By Brazil Stock Guide – The next time you pay R$50 (US$8.90) for a coffee and a cheese bread at the airport, know that you’re also helping to keep Brazil’s boarding fees among the cheapest in the world. That’s the logic laid out by Tiago Sousa Pereira, director at Brazil’s civil aviation agency Anac, who said that revenues from pricey airport cafés and shops help balance the books of private concessionaires.
“Who doesn’t think airport snacks are expensive? They are — R$40, R$50 for a pão de queijo (cheese bread) and a coffee — but there’s a reason behind it,” Pereira said at Regulation Week, an event hosted by FGV Direito Rio on Monday (Oct. 13). “This high price is what allows our airport fees to be the lowest in the world. In Guarulhos or Galeão, international boarding costs are US$10 to US$13. In the Caribbean, you pay US$200”, he said, according to Folha de S. Paulo.
The director admitted that most airport concessions in Brazil wouldn’t be financially viable relying solely on regulated boarding fees. Instead, commercial income — from cafés, restaurants, and duty-free stores — has become the essential cushion that keeps operations afloat. “The passenger has to pay the boarding fee, so that’s regulated. But the commercial side isn’t. Each airport has its own strategy,” he said.
Pereira’s remarks came amid a broader debate over whether airports should pay property tax (IPTU), a dispute now before the Supreme Court. His point, however, was simpler: Brazil’s aviation economics depend on every source of income, regulated or not. In the end, the overpriced cheese bread may be the only thing preventing your boarding ticket from costing a lot more.
Complaints about airport food and beverage prices are far from isolated. Surveys by Brazil’s National Confederation of Transport (CNT) consistently show that the cost of meals and snacks ranks among the most criticized aspects of airport services across the country’s 20 largest terminals. In the latest assessments, restaurants and cafés received the lowest satisfaction scores among dozens of service categories.
Meanwhile, more Brazilians are taking to the skies than ever before. According to ANAC, airlines carried around 118 million passengers in 2024, marking the second-best performance in the country’s history. Domestic demand grew 10.8% year over year, while international traffic surged 15%. Data from IBGE also show that air travel now accounts for 14.7% of all trips in Brazil, up from 11.9% by bus.