Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tegucigalpa and Rio de Janeiro

For one person, living costs are similar in Tegucigalpa and in Rio de Janeiro: $1,244 and $1,285 a month, rent and utilities included.

Tegucigalpa
🇭🇳 Honduras
$1,244
/mo nomad
Rio de Janeiro
🇧🇷 Brazil
$1,285
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tegucigalpa and in Rio de Janeiro

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,244 in Tegucigalpa versus $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro.

  • Tegucigalpa $1,244
  • Rio de Janeiro $1,285

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,802 in Tegucigalpa versus $1,888 in Rio de Janeiro.

  • Tegucigalpa $1,802
  • Rio de Janeiro $1,888

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,361 in Tegucigalpa versus $2,491 in Rio de Janeiro.

  • Tegucigalpa $2,361
  • Rio de Janeiro $2,491

Living in Tegucigalpa costs roughly 3% less than in Rio de Janeiro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Tegucigalpa 7% lower, Rio de Janeiro 4% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Tegucigalpa
Rio de Janeiro
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$7.66 HNL 206
$9.98 R$49.83
-23.25%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$31.92 HNL 857
$40.34 R$201
-20.87%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$7.25 HNL 195
$8.48 R$42.35
-14.50%
Cappuccino
$2.22 HNL 59.7
$2.36 R$11.80
-5.93%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.07 HNL 28.85
$1.63 R$8.13
-34.36%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.01 HNL 27.20
$1.01 R$5.06
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.15 HNL 30.79
$2.44 R$12.19
-52.87%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.92 HNL 78.5
$3.69 R$18.43
-20.87%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Tegucigalpa
Rio de Janeiro
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.42 HNL 38.21
$1.15 R$5.72
23.48%
White Bread (500g)
$1.89 HNL 50.9
$2.07 R$10.34
-8.70%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.28 HNL 34.34
$1.29 R$6.42
-0.78%
Eggs
$1.73 HNL 46.50
$2.27 R$11.32
-23.79%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$6.86 HNL 184
$11.00 R$54.9
-37.64%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.66 HNL 152
$4.31 R$21.51
31.32%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$8.94 HNL 240
$9.74 R$48.63
-8.21%
Apples (1kg)
$3.52 HNL 94.7
$2.83 R$14.12
24.38%
Banana (1kg)
$1.52 HNL 40.71
$1.84 R$9.17
-17.39%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.20 HNL 59.1
$1.60 R$7.96
37.50%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.01 HNL 54.0
$1.80 R$9.00
11.67%
Potato (1kg)
$1.92 HNL 51.6
$1.26 R$6.28
52.38%
Onion (1kg)
$2.02 HNL 54.2
$1.07 R$5.34
88.79%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.06 HNL 28.52
$0.75 R$3.75
41.33%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.99 HNL 26.48
$0.66 R$3.29
50.00%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.01 HNL 80.9
$3.05 R$15.21
-1.31%
Wine (Bottle)
$9.45 HNL 254
$8.18 R$40.84
15.53%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.53 HNL 41.16
$1.19 R$5.92
28.57%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.06 HNL 55.3
$2.39 R$11.92
-13.81%
🚌 Getting Around
Tegucigalpa
Rio de Janeiro
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.10 HNL 29.46
$1.01 R$5.06
8.91%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$50.2 R$250
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.76 HNL 101
$1.27 R$6.33
196.06%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.99 HNL 53.4
$0.90 R$4.51
121.11%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.79 HNL 129
$9.44 R$47.13
-49.26%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.22 HNL 32.81
$1.33 R$6.65
-8.27%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$19.4K HNL 520.0K
$23.4K R$117.0K
-17.37%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$22.0K HNL 590.5K
$33.6K R$167.6K
-34.51%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Tegucigalpa
Rio de Janeiro
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$142 HNL 3,826
$134 R$666
6.70%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$21.93 HNL 589
$12.23 R$61.0
79.31%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$34.51 HNL 927
$22.65 R$113
52.36%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Tegucigalpa
Rio de Janeiro
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$37.59 HNL 1,009
$31.56 R$158
19.11%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$14.64 HNL 393
$30.87 R$154
-52.58%
Cinema Ticket
$5.69 HNL 153
$8.23 R$41.07
-30.86%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Tegucigalpa
Rio de Janeiro
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$227 HNL 6,093
$603 R$3,011
-62.39%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$6,731 HNL 180.8K
$13.2K R$66.1K
-49.17%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Tegucigalpa
Rio de Janeiro
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$52.8 HNL 1,419
$41.62 R$208
26.96%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$49.26 HNL 1,323
$49.94 R$249
-1.36%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$104 HNL 2,788
$75.0 R$375
38.34%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$108 HNL 2,897
$68.3 R$341
57.91%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Tegucigalpa
Rio de Janeiro
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$457 HNL 12.3K
$905 R$4,519
-49.54%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$463 HNL 12.4K
$527 R$2,633
-12.25%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,209 HNL 32.5K
$1,346 R$6,720
-10.20%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$747 HNL 20.1K
$774 R$3,865
-3.53%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,728 HNL 73.3K
$3,981 R$19.9K
-31.46%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,575 HNL 42.3K
$1,562 R$7,798
0.80%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Tegucigalpa
Rio de Janeiro
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$610 HNL 16.4K
$643 R$3,210
-5.07%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.38
11.93
-4.61%

