Essential Apps for Brazil Travel

TL;DR – install these right away

Category	Apps
Taxi	99, Uber, InDriver
Maps	Google Maps
Translation	Google Translate
Payments	Wise, Revolut
Food delivery	iFood
Dining & booking	Google Maps, GetYourGuide
Accommodation	Booking.com

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1. Taxi & transport

99 (Noventa e Nove)

📱 Download: App Store | Google Play

Brazil's largest ride-hailing app, founded in São Paulo in 2012. Now owned and operated by China's DiDi, it's usable in more than 500 cities across Brazil, including Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Iguaçu, Fortaleza, and Salvador. It offers a range of options: 99Pop (standard), 99Comfort (mid-size), 99Black (premium), and 99Moto (motorcycle). It forms one of Brazil's two dominant players alongside Uber, and in some areas 99 has more available cars than Uber, matching you faster. Pre-registering a credit or debit card in the app lets you get out without any cash exchange, reducing your risk of theft. Note that demand spikes dramatically during Rio's Carnival season (February–March), triggering surge pricing.

⚠️ A note on safety: Brazil requires some care around personal safety. Never take an unofficial taxi at the airport or a bus terminal. App-based rides through 99 or Uber are relatively safer since the driver's info and vehicle plate number are logged. When taking out your phone to use an app at spots like Rio's Copacabana Beach, stay aware of your surroundings, and where possible, request the ride from inside your accommodation or a café before heading out.

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Uber

📱 Download: App Store | Google Play

Operating nationwide in Brazil, with especially wide availability in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro thanks to a large pool of drivers. Offers a range of options: UberX (standard), Uber Comfort, Uber Flash (quick matching), and Uber Reserva (advance booking). You can request an Uber from Rio's international airport (Galeão) or São Paulo's Guarulhos Airport, but pickup is restricted to designated zones — follow the in-app instructions. It's effective to keep both 99 and Uber open at once and go with whichever matches you faster.

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InDriver

📱 Download: App Store | Google Play

A fare-negotiation ride-hailing app, especially useful in smaller Brazilian cities and on long-distance routes. In areas with fewer Uber/99 cars, like around Iguazu Falls, you can find a ride at a low fare. As a rider, you propose your desired fare first, and the driver either accepts or counters. That said, driver information can be relatively less verified, so always check the driver's in-app rating and reviews. Locals in Brazil also frequently use it for long-distance travel.

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2. Maps & navigation

Google Maps

📱 Download: App Store | Google Play

An essential map app for traveling in Brazil. Provides real-time transfer information covering São Paulo's metro (Metrô) and bus (SPTrans) lines, and Rio's metro, VLT tram, and ferry connections. It also gives detailed guidance for Iguaçu National Park trails, the route up to Christ the Redeemer, and the path along Copacabana and Ipanema beaches. Save offline maps for Rio and São Paulo in advance to navigate public transit and walking routes without a data connection. Map data can be sparse around the Manaus region in the Amazon, so rely more on a local tour guide there.

💡 Tip: São Paulo is one of the most gridlocked cities in the world. Keep Google Maps's "live traffic" feature on at all times and rely heavily on the metro/Metrobus. Avoid driving during peak hours (7–9am, 5–8pm).

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3. Translation

Google Translate

📱 Download: App Store | Google Play

Brazil's official language is Portuguese. English gets you partly by in Rio and São Paulo's tourist areas, but Portuguese is essential at local restaurants, supermarkets, and bus terminals. Brazilian Portuguese differs in accent and vocabulary from European Portuguese, but Google Translate supports both dialects. The camera translation feature lets you instantly decode a restaurant menu (usually Portuguese-only), and downloading the Portuguese offline pack (about 45MB) in advance lets you use it without a data connection. Conversation mode is especially useful for asking locals for directions or haggling.

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4. Payments

Wise

📱 Download: App Store | Google Play

One of the best options for exchanging and paying in Brazilian real (BRL). Wise converts at the mid-market rate and offers free ATM withdrawals up to a monthly limit. When withdrawing from a Brazilian ATM, always decline the DCC option (withdrawing in dollars) and choose to withdraw in BRL. Banco24Horas, Bradesco, and Itaú ATMs work well with foreign cards. Brazil's PIX (instant transfer system) is difficult to access with a foreign card, so it's safer to carry both cash and an international card as a backup.

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Revolut

📱 Download: App Store | Google Play

A fintech app that lets you hold and pay in over 150 currencies, including the Brazilian real, at real-time exchange rates. Card fees tend to run high in Brazil, so Revolut's low fees pay off even more here. The virtual card feature strengthens security when entering card details for online bookings. Top up your balance with reals before your trip and you can pay by card immediately once you're there.

💡 Cash tip: cash is essential near Rio's favelas, when visiting the Argentine side of Iguazu Falls, and at small local restaurants. Always carry some small-denomination reals in cash.

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5. Food delivery

iFood

📱 Download: App Store | Google Play

Brazil's largest food delivery platform, founded in 2011. Operating in more than 1,000 cities across Brazil, including São Paulo, Rio, and Iguaçu, and holding roughly 80% of Brazil's delivery market. Thousands of restaurants are on the platform, from local Brazilian classics like feijoada (black bean stew), churrasco (barbecue), açaí bowls, and pão de queijo (cheese bread) to global chains. The interface is in Portuguese, but you can translate the screen with Google Translate to place an order. Subscribing to iFood Club cuts delivery fees and adds extra discounts. Payment supports card, Pix, and cash on delivery.

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6. Tours & activity bookings

GetYourGuide

📱 Download: App Store | Google Play

Book Brazil's core tours: a Rio de Janeiro Christ the Redeemer tour, an Ipanema/Copacabana beach tour, an Iguazu Falls boat tour, Amazon jungle trekking, or a Pantanal safari. Cancellation policies are flexible. During Rio's Carnival season, you can also book samba school tours and marketplace tours. Korean-language guided tours are rare, but English-language guided tours are widely available.

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Booking.com

📱 Download: App Store | Google Play

Compare and book accommodations across Brazil — Rio, São Paulo, Iguaçu, Fortaleza, and more. Use the "free cancellation" filter to cancel without penalty if your plans change. For accommodations near Iguazu Falls, compare both the Brazilian side (Foz do Iguaçu) and the Argentine side (Iguazú). During Carnival and Rio's New Year's celebration (Réveillon), accommodations sell out as much as a year in advance, so booking early is critical.

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App installation checklist

• 99 (essential for Brazilian ride-hailing)
• Uber (as an alternative to compare against 99)
• Google Maps (offline saving essential)
• Google Translate (Portuguese offline pack)
• Wise or Revolut (real exchange, ATM withdrawals)
• iFood (food delivery)
• GetYourGuide (Iguazu/Rio tour bookings)
• Booking.com (accommodation bookings)

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Why an eSIM matters for a Brazil trip

Requesting a 99 or Uber, navigating with Google Maps, using Google Translate, ordering with iFood, checking tour tickets — data is essential throughout a Brazil trip. Given Brazil's safety considerations in particular, losing your data connection and being unable to request a ride could put you in a risky spot. Install an eSIM from home in advance and you'll have data the moment you land at São Paulo or Rio's airport, which matters for safety. For a longer stay, a local SIM is also worth considering, but for a short trip, eSIM is the simplest option.

👉 Compare the best Brazil eSIM prices on esimoa

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Note: app details are current as of 2025 and service policies may change.