With fuel prices soaring, how are you getting around in Brazil?

Uber

So I did some lookups to try to compare with prices here - which you can look up in your own community:

(California) - 1 liter of regular gas costs R$8.00. Premium is R$8.55.

(Wisconsin) - 1 liter of regular gas costs R$5.70. Premium is R$7.13.

(Campina Grande, PB Gasolina comum R$5.99 - R$7.59, aditivada R$5.99 - R$6.89 (I know - odd), etanol R$4.59 - R$5.,99

(https://paraibaonline.com.br/paraiba/20 … -detalhes/)

Gallon to liter cost conversion using:

https://www.kylesconverter.com/fuel-pri … er-gallon-(us)-to-price-per-liter

Prices determined by lookup not by actual purchases info. I'd love to hear what people are actually paying.

I've seen recent ads by Petrobras to remind consumers that the BR gas stations are NOT owned by Petrobras but that they were privatized (2019-2021) and now owned by Vibra Energia. Some recent gouging by gas stations has consumers looking to blame anybody - I'm no expert. Would love to find a more complete analysis intended for a lay (not specialist nor political) reader.

Google tells me:

> As of early May 2026, the U.S. national average for a gallon of regular gasoline is approximately $4.04–$4.55, while premium gasoline averages around $5.20–$5.41. Prices are significantly higher in California,

I get around on an electric scooter here., which gets great gas mileage :-)

Will be moving to Joao Pessoa soon.

05/10/26 @mberigan.  Gasoline and ethanol prices here in Manaus track yours in Campina Grande - on the other side of the country - to the centavo, including the weird reduction for "aditivada".  I've wondered about that, too.

For expats from North America, the drop of the USD and CND against the BRL is adding some additional costs; the EUR is still rising, so EU expats are getting a bit of a break.

In response to the original question, we're Uber users, and expect fares to go up with fuel prices.  It's still cheaper for us than owning a car, which would be paying the same for fuel anyway.

@alexanderstephenlange.  Welcome  - we're here to help.  Jampa is a great choice, good luck with your move.

@alexanderstephenlange

There he is!

Welcome aboard @alexanderstephenlange!!

@abthree

Thank you, @abthree. If you want to, tell us an example of the R$ cost for a typical Uber trip, say 20 kilometers in moderate traffic/time of day. Thanks in advance!

@alexanderstephenlange

In March I took Uber from Intermares Cabedelo to dowtown João Pessoa at 13:30 (rush hour return to work time period) and it was R$34. Also in March a trip from Marca Zero in Recife to the Riomar shopping mall at 16:30 was R$30. A March trip in Campina Grande from home (edge of town) to the medical district (bairro Prata) of Campina Grande was R$13.

mberigan

@mberigan

Thanks for the details and good news.

05/11/26 Thank you, @abthree. If you want to, tell us an example of the R$ cost for a typical Uber trip, say 20 kilometers in moderate traffic/time of day. Thanks in advance! - @alexanderstephenlange

Following on from @mberigan's message, here are some typical costs here in Manaus around Noon on a Monday (today), in Manaus.  All distances are from our home in the Centro Histórico.  This is between rush hours, but it's lunchtime so a lot of cars are on the streets.  When we were in JP in March 2024, we found Uber prices there to be comparable or a little lower:

1. Hospital Delphina Rinaldi Abdel Aziz. 13 mi/20.9 km -- Comfort (C) R$49.99/ Priority (P) R$49.99/ Uber X (X) R$44.96
2. Eduardo Gomes International Airport.  9.9 mi/15.9 km -- C R$45.98 /P R$36.98 / X -- R$32.94
3. Shopping Ponta Negra 6.9 mi./11.1 km -- C R$35.98 /P R$36.99 /X R$32.95
4. Amazonas Shopping 3.9 mi./6.2 km -- C R$24.98/ P R19.98/ X R$17.95
5. Manauara Shopping 3 mi./4.8 km -- C R$28.98/ P R$24.99/ X R$21.96
6. Mirante Lúcia Almeida (river overlook) 1.1 mi/1.8 km -- C R$18.97/ P R$18.98 /X R$16.94
7. Teatro Amazonas 0.6 mi/1 km -- C R$11.98 / P R$11.98 / X R$9.94

Because my knees aren't as flexible as they used to be and Uber X here tends to use really tiny cars with the driver pushed WAY back, we usually opt for C or P.

i have bought a little scooter a couple of years ago, it’s a 125 cc , so only really useful for short distances. Also it’s comfortable, but much less so if you have a passenger (plus I don’t like the added responsibility). Mine is yellow which is no coincidence, I have been driving a few thousand kilometers with rental cars and wanted something in a bright color to maximize my chances of survival.

On the bright side, fuel prices don’t really make a difference, I guess I must be spending less than 200 Reais per month, by doing short drives nearly every day. It’s so little that I haven’t even been tracking it as an expense until now.

