Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Balikpapan and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Balikpapan: $669 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $11,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

32

Cost of Living Index in Balikpapan
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Balikpapan Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index

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Balikpapan

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$669

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Balikpapan 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 Balikpapan and in Mexico City actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $669 in Balikpapan versus $1,608 in Mexico City.

Balikpapan $669
Mexico City $1,608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,057 in Balikpapan versus $2,549 in Mexico City.

Balikpapan $1,057
Mexico City $2,549

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,444 in Balikpapan versus $3,490 in Mexico City.

Balikpapan $1,444
Mexico City $3,490

Living in Balikpapan costs roughly 58% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Balikpapan is 51% below, Mexico City is 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.40 Rp 25.4K

$10.62 MX$197

-86.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$10.88 Rp 197.7K

$48.35 MX$898

-77.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.02 Rp 54.8K

$10.35 MX$192

-70.82%

Cappuccino

$1.34 Rp 24.4K

$3.69 MX$68.5

-63.69%

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

$0.35 Rp 6,320

$1.67 MX$30.95

-79.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.39 Rp 7,034

$1.27 MX$23.50

-69.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.25 Rp 40.8K

$3.19 MX$59.3

-29.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.51 Rp 63.7K

$5.31 MX$98.6

-33.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 Rp 20.5K

$1.72 MX$32.03

-34.30%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 Rp 19.1K

$3.04 MX$56.5

-65.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.17 Rp 21.3K

$1.94 MX$36.05

-39.69%

Eggs

$2.43 Rp 44.1K

$2.89 MX$53.6

-15.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.14 Rp 129.7K

$10.97 MX$204

-34.91%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.98 Rp 54.1K

$9.25 MX$172

-67.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.63 Rp 156.8K

$15.13 MX$281

-42.96%

Apples (1kg)

$2.18 Rp 39.6K

$3.05 MX$56.6

-28.52%

Banana (1kg)

$1.31 Rp 23.7K

$1.94 MX$36.05

-32.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 Rp 28.0K

$2.03 MX$37.61

-24.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.19 Rp 21.6K

$2.31 MX$42.99

-48.48%

Potato (1kg)

$1.20 Rp 21.8K

$2.04 MX$37.79

-41.18%

Onion (1kg)

$1.95 Rp 35.5K

$1.80 MX$33.43

8.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.84 Rp 15.3K

$1.48 MX$27.47

-43.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 Rp 13.0K

$1.27 MX$23.54

-43.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.78 Rp 32.2K

$5.30 MX$98.5

-66.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.12 Rp 383.5K

$16.10 MX$299

31.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 Rp 32.6K

$1.98 MX$36.83

-9.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.98 Rp 54.0K

$4.25 MX$79.0

-29.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.23 Rp 4,151

$0.31 MX$5.67

-25.81%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.50 Rp 208.8K

$19.73 MX$367

-41.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.11 Rp 20.2K

$1.84 MX$34.13

-39.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 Rp 5,189

$0.53 MX$9.91

-45.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.81 Rp 51.0K

$5.30 MX$98.3

-46.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.75 Rp 13.7K

$1.51 MX$28.05

-50.33%

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

$23.2K Rp 420.9M

$21.8K MX$404.0K

6.53%

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

$31.4K Rp 570.2M

$24.0K MX$445.4K

30.90%

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

$64.1 Rp 1.2M

$63.0 MX$1,170

1.81%

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

$4.19 Rp 76.1K

$27.39 MX$509

-84.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.48 Rp 535.4K

$35.67 MX$662

-17.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$23.84 Rp 432.9K

$58.9 MX$1,095

-59.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.27 Rp 150.3K

$23.64 MX$439

-65.02%

Cinema Ticket

$2.82 Rp 51.3K

$6.40 MX$119

-55.94%

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

$91.6 Rp 1.7M

$432 MX$8,015

-78.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,145 Rp 166.1M

$11.4K MX$212.1K

-19.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$37.81 Rp 686.7K

$68.2 MX$1,267

-44.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.66 Rp 338.9K

$53.1 MX$987

-64.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$140 Rp 2.5M

$108 MX$2,002

29.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$70.6 Rp 1.3M

$117 MX$2,178

-39.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$197 Rp 3.6M

$1,113 MX$20.7K

-82.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$143 Rp 2.6M

$710 MX$13.2K

-79.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$559 Rp 10.2M

$2,588 MX$48.1K

-78.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$362 Rp 6.6M

$1,406 MX$26.1K

-74.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,323 Rp 24.0M

$3,631 MX$67.4K

-63.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$777 Rp 14.1M

$2,135 MX$39.6K

-63.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$238 Rp 4.3M

$946 MX$17.6K

-74.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.46

11.35

-16.65%

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

Last update for Balikpapan: October 27, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Balikpapan

$206 30.8%

Mexico City

$320 19.9% 55.2% $114

Accommodation & Living

Balikpapan

$143 21.4%

Mexico City

$710 44.2% 396% $567

Clothing & Footwear

Balikpapan

$120 18%

Mexico City

$156 9.7% 29.6% $36

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Balikpapan

$98 14.6%

Mexico City

$126 7.8% 28.9% $28

Eating Out

Balikpapan

$58 8.6%

Mexico City

$199 12.4% 245% $141

Sport & Entertainment

Balikpapan

$29 4.4%

Mexico City

$72 4.5% 143% $42

Getting Around

Balikpapan

$15 2.2%

Mexico City

$25 1.6% 70.3% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $197 in Balikpapan and $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays about 4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $11 in Balikpapan vs $48 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $320 per month, with Balikpapan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Balikpapan

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

13:50 1:50 PM

23:50 11:50 PM

14 h behind Balikpapan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

701,066

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.91 EUR

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18,161 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD). 1 EUR = 20,355 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.91 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.57 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.8 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Balikpapan Mexico City 15,610 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Balikpapan
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $669 in Balikpapan and $1,608 in Mexico City, so Balikpapan is about 58% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 75% lower in Balikpapan. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $197 in Balikpapan versus $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Balikpapan runs roughly 42% less than in Mexico City. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $92 in Balikpapan versus $432 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $669 in Balikpapan versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Balikpapan but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Balikpapan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Expats usually find Balikpapan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 58% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.