Austin vs Berlin vs Lviv vs Playa del Carmen vs Rio de Janeiro

	Austin 🇺🇸 Remove	Berlin 🇩🇪 Remove	Lviv 🇺🇦 Remove	Playa del Carmen 🇲🇽 Remove	Rio de Janeiro 🇧🇷 Remove
Population	926,426	3,400,000	731,387	259,453	6,718,903
Official language(s)	English (de facto)	German	Ukrainian	Spanish	Portuguese
Level of English	Very high	Very high	Low	Moderate	Low
Main airport	Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS)	Berlin Tegel (TXL)	Lviv Danylo Halytskyi International Airport (LWO)	Cancun International Airport (CUN)	Galeão International Airport
Most common months to visit	March - May, September - November	May - September	May - September	January - May, October - December	January - March, December
Currency	USD - US Dollar ($)	EUR - Euro (€)	UAH - Ukrainian Hryvnia (₴)	MXN - Mexican Peso ($)	BRL - Brazilian Real (R$)
Credit cards	Accepted almost everywhere	Accepted in some places but cash often preferred	Accepted almost everywhere	Accepted almost everywhere	Accepted everywhere
Remote worker visa	No	Yes	No	Yes	No
Average monthly costs	$3484	$2200	$922	$2143	$1833
Rent	$1650	$939	$400	$923	$1066
Groceries	$243	$188	$91	$127	$95
Dining out	$396	$271	$151	$207	$210
Cafe	$66	$57	$21	$42	$25
Coworking space	$331	$174	$79	$160	$130
Mobile internet	$40	$23	$4	$21	$7
Public transportation	$110	$88	$5	$17	$33
Taxis	$73	$58	$12	$9	$14
Shared bicycles and scooters	$96	$17	$16	$49	$16
Sport and cultural events	$54	$64	$13	$97	$55
Museums and sights	$11	$37	$9	$217	$26
Nightlife	$124	$63	$43	$77	$54
Gym	$62	$66	$22	$42	$31
Yoga	$139	$99	$30	$54	$40
Massage	$89	$56	$27	$101	$32
SIM card options	AT&T, T-Mobile.	Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone	Vodafone, Kyivstar	Telcel, Movistar	Tim, Claro, Vivo
Tipping	15-20% at restaurants, 1USD or more per drink at cafes and bars	Round up for restaurants, not common for bars and services	10% in restaurants, not expected elsewhere	10-15% for restaurants	10% usually included in restaurants, 10% at bars and cafes with table service is common
Taxi apps	Uber, Lyft	Mytaxi, Uber	Uber, Uklon	N/A	Easy Taxi, 99 Taxi, Uber
Tap water	Drinkable	Drinkable	Not drinkable	Not drinkable	Not drinkable
Overall cuisine	Emphasis on barbecued meats (beef and pork) as well as corn-based dishes and tex-mex, and rich American-style desserts.	Heavy and hearty meals with plenty of meat, potatoes and bread	Slavic. Emphasis on frilled meats combined with potatoes, carrots, pickles and cabbage. Creamy deserts often elaborated with cottage cheese. Lviv enjoys culinary influences from Kiev (traditional with an emphasis on chicken) and Odessa (various seafood dishes).	Staple dishes from maize, beans, sweet potato and avocado along with meat, chili peppers and other spices	Emphasis on rice, beans, pork and beef with a variety of root vegetables and fresh fruits. Fresh seafood is also very common.
Local food specialities	Frito pie, queso, apple pie, kolaches, BBQ ribs, tacos	Currywurst, spätzle, königsberger klopse, schnitzel, eisbein, doner kebab, pretzels	Lviv cheesecake, fish Zupa, Tsivikli, Karmanadli, Banosh, Borscht, Salo, Syrnyky	Chilaquiles, tacos al pastor, chile rellenos, cochinita pibil, tostadas, pozole	Feijoada, bolinho de bacalhau, fried sardines, caldo verde, pao de queijo and brigadeiros.
Eat like a local	Local tex-mex restaurants, lunch BBQ joints, taquerias, food trucks, local breweries	Brew pubs, cafes, bars, deli shops	Local grills, themed taverns, local breweries, small bakeries	Taco stands, esquite stalls, El Fogon, El Pirata, Dona Mary's	The "snack capital" of Brazil, Rio is a perfect place to try street food as well as the wide varieties of small, traditional eateries and churrascarias easily found across the city.
Vegetarian / vegan options	30 options on HappyCow	844 listings on Happy Cow	9 options on HappyCow	72 listings on Happy Cow	54 options on Happy Cow