@abthree

I also use Uber quite frequently, and so far i haven’t been in one that’s larger than a compact car (like a Fiat Panda or a Hyundai i20). Most of the times they’re either relatively new or well maintained and clean, but I’m surprised that you manage to get larger cars. Around here, they all seem to be equally small, regardless of the category.

05/18/26  I also use Uber quite frequently, and so far i haven’t been in one that’s larger than a compact car (like a Fiat Panda or a Hyundai i20). Most of the times they’re either relatively new or well maintained and clean, but I’m surprised that you manage to get larger cars. Around here, they all seem to be equally small, regardless of the category. - @Kurterino

While we're isolated with no road connections to most of the rest of the country (although we hope to see that change in the relatively near future), Manaus still is the seventh biggest city in the country, with over 2.3 million people and covers a lot of ground, so we have a wide range of cars of all sizes.  There are a lot of Fiat Argos and smaller, but the Comfort category is dominated by Chevy Onix and Onix Plus, with the odd Peugeot and other makes -- and with one more huge exception.

The Chinese manufacturers seem to have made a counter-intuitive but very shrewd decision that a big Brazilian city where people don't expect to make long road trips because they can't would be a great place to showcase their electric vehicles, and quite a lot of the Uber fleet are EVs, many good sized.  For a long time -- and maybe still -- they were offering eight year warranties on both motor and battery AND free home charging stations,  The cars are spacious and comfortable and of course quiet, and every Uber driver we've talked to just loves them.  An overnight charge lets them work all the next day.   We haven't been in an EV older than about two years yet, though, so no telling how they'll hold up.

@abthree

I do see Chinese EVs everywhere , it’s impressive. I don’t know the brands except for BYD, but they do seem to sell well. Too bad that I never had the pleasure to get an EV Uber.

@Kurterino

1. NIO: A premium EV brand known for its high-performance battery-swapping ecosystem.
2. Zeekr: Backed by Geely, this brand focuses on sleek, European-inspired design and high-end luxury.
3. Xpeng (Xiaopeng): Renowned for its advanced autonomous driving technology and software-heavy approach.
4. Xiaomi: The massive tech giant disrupted the auto industry with highly connected and deeply integrated smart EVs.
5. Li Auto: Specializes in premium plug-in hybrid SUVs designed for family road trips.

@Kurterino

NIO: A premium EV brand known for its high-performance battery-swapping ecosystem.
Zeekr: Backed by Geely, this brand focuses on sleek, European-inspired design and high-end luxury.
Xpeng (Xiaopeng): Renowned for its advanced autonomous driving technology and software-heavy approach.
Xiaomi: The massive tech giant disrupted the auto industry with highly connected and deeply integrated smart EVs.
Li Auto: Specializes in premium plug-in hybrid SUVs designed for family road trips.
- @SimCityAT

All of these names do ring a bell, and I have to say, they all look modern, and seem well built. Of  course, some of them will disappear again or buy each other, and we won’t really know about their reliability and longevity until a few years later, but it’s easy to see why some countries limit (through import taxes) or even prohibit the sale of them. They do have the potential to seriously disrupt the economies of countries that have a strong automotive industry.

05/19/ 25  I do see Chinese EVs everywhere , it’s impressive. I don’t know the brands except for BYD, but they do seem to sell well. Too bad that I never had the pleasure to get an EV Uber. - @Kurterino

So far we've seen three brands here.  The vast majority are BYD, followed by Cherry.  The third is another three-letter nameplate, but neither of us can remember which three letters. 🤣

Ethanol has been R$4.39 for almost two years now.  So, no change for me as my car is flex fuel. If I don't drive I'll walk or take UBER. That is my preferred method of locomotion, chinelos.

I have a driver😎

Roddie in Retirement

Ethanol has been R$4.39 for almost two years now. So, no change for me as my car is flex fuel. If I don't drive I'll walk or take UBER. That is my preferred method of locomotion, chinelos. - @hagece8690

Just a heads-up: lots of vehicles work just fine with gasoline blended with ethanol, but there are some cases where it can end badly: if it’s an older vehicle, like maybe an older motorcycle, I would advise against it, especially if it has a carburetor (instead of fuel injection).

Another case where I would only use pure gasoline, probably more relevant for us immigrants, is if the vehicle is not gonna be used during more than a few weeks. Gasoline evaporates relatively quickly, but ethanol doesn’t, instead it solidifies and you end up with with solid gunk that doesn’t dissolve when fresh gasoline is added. Even if it doesn’t damage anything, cleaning it can be quite involved: it dissolves quite easily in isopropyl alcohol, but it isn’t always easy to introduce the alcohol where it’s needed. A fuel system (from the tank to the carburetor/injector) consists of several feet of hoses with things in between, like for example the fuel pump. So if you plan on maybe leaving Brazil for a couple of months, either never use ethanol or plan ahead and make sure that only pure gasoline is in the vehicle when you leave (or maybe there are additives you can use to stabilize the fuel, but make sure that they work with ethanol)

Good point. I just buy a bottle of fuel stabilizer (STA-BIL brand) if I am travelling for a while and put it in the tank. It is a product that is designed for this application in all types of situations. Gas has it's own issues along these lines as well and this stuff prevents problems.

