Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Guadalajara and Medina

For one person, living is cheaper in Guadalajara: $1,298 a month against $1,351 in Medina, rent and utilities included – about $640 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Medina outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

63

Cost of Living Index in Guadalajara
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Guadalajara Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Medina
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Medina Living Index

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Guadalajara

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,298

/mo nomad

Medina

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,351

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Guadalajara and in Medina

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Guadalajara and in Medina actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,298 in Guadalajara versus $1,351 in Medina.

Guadalajara $1,298
Medina $1,351

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Guadalajara versus $1,806 in Medina.

Guadalajara $2,082
Medina $1,806

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,866 in Guadalajara versus $2,261 in Medina.

Guadalajara $2,866
Medina $2,261

Living in Guadalajara costs roughly 4% less than in Medina, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.70 MX$257

$5.63 SAR 21.14

143.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.79 MX$803

$31.66 SAR 119

35.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.10 MX$171

$7.98 SAR 29.93

14.04%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.58 SAR 5.92

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 SAR 6.59

Cappuccino

$3.78 MX$71.0

$2.61 SAR 9.78

44.83%

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

$1.58 MX$29.61

$0.78 SAR 2.94

102.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.08 MX$20.33

$0.23 SAR 0.86

369.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.72 MX$51.0

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.86 MX$91.3

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 MX$31.87

$1.49 SAR 5.61

14.09%

White Bread (500g)

$2.55 MX$47.82

$0.97 SAR 3.66

162.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.63 MX$30.55

$2.30 SAR 8.61

-29.13%

Eggs

$2.39 MX$44.94

$2.12 SAR 7.95

12.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.94 MX$168

$5.38 SAR 20.20

66.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.70 MX$182

$7.26 SAR 27.25

33.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.27 MX$212

$12.83 SAR 48.16

-12.16%

Apples (1kg)

$2.79 MX$52.4

$2.46 SAR 9.25

13.41%

Banana (1kg)

$1.60 MX$30.03

$1.93 SAR 7.25

-17.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.43

$2.34 SAR 8.78

-17.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.82 MX$34.14

$1.55 SAR 5.80

17.42%

Potato (1kg)

$1.95 MX$36.66

$1.41 SAR 5.30

38.30%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 MX$33.28

$1.32 SAR 4.96

34.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 MX$29.61

$0.90 SAR 3.38

75.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 MX$20.20

$0.69 SAR 2.61

56.52%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.36 SAR 5.11

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 SAR 5.56

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 SAR 6.17

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.84 MX$90.9

$7.36 SAR 27.62

-34.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.37 MX$195

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 MX$36.71

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.37 MX$63.3

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.58 MX$10.88

$1.05 SAR 3.93

-44.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.99 MX$563

$37.74 SAR 142

-20.54%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.10 MX$39.47

$1.31 SAR 4.90

60.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.47 MX$27.57

$1.65 SAR 6.21

-10.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.54 MX$179

$5.71 SAR 21.42

67.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 MX$27.34

$0.63 SAR 2.38

131.75%

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

$20.5K MX$385.0K

$42.7K SAR 160.4K

-52.01%

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

$22.9K MX$430.8K

$20.9K SAR 78.3K

10.04%

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

$48.21 MX$905

$148 SAR 555

-67.40%

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

$22.37 MX$420

$27.56 SAR 103

-18.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.85 MX$560

$89.2 SAR 335

-66.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.25 MX$530

$77.9 SAR 292

-63.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.00 MX$206

$8.84 SAR 33.19

24.43%

Cinema Ticket

$5.80 MX$109

$13.17 SAR 49.42

-55.96%

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

$234 MX$4,387

$293 SAR 1,101

-20.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,974 MX$187.2K

$5,518 SAR 20.7K

80.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.6 MX$1,044

$37.11 SAR 139

49.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.32 MX$738

$52.8 SAR 198

-25.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 MX$1,931

$65.9 SAR 247

56.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.9 MX$1,482

$68.1 SAR 256

15.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$921 MX$17.3K

$550 SAR 2,065

67.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$501 MX$9,404

$533 SAR 1,999

-5.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,549 MX$29.1K

$779 SAR 2,922

98.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,009 MX$18.9K

$581 SAR 2,179

73.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,432 MX$64.4K

$2,256 SAR 8,465

52.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,142 MX$40.2K

$1,362 SAR 5,112

57.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$760 MX$14.3K

$1,257 SAR 4,717

-39.56%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.53

4.17

176.50%

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

Last update for Guadalajara: October 25, 2026

Last update for Medina: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Guadalajara

$501 38.6%

Medina

$533 39.4% 6.3% $32

Groceries & Markets

Guadalajara

$274 21.1%

Medina

$193 14.3% 29.5% $81

Eating Out

Guadalajara

$216 16.7%

Medina

$104 7.7% 51.8% $112

Clothing & Footwear

Guadalajara

$125 9.6%

Medina

$101 7.5% 19.1% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Guadalajara

$100 7.7%

Medina

$265 19.6% 164% $164

Getting Around

Guadalajara

$42 3.2%

Medina

$52 3.8% 23.4% $9.8

Sport & Entertainment

Guadalajara

$40 3.1%

Medina

$104 7.7% 162% $64

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $921 in Guadalajara and $550 in Medina. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medina pays 65% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $43 in Guadalajara vs $32 in Medina for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $274 vs $193 per month, with Medina cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Guadalajara

🇸🇦 Medina

🕒 Local time

21:37 9:37 PM

06:37 6:37 AM

9 h ahead of Guadalajara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,385,629

1,100,093

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.239 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SAR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.19 SAR (1 SAR = 0.239 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Guadalajara Medina 13,590 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Guadalajara
Medina

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

Guadalajara vs Medina: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Guadalajara wins on cost – living expenses run 4% lower than in Medina. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Guadalajara the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 40% lower in Guadalajara. 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: $921 in Guadalajara versus $550 in Medina. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Medina pay roughly 30% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in Medina – a meal for two runs $32 versus $43 in Guadalajara. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Guadalajara is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

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