Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,608 a month against $1,759 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

85

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,759

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Mexico City

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Athens and in Mexico City actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,759 in Athens versus $1,608 in Mexico City.

Athens $1,759
Mexico City $1,608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,696 in Athens versus $2,549 in Mexico City.

Athens $2,696
Mexico City $2,549

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,632 in Athens versus $3,490 in Mexico City.

Athens $3,632
Mexico City $3,490

Living in Athens is roughly 9% more expensive than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Athens 29% above, Mexico City 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.05 €15.27

$10.62 MX$199

60.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 €59.0

$48.35 MX$908

36.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.96 €9.81

$10.35 MX$194

5.89%

Cappuccino

$4.10 €3.68

$3.69 MX$69.3

11.11%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.83 €2.54

$1.67 MX$31.29

69.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.59 €0.53

$1.27 MX$23.76

-53.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.62 €5.04

$3.19 MX$59.9

76.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.67 €5.08

$5.31 MX$99.6

6.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.90 €1.70

$1.72 MX$32.38

10.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 €1.31

$3.04 MX$57.1

-51.97%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.71 €2.42

$1.94 MX$36.44

39.69%

Eggs

$5.04 €4.52

$2.89 MX$54.2

74.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.08 €13.50

$10.97 MX$206

37.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.28 €9.20

$9.25 MX$174

11.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.40 €17.37

$15.13 MX$284

28.22%

Apples (1kg)

$2.12 €1.90

$3.05 MX$57.2

-30.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.94 MX$36.45

-1.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.41 €1.26

$2.03 MX$38.02

-30.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.13 €1.91

$2.31 MX$43.46

-7.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 €0.94

$2.04 MX$38.21

-49.02%

Onion (1kg)

$1.13 €1.01

$1.80 MX$33.79

-37.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 €1.01

$1.48 MX$27.77

-23.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.81 €0.73

$1.27 MX$23.80

-36.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.52 €4.94

$5.30 MX$99.6

4.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.99 €8.95

$16.10 MX$302

-37.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.04 €1.82

$1.98 MX$37.23

3.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 €2.04

$4.25 MX$79.8

-46.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.31 €1.17

$0.31 MX$5.73

322.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.67 €27.47

$19.73 MX$371

55.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.37 €3.91

$1.84 MX$34.50

137.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 €0.92

$0.53 MX$10.02

94.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.05 €15.27

$5.30 MX$99.4

221.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 €2.10

$1.51 MX$28.36

54.97%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$28.3K €25.3K

$21.8K MX$408.4K

29.88%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$26.8K €24.0K

$24.0K MX$450.3K

11.59%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$200 €179

$63.0 MX$1,182

217.35%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$25.17 €22.55

$27.39 MX$514

-8.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.65 €26.56

$35.67 MX$670

-16.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.4 €45.17

$58.9 MX$1,107

-14.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.94 €23.23

$23.64 MX$444

9.73%

Cinema Ticket

$10.52 €9.43

$6.40 MX$120

64.37%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$576 €516

$432 MX$8,103

33.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.9K €11.6K

$11.4K MX$214.5K

13.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.7 €80.3

$68.2 MX$1,281

31.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.57 €35.44

$53.1 MX$997

-25.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €94.4

$108 MX$2,023

-2.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$117 MX$2,202

5.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$740 €663

$1,113 MX$20.9K

-33.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$643 €576

$710 MX$13.3K

-9.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,305 €1,169

$2,588 MX$48.6K

-49.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,121 €1,004

$1,406 MX$26.4K

-20.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,011 €3,593

$3,631 MX$68.2K

10.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,284 €2,941

$2,135 MX$40.1K

53.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,224 €1,096

$946 MX$17.8K

29.33%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

11.35

-60.53%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Athens: October 25, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$643 36.5%

Mexico City

$710 44.2% 10.5% $68

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$312 17.7%

Mexico City

$320 19.9% 2.4% $7.4

Eating Out

Athens

$272 15.4%

Mexico City

$199 12.4% 26.9% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$255 14.5%

Mexico City

$126 7.8% 50.5% $129

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$161 9.2%

Mexico City

$156 9.7% 3.4% $5.5

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$71 4.1%

Mexico City

$72 4.5% 0.4% $0.3

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.6%

Mexico City

$25 1.6% 44% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $740 in Athens and $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Athens pays 29% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $66 in Athens vs $48 in Mexico City. Groceries flip the comparison at $312 vs $320, with Athens cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

07:30 7:30 AM

23:30 11:30 PM

8 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Athens Mexico City 11,280 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Mexico City

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Athens vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City wins on cost – living expenses run 9% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Mexico City the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 29% higher in Athens, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $740 in Athens versus $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $576 in Athens versus $432 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Mexico City – a meal for two runs $48 versus $66 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Mexico City gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

It comes down to priorities – Mexico City wins on affordability, Athens on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.