Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Caloocan and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Caloocan: $504 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $12,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

25

Cost of Living Index in Caloocan
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Caloocan Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Caloocan

🇵🇭 Philippines

$504

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $504 per month in Caloocan vs $1,567 in Mexico City, rent included.

Caloocan $504
Mexico City $1,567

A couple spends around $674 per month in Caloocan vs $2,450 in Mexico City, rent included.

Caloocan $674
Mexico City $2,450

A family of three spends $845 per month in Caloocan vs $3,333 in Mexico City, rent included.

Caloocan $845
Mexico City $3,333

Caloocan is about 68% cheaper than Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Caloocan sits 63% below the global median, while Mexico City is 16% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.74 ₱173

$10.75 MX$199

-74.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.50 ₱1,039

$50.3 MX$929

-67.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.22 ₱140

$11.10 MX$205

-80.00%

Cappuccino

$0.91 ₱57.3

$3.68 MX$68.1

-75.27%

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

$0.40 ₱25.00

$1.65 MX$30.42

-75.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 ₱21.07

$1.30 MX$24.08

-74.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.01 ₱63.8

$3.32 MX$61.3

-69.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.61 ₱101

$5.54 MX$102

-70.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.62 ₱102

$1.77 MX$32.68

-8.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.11 ₱69.7

$3.05 MX$56.4

-63.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.00 ₱63.0

$2.01 MX$37.20

-50.25%

Eggs

$1.81 ₱114

$2.77 MX$51.1

-34.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.19 ₱327

$11.91 MX$220

-56.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.44 ₱216

$9.33 MX$172

-63.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.94 ₱500

$15.02 MX$278

-47.14%

Apples (1kg)

$2.21 ₱139

$3.08 MX$56.8

-28.25%

Banana (1kg)

$0.92 ₱57.7

$1.95 MX$35.97

-52.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.38 ₱150

$2.03 MX$37.54

17.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.04 ₱65.5

$2.21 MX$40.92

-52.94%

Potato (1kg)

$1.12 ₱70.7

$2.02 MX$37.41

-44.55%

Onion (1kg)

$1.70 ₱107

$1.82 MX$33.67

-6.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.65 ₱41.16

$1.52 MX$28.07

-57.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ₱31.11

$1.28 MX$23.65

-61.72%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$5.27 MX$97.4

-43.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.68 ₱295

$16.12 MX$298

-70.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.91 ₱57.2

$1.95 MX$36.05

-53.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 ₱126

$4.25 MX$78.6

-53.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.22 ₱13.86

$0.31 MX$5.82

-29.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.85 MX$367

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.82 ₱51.9

$2.00 MX$36.93

-59.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.25 ₱15.82

$0.53 MX$9.86

-52.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.90 ₱119

$5.62 MX$104

-66.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.09 ₱68.5

$1.52 MX$28.07

-28.29%

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

$21.4K ₱1.3M

$21.0K MX$388.7K

1.52%

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

$19.3K ₱1.2M

$25.2K MX$465.3K

-23.45%

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

$53.2 ₱3,351

$62.5 MX$1,155

-14.83%

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

$9.80 ₱617

$28.77 MX$532

-65.94%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.23 ₱1,463

$34.45 MX$637

-32.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$4.76 ₱300

$57.1 MX$1,055

-91.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 MX$458

Cinema Ticket

$5.04 ₱318

$6.67 MX$123

-24.44%

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

$134 ₱8,411

$431 MX$7,964

-69.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.9K ₱688.2K

$11.7K MX$216.9K

-6.89%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$29.00 ₱1,826

$70.8 MX$1,308

-59.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.90 ₱1,253

$51.8 MX$958

-61.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$55.3 ₱3,479

$109 MX$2,011

-49.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$47.92 ₱3,017

$112 MX$2,076

-57.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$205 ₱12.9K

$1,051 MX$19.4K

-80.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$121 ₱7,620

$665 MX$12.3K

-81.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,346 MX$43.3K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,227 MX$22.7K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,554 MX$65.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,977 MX$36.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$320 ₱20.1K

$975 MX$18.0K

-67.18%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

11.3

-40.27%

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

Last update for Caloocan: October 11, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Caloocan

$160 31.7%

Mexico City

$323 20.6% 102% $163

Accommodation & Living

Caloocan

$121 24%

Mexico City

$665 42.4% 450% $544

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Caloocan

$86 17.1%

Mexico City

$126 8% 45.7% $39

Clothing & Footwear

Caloocan

$68 13.6%

Mexico City

$155 9.9% 126% $86

Eating Out

Caloocan

$51 10.1%

Mexico City

$203 13% 300% $152

Sport & Entertainment

Caloocan

$15 3%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 374% $56

Getting Around

Caloocan

$3 * 0.6%

Mexico City

$26 1.6% 771% $23

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $205 in Caloocan versus $1,051 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 run about 205% higher in Mexico City, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $16.00 in Caloocan versus $50.0 in Mexico City. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $160 vs $323 – making Caloocan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Caloocan

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

01:40 1:40 AM

11:40 11:40 AM

14 h behind Caloocan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,661,584

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.79 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.78 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Caloocan Mexico City 14,220 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Caloocan
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

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

Mexico City costs about 211% more than Caloocan, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $756 per month in Caloocan and $2,351 in Mexico City. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Caloocan, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $16.00 in Caloocan and $50.0 in Mexico City. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 102% more in Mexico City, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Caloocan, where all-in costs run around $504, than in Mexico City at $1,567. In Caloocan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mexico City it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Caloocan costs $504 versus $1,567 in Mexico City. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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