R$15.11

$3.07 CA$4.35

-2.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.34 R$22.02

$4.44 CA$6.28

-2.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 R$6.28

$1.56 CA$2.20

-20.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 R$9.66

$2.51 CA$3.55

-23.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 R$7.25

$2.16 CA$3.06

-33.80%

Eggs

$2.81 R$14.23

$2.41 CA$3.40

16.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.74 R$64.6

$10.01 CA$14.15

27.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.41 R$27.44

$6.25 CA$8.84

-13.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.64 R$54.0

$13.42 CA$18.97

-20.72%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 R$13.95

$2.05 CA$2.90

34.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.81 R$9.19

$1.43 CA$2.02

26.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 R$8.27

$2.08 CA$2.94

-21.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.00 R$10.16

$2.12 CA$2.99

-5.66%

Potato (1kg)

$1.40 R$7.10

$1.90 CA$2.68

-26.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 R$6.43

$1.80 CA$2.55

-29.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 R$6.47

$0.60 CA$0.85

113.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 R$4.83

$1.47 CA$2.08

-35.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.99 R$15.15

$11.10 CA$15.70

-73.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.96 R$50.5

$10.70 CA$15.13

-6.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 R$9.37

$1.42 CA$2.00

30.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 R$12.90

$2.86 CA$4.04

-11.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.09 R$5.50

$2.26 CA$3.20

-51.77%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.78 R$247

$64.1 CA$90.6

-23.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.85 R$9.39

$3.21 CA$4.54

-42.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 R$4.99

$1.48 CA$2.09

-33.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.29 R$52.2

$31.73 CA$44.85

-67.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 R$6.78

$1.03 CA$1.46

30.10%

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

$24.4K R$123.8K

$21.0K CA$29.7K

16.09%

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

$33.9K R$172.1K

$19.8K CA$28.0K

71.21%

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

$104 R$529

$77.3 CA$109

35.11%

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

$16.71 R$84.7

$33.73 CA$47.68

-50.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.18 R$112

$42.02 CA$59.4

-47.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.82 R$182

$35.46 CA$50.1

1.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$47.28 R$240

$18.02 CA$25.47

162.38%

Cinema Ticket

$10.06 R$51.0

$11.12 CA$15.72

-9.53%

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

$579 R$2,936

$503 CA$712

15.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K R$86.6K

$15.8K CA$22.3K

8.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$65.7 R$333

$45.04 CA$63.7

45.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.0 R$309

$24.38 CA$34.47

150.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 R$509

$60.4 CA$85.3

66.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.1 R$467

$67.6 CA$95.6

36.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$659 R$3,341

$1,258 CA$1,779

-47.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$428 R$2,170

$1,124 CA$1,589

-61.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,515 R$7,678

$854 CA$1,207

77.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,026 R$5,201

$923 CA$1,305

11.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,773 R$14.1K

$4,311 CA$6,095

-35.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,007 R$10.2K

$3,820 CA$5,400

-47.46%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$909 R$4,609

$1,244 CA$1,759

-26.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.68

4.48

160.71%

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

Last update for Sao Paulo: October 13, 2026

Last update for Thetford Mines: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sao Paulo

$428 34.7%

Thetford Mines

$1.1K 57.3% 163% $696

Groceries & Markets

Sao Paulo

$244 19.8%

Thetford Mines

$262 13.4% 7.2% $17

Eating Out

Sao Paulo

$159 12.9%

Thetford Mines

$192 9.8% 20.2% $32

Clothing & Footwear

Sao Paulo

$144 11.6%

Thetford Mines

$89 4.5% 38.2% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sao Paulo

$143 11.6%

Thetford Mines

$153 7.8% 6.8% $9.7

Getting Around

Sao Paulo

$60 4.9%

Thetford Mines

$84 4.3% 39.7% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Sao Paulo

$56 4.5%

Thetford Mines

$58 2.9% 3.2% $1.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $659 in Sao Paulo and $1,258 in Thetford Mines. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Thetford Mines pays 37% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $49.00 in Sao Paulo vs $41.00 in Thetford Mines. Groceries flip the comparison at $244 vs $262, with Sao Paulo cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Sao Paulo

🇨🇦 Thetford Mines

🕒 Local time

14:14 2:14 PM

13:14 1:14 PM

1 h behind Sao Paulo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,451,999

26,072

💱 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 19, 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 19, 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Sao Paulo Thetford Mines 8,130 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Sao Paulo
Thetford Mines

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 Thetford Mines: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sao Paulo is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and transport. The 59% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 37% lower in Thetford Mines. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $659 in Sao Paulo versus $1,258 in Thetford Mines. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Sao Paulo runs roughly 31% less than in Thetford Mines. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $579 in Sao Paulo versus $503 in Thetford Mines. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,235 in Sao Paulo versus $1,961 in Thetford Mines, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Sao Paulo but tight or insufficient in Thetford Mines. 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 Thetford Mines, 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 59% less than in Thetford Mines. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.