Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Toronto and Sao Luis

For one person, living is cheaper in Sao Luis: $834 a month against $2,530 in Toronto, rent and utilities included – about $20,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Toronto
Learn more

Toronto Living Index
41

Cost of Living Index in Sao Luis
Learn more

Sao Luis Living Index

Jump to prices

Toronto

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,530

/mo nomad

Sao Luis

🇧🇷 Brazil

$834

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Toronto and in Sao Luis

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,530 in Toronto versus $834 in Sao Luis.

Toronto $2,530
Sao Luis $834

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,646 in Toronto versus $1,310 in Sao Luis.

Toronto $3,646
Sao Luis $1,310

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,761 in Toronto versus $1,786 in Sao Luis.

Toronto $4,761
Sao Luis $1,786

Living in Toronto is roughly 203% more expensive than in Sao Luis, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Toronto is 89% above, Sao Luis is 38% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.67 CA$25.19

$6.60 R$32.93

167.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$77.4 CA$110

$39.74 R$198

94.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.47 CA$14.93

$6.82 R$34.03

53.52%

Cappuccino

$4.08 CA$5.81

$2.15 R$10.71

89.77%

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

$2.12 CA$3.02

$1.27 R$6.33

66.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 CA$2.51

$0.73 R$3.65

141.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.17 CA$8.80

$1.96 R$9.77

214.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.89 CA$9.82

$2.44 R$12.16

182.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.43 CA$3.46

$1.11 R$5.52

118.92%

White Bread (500g)

$2.75 CA$3.92

$1.93 R$9.64

42.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 CA$3.18

$1.11 R$5.54

100.90%

Eggs

$3.45 CA$4.91

$2.27 R$11.31

51.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.93 CA$12.73

$10.14 R$50.6

-11.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.44 CA$16.31

$4.28 R$21.36

167.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.61 CA$20.83

$7.64 R$38.12

91.23%

Apples (1kg)

$3.75 CA$5.34

$2.11 R$10.55

77.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.15 CA$1.64

$1.39 R$6.95

-17.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.55 CA$5.06

$1.22 R$6.09

190.98%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 CA$6.10

$1.73 R$8.64

147.40%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 CA$2.63

$1.33 R$6.64

39.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 CA$2.38

$1.34 R$6.67

24.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.22 CA$3.16

$0.90 R$4.47

146.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 CA$1.72

$0.73 R$3.62

65.75%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.88 CA$19.78

$2.44 R$12.17

468.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.25 CA$20.31

$8.21 R$41.00

73.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.20 CA$3.13

$1.27 R$6.36

73.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.42 CA$3.45

$2.32 R$11.60

4.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.42 CA$3.44

$0.85 R$4.27

184.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$111 CA$158

$38.52 R$192

187.49%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.90 CA$4.13

$1.03 R$5.12

181.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.26 CA$1.80

$0.94 R$4.70

34.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.03 CA$31.40

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.22 CA$1.74

$1.21 R$6.05

0.83%

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

$27.6K CA$39.4K

$24.2K R$120.6K

14.35%

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

$19.8K CA$28.3K

$30.4K R$151.5K

-34.71%

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

$122 CA$174

$97.5 R$487

25.06%

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

$32.03 CA$45.66

$18.02 R$90.0

77.75%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.92 CA$68.3

$21.42 R$107

123.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.90 CA$55.5

$20.11 R$100

93.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.24 CA$33.12

$15.27 R$76.2

52.19%

Cinema Ticket

$12.61 CA$17.97

$6.84 R$34.14

84.36%

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

$834 CA$1,189

$183 R$915

354.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.3K CA$33.3K

$2,911 R$14.5K

701.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.6 CA$75.0

$64.7 R$323

-18.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.26 CA$57.4

$54.6 R$273

-26.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.2 CA$137

$75.1 R$375

28.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 CA$175

$59.0 R$294

108.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,598 CA$2,278

$363 R$1,812

340.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,435 CA$2,045

$187 R$935

665.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,657 CA$3,787

$580 R$2,893

358.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,096 CA$2,988

$330 R$1,648

534.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,033 CA$11.5K

$1,575 R$7,864

409.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,557 CA$9,347

$721 R$3,598

809.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,743 CA$5,335

$386 R$1,929

868.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.47

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

Last update for Toronto: October 4, 2026

Last update for Sao Luis: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Toronto

$1.4K 55.4%

Sao Luis

$187 22.3% 86.9% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Toronto

$340 13.1%

Sao Luis

$197 23.6% 42% $143

Eating Out

Toronto

$282 10.9%

Sao Luis

$122 14.5% 56.8% $160

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Toronto

$202 7.8%

Sao Luis

$137 16.3% 32.2% $65

Clothing & Footwear

Toronto

$140 5.4%

Sao Luis

$114 13.6% 18.8% $26

Getting Around

Toronto

$130 5%

Sao Luis

$48 5.7% 63.2% $82

Sport & Entertainment

Toronto

$64 2.5%

Sao Luis

$34 4% 47.3% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,598 in Toronto and $363 in Sao Luis. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Toronto pays 869% 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: $77.0 in Toronto vs $40.00 in Sao Luis for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $340 vs $197 per month, with Sao Luis cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Toronto

🇧🇷 Sao Luis

🕒 Local time

03:20 3:20 AM

04:20 4:20 AM

1 h ahead of Toronto

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,731,571

1,037,775

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.702 USD

1 CAD = 0.626 EUR

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 CAD (1 CAD = 0.702 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 CAD (1 CAD = 0.626 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.99 BRL (1 BRL = 0.2 USD). 1 EUR = 5.6 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Toronto Sao Luis 6,210 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Toronto
Sao Luis

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

Toronto vs Sao Luis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Toronto and Sao Luis differ by about 203% in total monthly costs ($2,530 vs $834 including rent). Sao Luis is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 869% higher in Toronto, 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: $1,598 in Toronto versus $363 in Sao Luis. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 72% higher in Toronto. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Sao Luis – a meal for two runs $40.00 versus $77.0 in Toronto. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $834 in Sao Luis versus $2,530 in Toronto, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sao Luis but tight or insufficient in Toronto. The gap between the two cities makes Sao Luis the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Expats usually find Sao Luis gentler on the wallet – expenses run 203% less than in Toronto. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.