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

Last update for Tegucigalpa: October 3, 2026

Last update for Rio de Janeiro: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Tegucigalpa
$463
Rio de Janeiro
$527 14% $65
Groceries & Markets
Tegucigalpa
$223
Rio de Janeiro
$215 3.8% $8.4
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Tegucigalpa
$199
Rio de Janeiro
$168 15.3% $31
Clothing & Footwear
Tegucigalpa
$141
Rio de Janeiro
$106 25.1% $35
Eating Out
Tegucigalpa
$130
Rio de Janeiro
$164 26.4% $34
Sport & Entertainment
Tegucigalpa
$49
Rio de Janeiro
$48 1.9% $0.9
Getting Around
Tegucigalpa
$18 *
Rio de Janeiro
$60 231% $42

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 $457 in Tegucigalpa and $905 in Rio de Janeiro. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Rio de Janeiro pays 5% 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: $32.00 in Tegucigalpa vs $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro. Groceries flip the comparison at $223 vs $215, with Rio de Janeiro cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know
🇭🇳 Tegucigalpa
🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro
🕒 Local time
06:51 6:51 AM
09:51 9:51 AM
3 h ahead of Tegucigalpa
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
1,126,534 Capital
6,211,223
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to HNL – Honduran Lempira Converter

Honduran Lempira exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 26.86 HNL (100 HNL = 3.72 USD). 1 EUR = 30.1 HNL (100 HNL = 3.32 EUR).

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).

On the map
Between locations
  • Tegucigalpa Rio de Janeiro 6,310 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Tegucigalpa
  • Rio de Janeiro

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
Tegucigalpa vs Rio de Janeiro: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Tegucigalpa and in Rio de Janeiro?
Tegucigalpa and Rio de Janeiro differ by about 3% in total monthly costs ($1,244 vs $1,285 including rent). Tegucigalpa is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city has better-paying jobs?
On paper, salaries run 5% lower in Rio de Janeiro. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
How do apartment prices compare in Tegucigalpa and in Rio de Janeiro?
Rent for a central apartment: $457 in Tegucigalpa versus $905 in Rio de Janeiro. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Tegucigalpa and Rio de Janeiro?
Childcare runs $227 in Tegucigalpa versus $603 in Rio de Janeiro. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city has cheaper restaurants?
Dining out is cheaper in Tegucigalpa – a meal for two runs $32.00 versus $40.00 in Rio de Janeiro. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
Which city is more doable on $2,000 per month?
At $1,244 in Tegucigalpa versus $1,285 in Rio de Janeiro, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Tegucigalpa but tight or insufficient in Rio de Janeiro. The gap between the two cities makes Tegucigalpa the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Tegucigalpa and Rio de Janeiro?
Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.
Where should expats move: Tegucigalpa or Rio de Janeiro?
Expats usually find Tegucigalpa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 3% less than in Rio de Janeiro. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

Tegucigalpa vs other spots: cost of living compared

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