Cost of living in Brasília
This article is trying to outline what are the costs a professional who plans to relocate from Europe or US to Brasília should expect in order to maintain the same standard of living as he was used to.
Living in the first planned city of Brazil would be a nice idea for many foreign investors, but moving to a different city with different cultures and rules demands lots of precautions. This article will give you an idea about how much you are going to spend per month when living in the Brazilian capital city.
Introduction
Being the Brazilian capital, and the fourth most populous city of Brazil, Brasília has the second PIB per capita of the country, losing only for Vitoria, ES. The city concentrates the political scene of Brazil and unfortunately is a good example of social inequality.
According to UN, the 52-year-old city is considered a cultural patrimony of humanity, once Oscar Niemeyer and Lúcio Costa, city architect and designer, have found the perfect harmony between form and space.
Remember that the purpose of this article is to look at the cost of keeping a middle-class Western European or American life standard in Brasília.
Accommodation
Without any doubt accommodation is one of the most problematic topics in Brasília. There are some called satellite cities, which are cities around Brasília that provides low cost workforce.
If you are planning to move to Brasília, come prepared to spend a lot of money to have a middle class apartment, flat or house. Accommodation is very expensive in this part of the country, that’s why the satellite cities have started to be formed, as the poor portion of the population was not able to afford the costs of living in Brasilia.
| Item | Price |
| Renting price for a furnished flat in Lago Sul (50 m2) | BRL 3200.00 (per month) |
| Renting price of a furnished apartment in Asa Sul (52m2) | BRL 3900,00 (per month) |
| Renting price for an unfurnished apartment in at Aguas Claras (55m2) | BRL 1.500,00 (per month) |
Transport
Public transportation is target of many complaints of Brasília population. The population classified the public transportation conditions as the vehicle conditions are very poor and the time spent waiting for a bus or train can be very long.
The subway does not have many wagons, and the population is not used to make use of it. Just to give an idea, 41% of the population have never used the subway.
One important point is that Brasília was not made to pedestrians. Places are far from each other and having is a priority.
| Item | Price |
| Underground single faire | BRL 3 |
| Buss single faire | BRL 2 |
| Garage spot in Asa Sul area | BRL 250 (per month) |
| 1 liter of fuel | BRL 2.65 |
Food and Beverages
Food is not the most expensive item in Brazil; therefore, Brazilians do spend most part of their income buying food. Eating and drinking costs are almost the same in the whole country, with only a few variations.
| Item | Price |
| Large whole grain bread | BRL 4.79 |
| 500 gram Turkey | BRL 8.45 |
| 150 gram Philadelphia cream cheese | BRL 4.69 |
| 240 gram Strawberry jam | BRL 6.69 |
| 600 ml Coca Cola | BRL 2.79 |
| 2.5 l Coca Cola | BRL 4.69 |
| 300 ml Mainstream local Beer | BRL 1.79 |
| 500 ml Imported Beer | BRL 14 |
| Big Mac Menu | BRL 17 |
| European style lunch (double sandwich + coffee ) | BRL 28 |
| Simple Brazilian style lunch (buffet + juice) | BRL 12 |
| Nice Brazilian style lunch (selection of beef + desert) | BRL 25 |
| Generic Cafe Americano | BRL 2 |
Have in mind that these prices are for the most common products here in Brazil, but there are similar ones more and less expensive than these prices. This list is only a general overview of the food prices in Brasilia.
Entertainment
If you are going to relocate to Brasília you should know some entertainment options such as Teatro Nacional (The National Theater), that presents a wonderful architecture made by Oscar Niemeyer.
Another good option is the popular fair of Ceilandia, where you will find typical foods from all over Brazil at a good price.
If you like adventures, a good option is to visit the Chapada Imperial, where you will find more than 30 waterfalls and cross-country options.