Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Summit, NJ and Sao Paulo

For one person, living is cheaper in Sao Paulo: $1,244 a month against $3,842 in Summit, NJ, rent and utilities included – about $31,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

189

Cost of Living Index in Summit, NJ
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Summit, NJ Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Sao Paulo
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Sao Paulo Living Index

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Summit, NJ

🇺🇸 United States

$3,842

/mo nomad

Sao Paulo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,244

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Summit, NJ and in Sao Paulo

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Summit, NJ and in Sao Paulo actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,842 in Summit, NJ versus $1,244 in Sao Paulo.

Summit, NJ $3,842
Sao Paulo $1,244

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,955 in Summit, NJ versus $2,085 in Sao Paulo.

Summit, NJ $5,955
Sao Paulo $2,085

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $8,069 in Summit, NJ versus $2,926 in Sao Paulo.

Summit, NJ $8,069
Sao Paulo $2,926

Living in Summit, NJ is roughly 209% more expensive than in Sao Paulo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.62 $24.62

$8.94 R$44.51

175.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$100 $100

$49.46 R$246

103.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.09 $11.09

$9.22 R$45.87

20.28%

Cappuccino

$5.41 $5.41

$2.54 R$12.67

112.99%

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

$2.24 $2.24

$1.45 R$7.23

54.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.47 $1.47

$0.91 R$4.54

61.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.07 $8.07

$3.07 R$15.26

162.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.83 $7.83

$4.36 R$21.69

79.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 $1.27

$1.27 R$6.31

White Bread (500g)

$4.27 $4.27

$1.84 R$9.14

132.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$6.08 $6.08

$1.41 R$7.03

331.21%

Eggs

$5.90 $5.90

$2.84 R$14.16

107.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.92 $13.92

$12.56 R$62.5

10.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.46 $10.46

$5.37 R$26.73

94.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.59 $17.59

$10.72 R$53.4

64.09%

Apples (1kg)

$6.11 $6.11

$2.74 R$13.63

122.99%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 $1.71

$1.81 R$9.00

-5.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.16 $4.16

$1.55 R$7.72

168.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.21 $5.21

$1.98 R$9.87

163.13%

Potato (1kg)

$3.08 $3.08

$1.47 R$7.32

109.52%

Onion (1kg)

$3.66 $3.66

$1.24 R$6.18

195.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.07 $3.07

$1.27 R$6.33

141.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.92 $2.92

$0.96 R$4.78

204.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.28 $11.28

$3.04 R$15.12

271.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.83 $19.83

$10.19 R$50.7

94.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 $1.78

$1.73 R$8.62

2.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.30 $5.30

$2.64 R$13.16

100.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.04 R$5.16

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.10 R$239

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.03 $3.03

$1.82 R$9.05

66.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.09 $2.09

$1.02 R$5.06

104.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.22 $24.22

$10.16 R$50.6

138.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.12 $1.12

$1.27 R$6.33

-11.81%

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

$35.2K $35.2K

$24.3K R$121.1K

44.55%

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

$25.2K $25.2K

$34.0K R$169.3K

-25.99%

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

$213 $213

$104 R$517

105.38%

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

$61.2 $61.2

$16.16 R$80.4

278.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$50.7 $50.7

$22.59 R$112

124.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$80.2 $80.2

$36.27 R$181

121.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$47.78 R$238

Cinema Ticket

$14.75 $14.75

$9.85 R$49.04

49.75%

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

$2,015 $2,015

$525 R$2,614

283.64%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.2K $16.2K

$16.6K R$82.5K

-2.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$41.66 $41.66

$66.9 R$333

-37.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.6 $57.6

$62.3 R$310

-7.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.8 $74.8

$101 R$503

-26.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 $119

$90.9 R$452

30.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,697 $2,697

$663 R$3,299

306.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,457 $2,457

$423 R$2,104

481.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,556 $5,556

$1,527 R$7,600

263.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$5,055 $5,055

$1,009 R$5,020

401.22%

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$4,383

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

11.68

-42.21%

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

Last update for Summit, NJ: October 5, 2026

Last update for Sao Paulo: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Summit, NJ

$2.5K 63.7%

Sao Paulo

$423 34.3% 82.8% $2K

Groceries & Markets

Summit, NJ

$457 11.8%

Sao Paulo

$243 19.8% 46.7% $213

Eating Out

Summit, NJ

$366 9.5%

Sao Paulo

$163 13.3% 55.4% $203

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Summit, NJ

$325 8.4%

Sao Paulo

$143 11.6% 56.1% $183

Clothing & Footwear

Summit, NJ

$132 3.4%

Sao Paulo

$145 11.7% 9.6% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Summit, NJ

$110 2.8%

Sao Paulo

$56 4.6% 49% $54

Getting Around

Summit, NJ

$13 * 0.4%

Sao Paulo

$59 4.8% 339% $46

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 $2,697 in Summit, NJ and $663 in Sao Paulo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $100 in Summit, NJ vs $49.00 in Sao Paulo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $457 vs $243 per month, with Sao Paulo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Summit, NJ

🇧🇷 Sao Paulo

🕒 Local time

03:46 3:46 AM

04:46 4:46 AM

1 h ahead of Summit, NJ

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,161

11,451,999

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

1 BRL = 0.201 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 12, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 12, 2026: 1 USD = 4.98 BRL (1 BRL = 0.201 USD). 1 EUR = 5.58 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 EUR).

BRL to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Summit, NJ Sao Paulo 7,700 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Summit, NJ
Sao Paulo

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

Summit, NJ vs Sao Paulo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sao Paulo is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. The 209% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $5,762 in Summit, NJ and $1,866 in Sao Paulo 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: $2,697 in Summit, NJ versus $663 in Sao Paulo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,015 in Summit, NJ versus $525 in Sao Paulo. 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 $100 in Summit, NJ. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,244 in Sao Paulo versus $3,842 in Summit, NJ, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Sao Paulo but tight or insufficient in Summit, NJ. 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 Summit, NJ, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Summit, NJ and Sao Paulo are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Sao Paulo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 209% less than in Summit, NJ. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.