Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Joao Pessoa and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Joao Pessoa: $969 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $8,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

46

Cost of Living Index in Joao Pessoa
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Joao Pessoa Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Joao Pessoa

🇧🇷 Brazil

$969

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $969 in Joao Pessoa versus $1,674 in Mexico City.

Joao Pessoa $969
Mexico City $1,674

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,496 in Joao Pessoa versus $2,606 in Mexico City.

Joao Pessoa $1,496
Mexico City $2,606

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,023 in Joao Pessoa versus $3,537 in Mexico City.

Joao Pessoa $2,023
Mexico City $3,537

Living in Joao Pessoa costs roughly 42% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Joao Pessoa is 28% below, Mexico City is 24% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.54 R$35.71

$10.59 MX$197

-38.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.48 R$150

$52.0 MX$967

-47.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.37 R$40.26

$10.73 MX$200

-31.31%

Cappuccino

$1.42 R$7.78

$3.80 MX$70.6

-62.63%

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

$0.97 R$5.30

$1.61 MX$30.01

-39.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.66 R$3.63

$1.21 MX$22.55

-45.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.70 R$9.30

$3.18 MX$59.1

-46.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 R$18.52

$5.44 MX$101

-37.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 R$6.17

$1.72 MX$31.96

-34.30%

White Bread (500g)

$1.90 R$10.37

$2.97 MX$55.2

-36.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 R$7.74

$1.93 MX$35.84

-26.42%

Eggs

$1.89 R$10.31

$2.77 MX$51.6

-31.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.74 R$42.24

$11.67 MX$217

-33.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.62 R$25.22

$9.48 MX$176

-51.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.85 R$37.42

$15.37 MX$286

-55.43%

Apples (1kg)

$2.95 R$16.12

$3.10 MX$57.8

-4.84%

Banana (1kg)

$0.94 R$5.14

$1.96 MX$36.49

-52.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.83 R$4.55

$1.98 MX$36.88

-58.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.07 R$5.87

$2.34 MX$43.46

-54.27%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 R$8.22

$2.02 MX$37.66

-25.25%

Onion (1kg)

$1.17 R$6.39

$1.82 MX$33.95

-35.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.70 R$3.83

$1.54 MX$28.74

-54.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 R$5.42

$1.31 MX$24.42

-24.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.81 R$15.36

$5.35 MX$99.6

-47.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.38 R$45.79

$16.19 MX$301

-48.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 R$8.16

$1.96 MX$36.46

-23.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.03 R$16.56

$4.35 MX$81.0

-30.34%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.99 R$5.40

$0.30 MX$5.67

230.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$63.2 R$345

$19.49 MX$363

224.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.85 R$10.10

$1.92 MX$35.68

-3.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.89 R$10.33

$0.47 MX$8.80

302.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 R$16.34

$5.41 MX$101

-44.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 R$6.61

$1.48 MX$27.61

-18.24%

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

$22.0K R$119.9K

$21.4K MX$397.7K

2.71%

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

$30.7K R$167.7K

$23.8K MX$442.1K

29.28%

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

$119 R$651

$62.0 MX$1,154

92.24%

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

$20.81 R$114

$28.47 MX$530

-26.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.65 R$118

$34.11 MX$635

-36.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.08 R$192

$58.4 MX$1,087

-39.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.65 R$151

$24.50 MX$456

12.86%

Cinema Ticket

$9.70 R$53.0

$6.59 MX$123

47.19%

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

$400 R$2,183

$434 MX$8,081

-7.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,320 R$34.5K

$14.0K MX$261.2K

-54.97%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.6 R$276

$68.4 MX$1,272

-26.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$62.0 R$338

$54.8 MX$1,020

13.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.9 R$442

$111 MX$2,063

-27.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.6 R$391

$116 MX$2,158

-38.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$369 R$2,015

$1,179 MX$21.9K

-68.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$251 R$1,368

$771 MX$14.3K

-67.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$612 R$3,340

$2,570 MX$47.8K

-76.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$483 R$2,639

$1,420 MX$26.4K

-65.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,264 R$12.4K

$3,586 MX$66.7K

-36.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,122 R$6,128

$2,064 MX$38.4K

-45.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$476 R$2,601

$1,003 MX$18.7K

-52.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

-3.08%

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

Last update for Joao Pessoa: October 31, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Joao Pessoa

$251 25.9%

Mexico City

$771 46.1% 208% $520

Groceries & Markets

Joao Pessoa

$191 19.7%

Mexico City

$324 19.3% 69.1% $132

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Joao Pessoa

$162 16.7%

Mexico City

$125 7.4% 22.9% $37

Clothing & Footwear

Joao Pessoa

$119 12.3%

Mexico City

$158 9.4% 32.1% $38

Eating Out

Joao Pessoa

$113 11.7%

Mexico City

$201 12% 76.9% $87

Getting Around

Joao Pessoa

$78 8.1%

Mexico City

$25 1.5% 68.2% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Joao Pessoa

$54 5.6%

Mexico City

$72 4.3% 31.4% $17

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $369 in Joao Pessoa and $1,179 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays about 2.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $27 in Joao Pessoa vs $52 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $191 vs $324 per month, with Joao Pessoa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Joao Pessoa

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

00:02 12:02 AM

21:02 9:02 PM

3 h behind Joao Pessoa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

833,932

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.183 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 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 November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 5.46 BRL (1 BRL = 0.183 USD). 1 EUR = 6.11 BRL (1 BRL = 0.164 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Joao Pessoa Mexico City 7,630 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Joao Pessoa
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

Joao Pessoa vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $969 in Joao Pessoa and $1,674 in Mexico City, so Joao Pessoa is about 42% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 53% lower in Joao Pessoa. 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: $369 in Joao Pessoa versus $1,179 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $400 in Joao Pessoa versus $434 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 69% higher in Mexico City. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $969 in Joao Pessoa versus $1,674 in Mexico City, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Joao Pessoa but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Joao Pessoa the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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 – Joao Pessoa wins on affordability, Mexico City on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.