Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Birmingham and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,608 a month against $2,505 in Birmingham, rent and utilities included – about $10,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

120

Cost of Living Index in Birmingham
Learn more

Birmingham Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index

Jump to prices

Birmingham

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,505

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,505 per month in Birmingham vs $1,608 in Mexico City, rent included.

Birmingham $2,505
Mexico City $1,608

A couple spends around $3,602 per month in Birmingham vs $2,549 in Mexico City, rent included.

Birmingham $3,602
Mexico City $2,549

A family of three spends $4,700 per month in Birmingham vs $3,490 in Mexico City, rent included.

Birmingham $4,700
Mexico City $3,490

Birmingham costs about 56% more than Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Birmingham and Mexico City sit above the global median – Birmingham by 84%, Mexico City by 18%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.89 £14.86

$10.62 MX$200

87.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$93.4 £69.8

$48.35 MX$909

93.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.24 £6.91

$10.35 MX$194

-10.72%

Cappuccino

$5.04 £3.76

$3.69 MX$69.4

36.59%

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

$2.75 £2.06

$1.67 MX$31.32

64.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.97 £1.47

$1.27 MX$23.78

55.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.19 £5.37

$3.19 MX$60.0

125.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.56 £4.90

$5.31 MX$99.7

23.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 £1.43

$1.72 MX$32.41

11.63%

White Bread (500g)

$1.98 £1.48

$3.04 MX$57.1

-34.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.60 £1.94

$1.94 MX$36.48

34.02%

Eggs

$3.93 £2.93

$2.89 MX$54.3

35.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.83 £6.60

$10.97 MX$206

-19.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.80 £6.58

$9.25 MX$174

-4.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.04 £11.24

$15.13 MX$284

-0.59%

Apples (1kg)

$2.56 £1.91

$3.05 MX$57.3

-16.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.80 £1.34

$1.94 MX$36.48

-7.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.72 £2.03

$2.03 MX$38.06

33.99%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.88 £2.90

$2.31 MX$43.50

67.97%

Potato (1kg)

$1.79 £1.33

$2.04 MX$38.25

-12.25%

Onion (1kg)

$1.72 £1.28

$1.80 MX$33.83

-4.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 £1.07

$1.48 MX$27.80

-2.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 £1.19

$1.27 MX$23.82

25.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.11 £16.52

$5.30 MX$99.7

317.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.08 £9.02

$16.10 MX$303

-24.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.74 £2.80

$1.98 MX$37.27

88.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.58 £2.68

$4.25 MX$79.9

-15.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.06 £3.03

$0.31 MX$5.73

1209.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$94.7 £70.7

$19.73 MX$371

379.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.10 £3.81

$1.84 MX$34.53

177.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.35 £1.76

$0.53 MX$10.03

343.40%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.97 £17.91

$5.30 MX$99.5

352.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.10 £1.57

$1.51 MX$28.39

39.07%

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

$38.7K £28.9K

$21.8K MX$408.8K

77.83%

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

$40.6K £30.4K

$24.0K MX$450.8K

69.44%

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

$319 £239

$63.0 MX$1,184

407.22%

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

$21.51 £16.07

$27.39 MX$515

-21.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$49.25 £36.80

$35.67 MX$670

38.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.63 £25.13

$58.9 MX$1,108

-42.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.44 £22.74

$23.64 MX$444

28.76%

Cinema Ticket

$16.02 £11.97

$6.40 MX$120

150.31%

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

$1,657 £1,238

$432 MX$8,111

283.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.1K £18.0K

$11.4K MX$214.7K

110.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$106 £78.8

$68.2 MX$1,282

54.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.90 £37.28

$53.1 MX$999

-6.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$120 £89.7

$108 MX$2,026

11.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$151 £113

$117 MX$2,204

28.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,401 £1,047

$1,113 MX$20.9K

25.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,096 £819

$710 MX$13.4K

54.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,034 £1,519

$2,588 MX$48.6K

-21.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,609 £1,202

$1,406 MX$26.4K

14.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,064 £3,783

$3,631 MX$68.2K

39.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,238 £3,166

$2,135 MX$40.1K

98.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,441 £3,317

$946 MX$17.8K

369.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.09

11.35

-55.15%

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

Last update for Birmingham: 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

Birmingham

$1.1K 43.8%

Mexico City

$710 44.2% 35.2% $385

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Birmingham

$390 15.6%

Mexico City

$126 7.8% 67.7% $264

Groceries & Markets

Birmingham

$318 12.7%

Mexico City

$320 19.9% 0.4% $1.3

Eating Out

Birmingham

$315 12.6%

Mexico City

$199 12.4% 37% $117

Clothing & Footwear

Birmingham

$192 7.7%

Mexico City

$156 9.7% 18.8% $36

Getting Around

Birmingham

$128 5.1%

Mexico City

$25 1.6% 80.1% $102

Sport & Entertainment

Birmingham

$66 2.6%

Mexico City

$72 4.5% 9.2% $6.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,401 in Birmingham versus $1,113 in Mexico City. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Birmingham are about 4.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $93 in Birmingham versus $48 in Mexico City. Groceries tell a different story – $318 in Birmingham vs $320 in Mexico City – so Birmingham wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Birmingham

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

03:23 3:23 AM

21:23 9:23 PM

6 h behind Birmingham

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,036,878

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.747 GBP (1 GBP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.834 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.98 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Birmingham Mexico City 8,780 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Birmingham
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $2,505 in Birmingham, $1,608 in Mexico City – Mexico City comes out roughly 36% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,757 per month in Birmingham and $2,412 in Mexico City. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Mexico City, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,113 there versus $1,401 in Birmingham.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,505 in Birmingham and $1,608 in Mexico City. That makes Mexico City about 36% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $1,657 per month in Birmingham and $432 in Mexico City. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$3,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $2,505 in Birmingham and $1,608 in Mexico City, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Mexico City – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Mexico City. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Birmingham makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.