Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Caraguatatuba and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Caraguatatuba: $843 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

41

Cost of Living Index in Caraguatatuba
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Caraguatatuba Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Caraguatatuba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$843

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $843 in Caraguatatuba versus $1,567 in Mexico City.

Caraguatatuba $843
Mexico City $1,567

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,363 in Caraguatatuba versus $2,450 in Mexico City.

Caraguatatuba $1,363
Mexico City $2,450

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,883 in Caraguatatuba versus $3,333 in Mexico City.

Caraguatatuba $1,883
Mexico City $3,333

Living in Caraguatatuba costs roughly 46% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Caraguatatuba is 38% below, Mexico City is 16% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.70 R$39.04

$10.75 MX$199

-28.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.38 R$149

$50.3 MX$929

-41.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.23 R$46.80

$11.10 MX$205

-16.85%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R$11.99

$3.68 MX$68.1

-35.60%

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

$1.23 R$6.25

$1.65 MX$30.42

-25.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.88 R$4.48

$1.30 MX$24.08

-32.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 R$11.96

$3.32 MX$61.3

-28.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 R$16.60

$5.54 MX$102

-40.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.00 R$5.09

$1.77 MX$32.68

-43.50%

White Bread (500g)

$1.61 R$8.17

$3.05 MX$56.4

-47.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.40 R$7.10

$2.01 MX$37.20

-30.35%

Eggs

$1.96 R$9.96

$2.77 MX$51.1

-29.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.89 R$29.84

$11.91 MX$220

-50.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.32 R$16.82

$9.33 MX$172

-64.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.98 R$40.47

$15.02 MX$278

-46.87%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 R$10.89

$3.08 MX$56.8

-30.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.67 R$8.46

$1.95 MX$35.97

-14.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.46 R$7.39

$2.03 MX$37.54

-28.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.42 R$7.19

$2.21 MX$40.92

-35.75%

Potato (1kg)

$1.27 R$6.45

$2.02 MX$37.41

-37.13%

Onion (1kg)

$0.82 R$4.13

$1.82 MX$33.67

-54.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 R$3.60

$1.52 MX$28.07

-53.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.79 R$3.99

$1.28 MX$23.65

-38.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.16 R$10.96

$5.27 MX$97.4

-59.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.00 R$35.46

$16.12 MX$298

-56.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 R$7.58

$1.95 MX$36.05

-23.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.59 R$13.11

$4.25 MX$78.6

-39.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.98 R$4.96

$0.31 MX$5.82

216.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$23.55 R$119

$19.85 MX$367

18.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 R$5.89

$2.00 MX$36.93

-42.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.73 R$3.70

$0.53 MX$9.86

37.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.52 R$17.85

$5.62 MX$104

-37.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 R$6.59

$1.52 MX$28.07

-14.47%

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

$15.7K R$79.3K

$21.0K MX$388.7K

-25.59%

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

$29.5K R$149.6K

$25.2K MX$465.3K

17.20%

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

$66.3 R$336

$62.5 MX$1,155

6.11%

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

$13.05 R$66.2

$28.77 MX$532

-54.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.44 R$114

$34.45 MX$637

-34.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.64 R$110

$57.1 MX$1,055

-62.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.29 R$82.6

$24.81 MX$458

-34.34%

Cinema Ticket

$8.17 R$41.40

$6.67 MX$123

22.49%

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

$223 R$1,130

$431 MX$7,964

-48.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,271 R$21.7K

$11.7K MX$216.9K

-63.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.8 R$293

$70.8 MX$1,308

-18.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.6 R$287

$51.8 MX$958

9.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.3 R$397

$109 MX$2,011

-28.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.2 R$300

$112 MX$2,076

-47.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$416 R$2,110

$1,051 MX$19.4K

-60.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$237 R$1,201

$665 MX$12.3K

-64.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$879 R$4,453

$2,346 MX$43.3K

-62.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$522 R$2,648

$1,227 MX$22.7K

-57.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,681 R$8,523

$3,554 MX$65.7K

-52.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,217 R$6,170

$1,977 MX$36.5K

-38.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$336 R$1,704

$975 MX$18.0K

-65.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.15

11.3

-27.88%

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

Last update for Caraguatatuba: October 11, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Caraguatatuba

$237 28.1%

Mexico City

$665 42.4% 181% $428

Groceries & Markets

Caraguatatuba

$176 20.9%

Mexico City

$323 20.6% 83.5% $147

Eating Out

Caraguatatuba

$145 17.2%

Mexico City

$203 13% 40.5% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Caraguatatuba

$113 13.5%

Mexico City

$155 9.9% 36.5% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Caraguatatuba

$102 12.1%

Mexico City

$126 8% 23.5% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Caraguatatuba

$38 4.5%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 85.5% $32

Getting Around

Caraguatatuba

$32 3.8%

Mexico City

$26 1.6% 20.1% $6.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $416 in Caraguatatuba and $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 190% 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: $29.00 in Caraguatatuba vs $50.0 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $176 vs $323 per month, with Caraguatatuba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Caraguatatuba

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

02:42 2:42 AM

23:42 11:42 PM

3 h behind Caraguatatuba

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

134,873

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Caraguatatuba Mexico City 7,540 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Caraguatatuba
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

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

Caraguatatuba is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 86% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 190% 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: $416 in Caraguatatuba versus $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 83% higher in Mexico City. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Caraguatatuba – a meal for two runs $29.00 versus $50.0 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $843 in Caraguatatuba versus $1,567 in Mexico City, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Caraguatatuba but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Caraguatatuba the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Expats usually find Caraguatatuba gentler on the wallet – expenses run 86% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.