Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Brea, CA and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,674 a month against $3,746 in Brea, CA, rent and utilities included – about $24,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

178

Cost of Living Index in Brea, CA
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Brea, CA Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Brea, CA

🇺🇸 United States

$3,746

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,746 in Brea, CA versus $1,674 in Mexico City.

Brea, CA $3,746
Mexico City $1,674

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,108 in Brea, CA versus $2,606 in Mexico City.

Brea, CA $5,108
Mexico City $2,606

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,470 in Brea, CA versus $3,537 in Mexico City.

Brea, CA $6,470
Mexico City $3,537

Living in Brea, CA is roughly 124% 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: Brea, CA 177% above, Mexico City 24% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.77 $24.77

$10.59 MX$199

133.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$76.4 $76.4

$52.0 MX$978

47.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.18 $12.18

$10.73 MX$202

13.51%

Cappuccino

$5.79 $5.79

$3.80 MX$71.4

52.37%

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

$2.79 $2.79

$1.61 MX$30.35

73.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 $1.95

$1.21 MX$22.81

61.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.20 $7.20

$3.18 MX$59.8

126.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.95 $9.95

$5.44 MX$102

82.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 $1.19

$1.72 MX$32.32

-30.81%

White Bread (500g)

$5.20 $5.20

$2.97 MX$55.8

75.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.28 $4.28

$1.93 MX$36.24

121.76%

Eggs

$5.09 $5.09

$2.77 MX$52.2

83.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.61 $15.61

$11.67 MX$220

33.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.92 $8.92

$9.48 MX$178

-5.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.79 $13.79

$15.37 MX$289

-10.28%

Apples (1kg)

$4.64 $4.64

$3.10 MX$58.4

49.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.96 MX$36.90

-10.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.19 $4.19

$1.98 MX$37.30

111.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.72 $5.72

$2.34 MX$43.95

144.44%

Potato (1kg)

$3.62 $3.62

$2.02 MX$38.08

79.21%

Onion (1kg)

$3.14 $3.14

$1.82 MX$34.34

72.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.06 $2.06

$1.54 MX$29.06

33.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.23 $2.23

$1.31 MX$24.70

70.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.62 $11.62

$5.35 MX$101

117.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.03 $15.03

$16.19 MX$305

-7.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 $1.77

$1.96 MX$36.87

-9.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.84 $3.84

$4.35 MX$81.9

-11.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.74

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$367

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.42 $4.42

$1.92 MX$36.08

130.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.91 $1.91

$0.47 MX$8.90

306.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.52 $35.52

$5.41 MX$102

556.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.64 $1.64

$1.48 MX$27.92

10.81%

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

$27.6K $27.6K

$21.4K MX$402.2K

29.06%

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

$26.8K $26.8K

$23.8K MX$447.1K

12.86%

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

$213 $213

$62.0 MX$1,167

244.07%

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

$70.7 $70.7

$28.47 MX$536

148.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$69.2 $69.2

$34.11 MX$642

102.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.63 $29.63

$58.4 MX$1,099

-49.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.82 $19.82

$24.50 MX$461

-19.10%

Cinema Ticket

$19.74 $19.74

$6.59 MX$124

199.54%

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

$1,159 $1,159

$434 MX$8,172

167.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.9K $12.9K

$14.0K MX$264.1K

-8.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.7 $61.7

$68.4 MX$1,286

-9.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.43 $41.43

$54.8 MX$1,031

-24.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.8 $79.8

$111 MX$2,086

-28.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 $105

$116 MX$2,183

-9.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,208 $2,208

$1,179 MX$22.2K

87.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,390 $2,390

$771 MX$14.5K

210.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,108 $3,108

$2,570 MX$48.4K

20.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,476 $3,476

$1,420 MX$26.7K

144.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,864 $5,864

$3,586 MX$67.5K

63.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,180 $6,180

$2,064 MX$38.8K

199.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$10.0K $10.0K

$1,003 MX$18.9K

901.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.31

11.35

-44.41%

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

Last update for Brea, CA: November 1, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Brea, CA

$2.4K 63.8%

Mexico City

$771 46.1% 67.7% $1.6K

Groceries & Markets

Brea, CA

$412 11%

Mexico City

$324 19.3% 21.5% $89

Eating Out

Brea, CA

$379 10.1%

Mexico City

$201 12% 47.1% $178

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Brea, CA

$353 9.4%

Mexico City

$125 7.4% 64.7% $229

Clothing & Footwear

Brea, CA

$129 3.5%

Mexico City

$158 9.4% 21.8% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Brea, CA

$69 1.8%

Mexico City

$72 4.3% 3.5% $2.5

Getting Around

Brea, CA

$14 * 0.4%

Mexico City

$25 1.5% 78.6% $11

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,208 in Brea, CA and $1,179 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Brea, CA pays about 10 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $76 in Brea, CA vs $52 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $412 vs $324 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Brea, CA

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

01:05 1:05 AM

03:05 3:05 AM

2 h ahead of Brea, CA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

38,585

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

100 MXN = 5.31 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.82 MXN (100 MXN = 5.31 USD). 1 EUR = 21.1 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Brea, CA Mexico City 2,460 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Brea, CA
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

Brea, CA vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City wins on cost – living expenses run 55% lower than in Brea, CA. 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 in Brea, CA is about 10 times higher, 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: $2,208 in Brea, CA versus $1,179 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,159 in Brea, CA versus $434 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 $52 versus $76 in Brea, CA. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,674 in Mexico City versus $3,746 in Brea, CA, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in Brea, CA. The gap between the two cities makes Mexico City the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Mexico City is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Brea, CA, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

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