@Kurterino

"...I would only use pure gasoline..." There really isn't any pure gasoline here in Brazil. It seems that even the high grade called "aditivado" or "grid" is about 30% anhydrous ethanol and I don't know how well STA-BIL deals with the corrosive nature of ethanol on internal car parts.

I opt to stay with name-brand "aditivados" and seldom leave fuel stagnant in vehicles. I hear many complaints from those with small engines that sit idle for long periods (chainsaws, weed whackers and small tractors) that fuel here causes issues.

mberigan

@Kurterino
"...I would only use pure gasoline..." There really isn't any pure gasoline here in Brazil. It seems that even the high grade called "aditivado" or "grid" is about 30% anhydrous ethanol and I don't know how well STA-BIL deals with the corrosive nature of ethanol on internal car parts.
I opt to stay with name-brand "aditivados" and seldom leave fuel stagnant in vehicles. I hear many complaints from those with small engines that sit idle for long periods (chainsaws, weed whackers and small tractors) that fuel here causes issues.
mberigan - @mberigan

I’m glad you told me that, I was totally unaware! But it’s true, there is no pure gasoline available except for aviation gas, which is illegal to use for road vehicles. I will have to buy a good fuel stabilizer to make sure I never have to clean a clogged fuel filter again, it’s not a fun activity.

8 Jun 2026

Not to digress here…

I switched to electric 8 years ago and I never looked back.  In the US, charging on a long trip is not a problem.

How is the charging network in Brazil?  Is there a reliable network that one can use to go on long distance trips?

Cost wise - electric is very effective - especially with solar panels.

Re: gasoline operated small equipment like lawnmowers, weedwacker, generators, etc.  If it is possible, I add a gas filter and a shutoff valve.  The best way to store a gas operated machine is to shutoff the gas supply and run the engine until it stops by itself.  This empties / dries out the carburetor and water does not accumulate there - thus preventing corrosion.  I have tried additives but those tend to make tubes and other small plastic parts either too soft or too hard.

I use this method on all my gasoline powered machines and they all start with one pull - even after storing for more than 1 year.

A friend on the island where I live overestimated his future electric consumption when planning how many solar panels he might need on the roof of his new house. He (effectively) sells electric during the day, and buys it at night (he has no batteries), and, as he creates more than he consumes due to this overestimation, the result is he is always in credit. He can use that credit against any other electric acount in the same name, but he has no other accounts.

So he bought an electric car - and effectively charges it for free, as he can use the excess electric to charge the car! Brilliant...

9 Jun 2026

Going solar can be very advantageous in Brazil - at least for now.  As I understand it, net metering is not yet deployed in the Nordeste - which means when excess solar is pushed back to the grid, the meter goes backwards at the same rate that it goes forward.

Essentially, the utility grid becomes your battery storage for free.  Once net metering is deployed, the utilities will tend to implement time of day policies - which means that the cost of electricity consumption in absence of sun will be much more than credit during full sunlight. 

In California, this cost may be more than 4 x the credit.

The good news is that there is a good likelihood that people who have solar prior to net metering deployment will be “grand father’ed” into the simpler “roll back the meter” scheme.

This is actually the most optimal way to save as there is no need to buy battery packs - which tend to have a 10 year lifetime.

Any idea on how he plans his long trips using the electric car?

Any idea on how he plans his long trips using the electric car? - @Pablo888

Apparently he finds it quite easy to target accomodation with charging points on longer trips... We even have one public one on the island now.

This is just a data point for people considering daily use of an electric car in one of the major cities.

Now, none of you are going to be doing this I imagine, but, it provides numerical "real world and first hand" insight into the costs. I've taken about 4-5 UBER's in Sao Paulo where it was a BYD Dolphin that picked me up. Talking to the drivers was very interesting. They all drove full time until they got a battery warning, as their range was about 300 KM, more or less. Each of them said that their electric bill increased by about R$1.200 a month if they drove 5 days a week. Basically by my back of the napkin calculation that's R$.80 per KM.

I just filled up my VW yesterday with ethanol, and R$185 gets me approximately 420 KM of range, or R$.45 a KM.

STA-BIL makes products for gas, ethanol, and diesel fuels FWIW if that's the way someone decides to go.

My bad. That should be R$.20 a KM for the BYD mileage cost. I inverted the calc when posting.