Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Harstad and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,608 a month against $2,611 in Harstad, rent and utilities included – about $12,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

127

Cost of Living Index in Harstad
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Harstad Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Harstad

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,611

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,611 in Harstad versus $1,608 in Mexico City.

Harstad $2,611
Mexico City $1,608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,888 in Harstad versus $2,549 in Mexico City.

Harstad $3,888
Mexico City $2,549

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,164 in Harstad versus $3,490 in Mexico City.

Harstad $5,164
Mexico City $3,490

Living in Harstad is roughly 62% more expensive than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Harstad 92% above, Mexico City 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.27 NOK 131

$10.62 MX$199

34.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$106 NOK 971

$48.35 MX$908

118.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.97 NOK 147

$10.35 MX$194

54.30%

Cappuccino

$6.27 NOK 57.6

$3.69 MX$69.3

69.92%

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

$3.70 NOK 34.03

$1.67 MX$31.29

121.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 NOK 29.18

$1.27 MX$23.76

150.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$12.77 NOK 117

$3.19 MX$59.9

300.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$14.04 NOK 129

$5.31 MX$99.6

164.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.54 NOK 23.33

$1.72 MX$32.38

47.67%

White Bread (500g)

$3.39 NOK 31.10

$3.04 MX$57.1

11.51%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.14 NOK 28.83

$1.94 MX$36.44

61.86%

Eggs

$4.42 NOK 40.61

$2.89 MX$54.2

52.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.37 NOK 104

$10.97 MX$206

3.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.31 NOK 141

$9.25 MX$174

65.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$41.97 NOK 386

$15.13 MX$284

177.40%

Apples (1kg)

$4.28 NOK 39.30

$3.05 MX$57.2

40.33%

Banana (1kg)

$2.87 NOK 26.38

$1.94 MX$36.45

47.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.87 NOK 35.55

$2.03 MX$38.02

90.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.79 NOK 43.97

$2.31 MX$43.46

107.36%

Potato (1kg)

$2.21 NOK 20.33

$2.04 MX$38.21

8.33%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 NOK 20.03

$1.80 MX$33.79

21.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.00 NOK 27.55

$1.48 MX$27.77

102.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.34 NOK 21.49

$1.27 MX$23.80

84.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$16.41 NOK 151

$5.30 MX$99.6

209.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.93 NOK 146

$16.10 MX$302

-1.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 NOK 35.82

$1.98 MX$37.23

96.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.89 NOK 44.90

$4.25 MX$79.8

15.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$6.17 NOK 56.7

$0.31 MX$5.73

1890.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$84.1 NOK 772

$19.73 MX$371

326.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$15.98 NOK 147

$1.84 MX$34.50

768.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.91 NOK 17.52

$0.53 MX$10.02

260.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$58.0 NOK 533

$5.30 MX$99.4

994.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 NOK 21.48

$1.51 MX$28.36

54.97%

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

$36.9K NOK 339.4K

$21.8K MX$408.4K

69.83%

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

$31.6K NOK 290.4K

$24.0K MX$450.3K

31.78%

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

$173 NOK 1,587

$63.0 MX$1,182

174.29%

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

$35.51 NOK 326

$27.39 MX$514

29.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$79.5 NOK 731

$35.67 MX$670

122.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.72 NOK 457

$58.9 MX$1,107

-15.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$36.95 NOK 339

$23.64 MX$444

56.30%

Cinema Ticket

$17.75 NOK 163

$6.40 MX$120

177.34%

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

$325 NOK 2,985

$432 MX$8,103

-24.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,295 NOK 48.6K

$11.4K MX$214.5K

-53.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.8 NOK 632

$68.2 MX$1,281

0.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.70 NOK 328

$53.1 MX$997

-32.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 NOK 1,115

$108 MX$2,023

12.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$170 NOK 1,563

$117 MX$2,202

45.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,411 NOK 13.0K

$1,113 MX$20.9K

26.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,053 NOK 9,673

$710 MX$13.3K

48.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,352 NOK 21.6K

$2,588 MX$48.6K

-9.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,537 NOK 14.1K

$1,406 MX$26.4K

9.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,396 NOK 58.8K

$3,631 MX$68.2K

76.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,354 NOK 40.0K

$2,135 MX$40.1K

103.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,511 NOK 32.3K

$946 MX$17.8K

271.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

-55.95%

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

Last update for Harstad: October 24, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Harstad

$1.1K 40.3%

Mexico City

$710 44.2% 32.5% $342

Groceries & Markets

Harstad

$516 19.8%

Mexico City

$320 19.9% 38.1% $197

Eating Out

Harstad

$357 13.7%

Mexico City

$199 12.4% 44.3% $158

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Harstad

$288 11%

Mexico City

$126 7.8% 56.2% $162

Clothing & Footwear

Harstad

$178 6.8%

Mexico City

$156 9.7% 12.5% $22

Getting Around

Harstad

$134 5.1%

Mexico City

$25 1.6% 81% $109

Sport & Entertainment

Harstad

$85 3.3%

Mexico City

$72 4.5% 15.8% $13

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,411 in Harstad and $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Harstad pays about 3.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $106 in Harstad vs $48 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $516 vs $320 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Harstad

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

15:23 3:23 PM

08:23 8:23 AM

7 h behind Harstad

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

25,119

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.88 USD

100 NOK = 9.75 EUR

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 9.19 NOK (1 NOK = 0.109 USD). 1 EUR = 10.26 NOK (100 NOK = 9.75 EUR).

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

USD to NOK in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Harstad Mexico City 8,970 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Harstad
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

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

Mexico City is about 38% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Harstad is about 3.7 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,411 in Harstad versus $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 62% higher in Harstad. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Mexico City – a meal for two runs $48 versus $106 in Harstad. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Mexico City gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

Expats usually find Mexico City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 38% less than in Harstad. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.