Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ha'il and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Ha'il: $1,040 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Ha'il
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia
$1,040
/mo nomad
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,567
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,040 in Ha'il versus $1,567 in Mexico City.

  • Ha'il $1,040
  • Mexico City $1,567

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Ha'il versus $2,450 in Mexico City.

  • Ha'il $1,589
  • Mexico City $2,450

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,139 in Ha'il versus $3,333 in Mexico City.

  • Ha'il $2,139
  • Mexico City $3,333

Living in Ha'il costs roughly 34% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Ha'il is 23% below, Mexico City is 16% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Ha'il
Mexico City
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$5.47 SAR 20.52
$10.75 MX$199
-49.12%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$37.36 SAR 140
$50.3 MX$929
-25.65%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.88 SAR 22.05
$11.10 MX$205
-47.03%
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.18 SAR 4.43
-
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.33 SAR 8.73
-
-
Cappuccino
$2.60 SAR 9.76
$3.68 MX$68.1
-29.35%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.61 SAR 2.29
$1.65 MX$30.42
-63.03%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.24 SAR 0.90
$1.30 MX$24.08
-81.54%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
-
$3.32 MX$61.3
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$5.54 MX$102
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Ha'il
Mexico City
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.72 SAR 6.47
$1.77 MX$32.68
-2.82%
White Bread (500g)
$0.84 SAR 3.17
$3.05 MX$56.4
-72.46%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.83 SAR 6.87
$2.01 MX$37.20
-8.96%
Eggs
$1.88 SAR 7.05
$2.77 MX$51.1
-32.13%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$6.81 SAR 25.56
$11.91 MX$220
-42.82%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.52 SAR 31.96
$9.33 MX$172
-8.68%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$8.55 SAR 32.10
$15.02 MX$278
-43.08%
Apples (1kg)
$1.57 SAR 5.88
$3.08 MX$56.8
-49.03%
Banana (1kg)
$1.58 SAR 5.91
$1.95 MX$35.97
-18.97%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.31 SAR 4.90
$2.03 MX$37.54
-35.47%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.03 SAR 7.61
$2.21 MX$40.92
-8.14%
Potato (1kg)
$1.32 SAR 4.95
$2.02 MX$37.41
-34.65%
Onion (1kg)
$1.62 SAR 6.06
$1.82 MX$33.67
-10.99%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.23 SAR 4.60
$1.52 MX$28.07
-19.08%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.49 SAR 1.83
$1.28 MX$23.65
-61.72%
Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)
$3.02 SAR 11.35
-
-
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.75 SAR 6.56
-
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.04 SAR 7.65
-
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$6.73 SAR 25.25
$5.27 MX$97.4
27.70%
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
Ha'il
Mexico City
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.05 SAR 3.93
$0.31 MX$5.82
238.71%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$36.18 SAR 136
$19.85 MX$367
82.27%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.68 SAR 10.07
$2.00 MX$36.93
34.00%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.88 SAR 7.06
$0.53 MX$9.86
254.72%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$13.58 SAR 50.9
$5.62 MX$104
141.64%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.61 SAR 2.27
$1.52 MX$28.07
-59.87%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$44.7K SAR 167.8K
$21.0K MX$388.7K
112.67%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$21.6K SAR 81.0K
$25.2K MX$465.3K
-14.26%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Ha'il
Mexico City
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$52.7 SAR 198
$62.5 MX$1,155
-15.75%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$21.32 SAR 80.0
$28.77 MX$532
-25.90%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$47.59 SAR 179
$34.45 MX$637
38.14%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Ha'il
Mexico City
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$67.4 SAR 253
$57.1 MX$1,055
17.99%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$26.99 SAR 101
$24.81 MX$458
8.79%
Cinema Ticket
$14.85 SAR 55.7
$6.67 MX$123
122.64%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Ha'il
Mexico City
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$414 SAR 1,554
$431 MX$7,964
-3.90%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$7,887 SAR 29.6K
$11.7K MX$216.9K
-32.82%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Ha'il
Mexico City
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$43.06 SAR 162
$70.8 MX$1,308
-39.17%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$54.6 SAR 205
$51.8 MX$958
5.42%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$96.6 SAR 363
$109 MX$2,011
-11.24%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$87.9 SAR 330
$112 MX$2,076
-21.76%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Ha'il
Mexico City
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$245 SAR 918
$1,051 MX$19.4K
-76.73%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$366 SAR 1,373
$665 MX$12.3K
-44.98%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$362 SAR 1,359
$2,346 MX$43.3K
-84.56%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$566 SAR 2,123
$1,227 MX$22.7K
-53.88%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,369 SAR 8,890
$3,554 MX$65.7K
-33.33%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,359 SAR 5,099
$1,977 MX$36.5K
-31.27%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Ha'il
Mexico City
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,087 SAR 4,080
$975 MX$18.0K
11.55%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.54
11.3
-50.97%

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

Last update for Ha'il: October 12, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Ha'il
$366
Mexico City
$665 81.7% $299
Groceries & Markets
Ha'il
$180
Mexico City
$323 79.5% $143
Clothing & Footwear
Ha'il
$127
Mexico City
$155 21.8% $28
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Ha'il
$122
Mexico City
$126 3.4% $4.1
Sport & Entertainment
Ha'il
$97
Mexico City
$70 27.4% $27
Eating Out
Ha'il
$96
Mexico City
$203 112% $107
Getting Around
Ha'il
$52
Mexico City
$26 50.9% $27

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $245 in Ha'il and $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ha'il pays 12% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $37.00 in Ha'il vs $50.0 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $180 vs $323 per month, with Ha'il cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇸🇦 Ha'il
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🕒 Local time
14:39 2:39 PM
05:39 5:39 AM
9 h behind Ha'il
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
310,897
9,209,944 Capital
💱 Currency
Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to SAR – Saudi Riyal Converter

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 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).

On the map
Between locations
  • Ha'il Mexico City 13,300 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Ha'il
  • 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
Ha'il vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Ha'il or Mexico City?
Ha'il wins on cost – living expenses run 51% lower than in Mexico City. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Ha'il the obvious pick if budget is a priority.
Are salaries higher in Ha'il or in Mexico City?
Average pay runs 12% higher in Ha'il, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
How much does a 1-bedroom apartment cost in Ha'il compared to Mexico City?
Rent for a central apartment: $245 in Ha'il versus $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How do childcare costs compare in Ha'il and in Mexico City?
Childcare runs $414 in Ha'il versus $431 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Are groceries more expensive in Ha'il or in Mexico City?
Supermarket bills run roughly 79% higher in Mexico City. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
Can you live on $1,000/month in Ha'il or in Mexico City?
At $1,040 in Ha'il versus $1,567 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Ha'il but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Ha'il the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Which city is better for digital nomads, Ha'il or Mexico City?
Both work as nomad bases, but Ha'il delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,040 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Ha'il hard to pass up.
How safe is Ha'il compared to Mexico City?
Safety-wise, Ha'il and Mexico City are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.
Which city is more affordable for expats?
Expats usually find Ha'il gentler on the wallet – expenses run 51% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

Ha'il vs other spots: cost of living compared

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