Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bangkok and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Bangkok: $1,112 a month against $1,548 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

54

Cost of Living Index in Bangkok
Learn more

Bangkok Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index

Jump to prices

Bangkok

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,112

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,548

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,112 in Bangkok versus $1,548 in Mexico City.

Bangkok $1,112
Mexico City $1,548

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,788 in Bangkok versus $2,436 in Mexico City.

Bangkok $1,788
Mexico City $2,436

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,464 in Bangkok versus $3,323 in Mexico City.

Bangkok $2,464
Mexico City $3,323

Living in Bangkok costs roughly 28% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bangkok is 18% below, Mexico City is 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.95 ฿98.7

$11.02 MX$204

-73.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.13 ฿1,174

$48.68 MX$900

-27.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.33 ฿245

$10.90 MX$201

-32.75%

Cappuccino

$2.73 ฿91.3

$3.68 MX$68.1

-25.82%

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

$0.62 ฿20.78

$1.63 MX$30.18

-61.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 ฿12.17

$1.25 MX$23.07

-71.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.63 ฿87.9

$3.25 MX$60.1

-19.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 ฿145

$5.53 MX$102

-21.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.85 ฿61.8

$1.70 MX$31.50

8.82%

White Bread (500g)

$1.51 ฿50.5

$3.02 MX$55.8

-50.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.34 ฿44.72

$1.92 MX$35.53

-30.21%

Eggs

$2.62 ฿87.4

$2.73 MX$50.5

-4.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.10 ฿572

$11.77 MX$218

45.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.67 ฿123

$9.53 MX$176

-61.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.83 ฿429

$14.41 MX$266

-10.96%

Apples (1kg)

$3.73 ฿125

$3.02 MX$55.8

23.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 ฿58.2

$1.89 MX$35.01

-7.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.79 ฿93.2

$1.99 MX$36.70

40.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.88 ฿62.9

$2.19 MX$40.38

-14.16%

Potato (1kg)

$1.75 ฿58.4

$1.92 MX$35.43

-8.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 ฿49.68

$1.87 MX$34.49

-20.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.24 ฿41.51

$1.44 MX$26.62

-13.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.22

$1.27 MX$23.39

-56.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.73 ฿158

$5.22 MX$96.4

-9.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.10 ฿505

$16.17 MX$299

-6.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 ฿59.0

$1.90 MX$35.03

-6.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 ฿106

$4.22 MX$78.0

-24.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.11 ฿37.19

$0.34 MX$6.30

226.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$34.46 ฿1,152

$19.65 MX$363

75.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.06 ฿35.47

$2.00 MX$36.90

-47.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.15 ฿38.60

$0.52 MX$9.67

121.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.81 ฿194

$5.34 MX$98.7

8.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.41 ฿47.14

$1.52 MX$28.13

-7.24%

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

$31.7K ฿1.1M

$22.1K MX$408.0K

43.79%

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

$26.6K ฿887.8K

$24.5K MX$452.9K

8.39%

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

$108 ฿3,612

$61.1 MX$1,129

76.98%

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

$15.14 ฿506

$28.58 MX$528

-47.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.15 ฿607

$34.47 MX$637

-47.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.6 ฿1,857

$56.4 MX$1,042

-1.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.54 ฿620

$24.88 MX$460

-25.48%

Cinema Ticket

$7.82 ฿261

$6.66 MX$123

17.42%

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

$569 ฿19.0K

$427 MX$7,891

33.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.7K ฿557.0K

$11.6K MX$215.0K

43.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.9 ฿2,371

$67.8 MX$1,253

4.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.61 ฿1,424

$52.0 MX$960

-17.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 ฿3,361

$106 MX$1,959

-5.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 ฿3,560

$113 MX$2,080

-5.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$673 ฿22.5K

$1,025 MX$18.9K

-34.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$333 ฿11.1K

$654 MX$12.1K

-49.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,982 ฿66.2K

$2,308 MX$42.7K

-14.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$732 ฿24.5K

$1,242 MX$22.9K

-41.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,236 ฿208.4K

$3,613 MX$66.8K

72.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,096 ฿103.5K

$1,936 MX$35.8K

59.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$626 ฿20.9K

$964 MX$17.8K

-35.10%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.25

11.3

-53.54%

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

Last update for Bangkok: October 18, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bangkok

$333 30%

Mexico City

$654 42.3% 96.4% $321

Groceries & Markets

Bangkok

$272 24.5%

Mexico City

$318 20.6% 16.8% $46

Clothing & Footwear

Bangkok

$144 13%

Mexico City

$152 9.8% 5.5% $7.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bangkok

$141 12.7%

Mexico City

$124 8% 12.2% $17

Eating Out

Bangkok

$104 9.4%

Mexico City

$204 13.2% 95.6% $100

Sport & Entertainment

Bangkok

$71 6.4%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 2.1% $1.5

Getting Around

Bangkok

$46 4.1%

Mexico City

$26 1.7% 44% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $673 in Bangkok and $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 54% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $35.00 in Bangkok vs $49.00 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $318 per month, with Bangkok cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Bangkok

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

22:34 10:34 PM

09:34 9:34 AM

13 h behind Bangkok

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,666,264 Capital

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bangkok Mexico City 15,750 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Bangkok
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

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

Bangkok and Mexico City differ by about 39% in total monthly costs ($1,112 vs $1,548 including rent). Bangkok is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 54% lower in Mexico City. 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: $673 in Bangkok versus $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Bangkok – a meal for two runs $35.00 versus $49.00 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,112 per month in Bangkok versus $1,548 in Mexico City – a 39% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,112 in Bangkok versus $1,548 in Mexico City, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bangkok but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Bangkok 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.

Safety-wise, Bangkok and Mexico City are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Bangkok gentler on the wallet – expenses run 39% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.