Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $13,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

Dhaka
🇧🇩 Bangladesh
$406
/mo nomad
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,567
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $406 in Dhaka versus $1,567 in Mexico City.

  • Dhaka $406
  • Mexico City $1,567

Estimated couple costs with rent: $687 in Dhaka versus $2,450 in Mexico City.

  • Dhaka $687
  • Mexico City $2,450

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $969 in Dhaka versus $3,333 in Mexico City.

  • Dhaka $969
  • Mexico City $3,333

Living in Dhaka costs roughly 74% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Dhaka is 70% below, Mexico City is 16% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Dhaka
Mexico City
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$2.28 ৳282
$10.75 MX$199
-78.79%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$12.33 ৳1,523
$50.3 MX$929
-75.46%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$3.95 ৳488
$11.10 MX$205
-64.41%
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$4.48 ৳554
-
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.13 ৳510
-
-
Cappuccino
$2.28 ৳281
$3.68 MX$68.1
-38.04%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.33 ৳40.88
$1.65 MX$30.42
-80.00%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.16 ৳19.86
$1.30 MX$24.08
-87.69%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
-
$3.32 MX$61.3
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$5.54 MX$102
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Dhaka
Mexico City
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$0.85 ৳104
$1.77 MX$32.68
-51.98%
White Bread (500g)
$0.60 ৳74.5
$3.05 MX$56.4
-80.33%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$0.69 ৳85.4
$2.01 MX$37.20
-65.67%
Eggs
$1.23 ৳152
$2.77 MX$51.1
-55.60%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.80 ৳1,087
$11.91 MX$220
-26.11%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.33 ৳412
$9.33 MX$172
-64.31%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$6.63 ৳819
$15.02 MX$278
-55.86%
Apples (1kg)
$2.85 ৳352
$3.08 MX$56.8
-7.47%
Banana (1kg)
$0.90 ৳111
$1.95 MX$35.97
-53.85%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.34 ৳289
$2.03 MX$37.54
15.27%
Tomato (1kg)
$0.63 ৳78.4
$2.21 MX$40.92
-71.49%
Potato (1kg)
$0.24 ৳29.59
$2.02 MX$37.41
-88.12%
Onion (1kg)
$0.46 ৳57.3
$1.82 MX$33.67
-74.73%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.35 ৳42.79
$1.52 MX$28.07
-76.97%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.28 ৳34.24
$1.28 MX$23.65
-78.13%
Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)
$12.11 ৳1,496
-
-
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$5.31 ৳656
-
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$6.42 ৳794
-
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.28 ৳405
$5.27 MX$97.4
-37.76%
Wine (Bottle)
-
$16.12 MX$298
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
-
$1.95 MX$36.05
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$4.25 MX$78.6
-
🚌 Getting Around
Dhaka
Mexico City
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.42 ৳52.3
$0.31 MX$5.82
35.48%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$22.43 ৳2,772
$19.85 MX$367
13.00%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.19 ৳147
$2.00 MX$36.93
-40.50%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.39 ৳48.71
$0.53 MX$9.86
-26.42%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.28 ৳406
$5.62 MX$104
-41.64%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.10 ৳136
$1.52 MX$28.07
-27.63%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$29.4K ৳3.6M
$21.0K MX$388.7K
39.93%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$32.2K ৳4.0M
$25.2K MX$465.3K
27.73%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Dhaka
Mexico City
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$38.28 ৳4,729
$62.5 MX$1,155
-38.74%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$4.09 ৳506
$28.77 MX$532
-85.78%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$9.02 ৳1,114
$34.45 MX$637
-73.82%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Dhaka
Mexico City
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$13.66 ৳1,688
$57.1 MX$1,055
-76.08%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$10.21 ৳1,261
$24.81 MX$458
-58.85%
Cinema Ticket
$4.11 ৳508
$6.67 MX$123
-38.38%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Dhaka
Mexico City
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$90.7 ৳11.2K
$431 MX$7,964
-78.94%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$2,591 ৳320.2K
$11.7K MX$216.9K
-77.93%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Dhaka
Mexico City
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$17.06 ৳2,108
$70.8 MX$1,308
-75.90%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$21.38 ৳2,641
$51.8 MX$958
-58.75%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$51.4 ৳6,355
$109 MX$2,011
-52.75%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$36.78 ৳4,545
$112 MX$2,076
-67.25%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Dhaka
Mexico City
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$133 ৳16.4K
$1,051 MX$19.4K
-87.35%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$65.1 ৳8,041
$665 MX$12.3K
-90.21%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$377 ৳46.6K
$2,346 MX$43.3K
-83.92%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$192 ৳23.8K
$1,227 MX$22.7K
-84.31%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,621 ৳200.3K
$3,554 MX$65.7K
-54.37%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$760 ৳93.9K
$1,977 MX$36.5K
-61.56%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Dhaka
Mexico City
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$246 ৳30.4K
$975 MX$18.0K
-74.75%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
10.48
11.3
-7.26%

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

Last update for Dhaka: October 10, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Groceries & Markets
Dhaka
$124
Mexico City
$323 161% $199
Accommodation & Living
Dhaka
$65
Mexico City
$665 922% $600
Eating Out
Dhaka
$59
Mexico City
$203 242% $144
Clothing & Footwear
Dhaka
$57
Mexico City
$155 172% $98
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Dhaka
$51
Mexico City
$126 145% $74
Getting Around
Dhaka
$27
Mexico City
$26 5.5% $1.5
Sport & Entertainment
Dhaka
$22
Mexico City
$70 222% $49

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $133 in Dhaka and $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 296% 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: $12.00 in Dhaka vs $50.0 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $124 vs $323 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇧🇩 Dhaka
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🕒 Local time
02:16 2:16 AM
14:16 2:16 PM
12 h behind Dhaka
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
21,741,000 Capital
9,209,944 Capital
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to BDT – Bangladeshi Taka Converter

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 124 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD). 1 EUR = 139 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Dhaka Mexico City 15,100 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Dhaka
  • 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
Dhaka vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Mexico City cheaper than Dhaka?
Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 286% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
Where can you earn more: Dhaka or Mexico City?
On paper, salaries run 296% 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.
What is the rent difference between Dhaka and Mexico City?
Rent for a central apartment: $133 in Dhaka versus $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What are total monthly expenses in Dhaka and in Mexico City?
All in, you'll spend $406 per month in Dhaka versus $1,567 in Mexico City – a 286% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.
Which city has cheaper public transport?
A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 13% less than in Mexico City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Dhaka or in Mexico City?
At $406 in Dhaka versus $1,567 in Mexico City, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Dhaka but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Dhaka the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is Dhaka or Mexico City more family-friendly?
For families, Dhaka 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.
Which city is easier to live in as a foreigner?
Expats usually find Dhaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 286% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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