Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lazaro Cardenas and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Lazaro Cardenas: $1,141 a month against $1,548 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Lazaro Cardenas
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Lazaro Cardenas Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Lazaro Cardenas

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,141

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,548

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,141 in Lazaro Cardenas versus $1,548 in Mexico City.

Lazaro Cardenas $1,141
Mexico City $1,548

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,839 in Lazaro Cardenas versus $2,436 in Mexico City.

Lazaro Cardenas $1,839
Mexico City $2,436

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,537 in Lazaro Cardenas versus $3,323 in Mexico City.

Lazaro Cardenas $2,537
Mexico City $3,323

Living in Lazaro Cardenas costs roughly 26% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lazaro Cardenas is 16% below, Mexico City is 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.83 MX$202

$11.02 MX$205

-1.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.66 MX$814

$48.68 MX$908

-10.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.70 MX$162

$10.90 MX$203

-20.18%

Cappuccino

$3.61 MX$67.3

$3.68 MX$68.7

-1.90%

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

$1.42 MX$26.49

$1.63 MX$30.46

-12.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 MX$19.17

$1.25 MX$23.28

-17.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.51 MX$46.75

$3.25 MX$60.6

-22.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.99 MX$74.4

$5.53 MX$103

-27.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 MX$30.94

$1.70 MX$31.78

-2.35%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 MX$47.24

$3.02 MX$56.3

-16.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.67 MX$31.08

$1.92 MX$35.86

-13.02%

Eggs

$2.43 MX$45.34

$2.73 MX$51.0

-10.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.19 MX$153

$11.77 MX$220

-30.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.49 MX$158

$9.53 MX$178

-10.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.33 MX$211

$14.41 MX$269

-21.37%

Apples (1kg)

$2.67 MX$49.80

$3.02 MX$56.3

-11.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 MX$29.63

$1.89 MX$35.33

-15.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.52

$1.99 MX$37.03

-4.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.83 MX$34.14

$2.19 MX$40.75

-16.44%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 MX$35.91

$1.92 MX$35.75

0.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.49

$1.87 MX$34.81

-3.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.65

$1.44 MX$26.86

2.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 MX$20.16

$1.27 MX$23.60

-14.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.32 MX$80.5

$5.22 MX$97.3

-17.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.32 MX$192

$16.17 MX$302

-36.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 MX$32.76

$1.90 MX$35.35

-7.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.20 MX$59.6

$4.22 MX$78.7

-24.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.69 MX$12.87

$0.34 MX$6.36

102.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.65 MX$366

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.53 MX$47.09

$2.00 MX$37.23

26.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.92 MX$35.79

$0.52 MX$9.76

269.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.01 MX$205

$5.34 MX$99.6

106.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.52

$1.52 MX$28.39

-2.63%

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

$21.1K MX$394.2K

$22.1K MX$411.7K

-4.24%

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

$23.8K MX$444.0K

$24.5K MX$457.1K

-2.85%

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

$58.7 MX$1,095

$61.1 MX$1,139

-3.85%

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

$22.31 MX$416

$28.58 MX$533

-21.94%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.94 MX$558

$34.47 MX$643

-13.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.30 MX$640

$56.4 MX$1,051

-39.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.49 MX$382

$24.88 MX$464

-17.64%

Cinema Ticket

$5.11 MX$95.3

$6.66 MX$124

-23.27%

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

$221 MX$4,125

$427 MX$7,964

-48.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,553 MX$84.9K

$11.6K MX$217.0K

-60.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.3 MX$1,031

$67.8 MX$1,264

-18.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.96 MX$745

$52.0 MX$969

-23.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.7 MX$1,860

$106 MX$1,977

-5.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.1 MX$1,680

$113 MX$2,099

-19.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$602 MX$11.2K

$1,025 MX$19.1K

-41.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$393 MX$7,325

$654 MX$12.2K

-39.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 MX$19.7K

$2,308 MX$43.0K

-54.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$780 MX$14.5K

$1,242 MX$23.2K

-37.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,921 MX$35.8K

$3,613 MX$67.4K

-46.83%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,169 MX$21.8K

$1,936 MX$36.1K

-39.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$552 MX$10.3K

$964 MX$18.0K

-42.76%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

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

Last update for Lazaro Cardenas: October 19, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lazaro Cardenas

$393 34.4%

Mexico City

$654 42.3% 66.6% $261

Groceries & Markets

Lazaro Cardenas

$263 23.1%

Mexico City

$318 20.6% 20.9% $55

Eating Out

Lazaro Cardenas

$186 16.3%

Mexico City

$204 13.2% 9.4% $18

Clothing & Footwear

Lazaro Cardenas

$128 11.3%

Mexico City

$152 9.8% 18.7% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lazaro Cardenas

$111 9.7%

Mexico City

$124 8% 11.9% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Lazaro Cardenas

$45 3.9%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 56.5% $25

Getting Around

Lazaro Cardenas

$15 * 1.3%

Mexico City

$26 1.7% 72.2% $11

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $602 in Lazaro Cardenas and $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 75% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $44 in Lazaro Cardenas vs $49 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $263 vs $318 per month, with Lazaro Cardenas cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Lazaro Cardenas

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

22:45 10:45 PM

Same time as Lazaro Cardenas

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

83,637

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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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

Lazaro Cardenas vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lazaro Cardenas wins on cost – living expenses run 26% lower than in Mexico City. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Lazaro Cardenas the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 43% lower in Lazaro Cardenas. 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: $602 in Lazaro Cardenas versus $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $221 in Lazaro Cardenas versus $427 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Lazaro Cardenas – a meal for two runs $44 versus $49 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Lazaro Cardenas 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 – Lazaro Cardenas wins on affordability, Mexico City on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.