Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lerwick and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,548 a month against $2,368 in Lerwick, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

114

Cost of Living Index in Lerwick
Learn more

Lerwick Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index

Jump to prices

Lerwick

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,368

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,548

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,368 in Lerwick versus $1,548 in Mexico City.

Lerwick $2,368
Mexico City $1,548

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,415 in Lerwick versus $2,436 in Mexico City.

Lerwick $3,415
Mexico City $2,436

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,462 in Lerwick versus $3,323 in Mexico City.

Lerwick $4,462
Mexico City $3,323

Living in Lerwick is roughly 53% more expensive than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lerwick 75% above, Mexico City 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.15 £15.11

$11.02 MX$204

82.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.5 £73.9

$48.68 MX$900

102.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 £7.76

$10.90 MX$201

-5.05%

Cappuccino

$5.40 £4.05

$3.68 MX$68.1

46.74%

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

$2.25 £1.69

$1.63 MX$30.18

38.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 £1.23

$1.25 MX$23.07

31.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.45 £4.84

$3.25 MX$60.1

98.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.86 £4.40

$5.53 MX$102

5.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 £1.16

$1.70 MX$31.50

-8.82%

White Bread (500g)

$1.69 £1.27

$3.02 MX$55.8

-44.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.21 £1.66

$1.92 MX$35.53

15.10%

Eggs

$4.02 £3.02

$2.73 MX$50.5

47.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.37 £7.03

$11.77 MX$218

-20.39%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.57 £6.43

$9.53 MX$176

-10.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.44 £10.84

$14.41 MX$266

0.21%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.27

$3.02 MX$55.8

0.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.51 £1.13

$1.89 MX$35.01

-20.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.76 £2.07

$1.99 MX$36.70

38.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.28 £2.46

$2.19 MX$40.38

49.77%

Potato (1kg)

$1.83 £1.37

$1.92 MX$35.43

-4.69%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 £1.28

$1.87 MX$34.49

-8.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.26 £0.95

$1.44 MX$26.62

-12.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 £1.16

$1.27 MX$23.39

22.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$24.02 £18.02

$5.22 MX$96.4

360.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.48 £7.86

$16.17 MX$299

-35.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.00 £2.25

$1.90 MX$35.03

57.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 £2.46

$4.22 MX$78.0

-22.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.07 £2.30

$0.34 MX$6.30

802.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$83.1 £62.3

$19.65 MX$363

322.80%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.23 £3.18

$2.00 MX$36.90

111.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.35 £1.76

$0.52 MX$9.67

351.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.03 £18.03

$5.34 MX$98.7

350.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 £1.75

$1.52 MX$28.13

53.95%

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

$38.9K £29.2K

$22.1K MX$408.0K

76.11%

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

$34.5K £25.9K

$24.5K MX$452.9K

40.63%

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

$309 £232

$61.1 MX$1,129

406.75%

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

$19.33 £14.50

$28.58 MX$528

-32.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.26 £33.95

$34.47 MX$637

31.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.8 £39.61

$56.4 MX$1,042

-6.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.88 MX$460

Cinema Ticket

$13.32 £9.99

$6.66 MX$123

100.00%

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

$1,392 £1,045

$427 MX$7,891

226.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.5K £18.4K

$11.6K MX$215.0K

110.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 £66.5

$67.8 MX$1,253

30.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.6 £37.93

$52.0 MX$960

-2.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.1 £66.8

$106 MX$1,959

-15.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$110 £82.8

$113 MX$2,080

-1.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,112 £834

$1,025 MX$18.9K

8.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,036 £777

$654 MX$12.1K

58.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,395 £1,797

$2,308 MX$42.7K

3.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,523 £1,143

$1,242 MX$22.9K

22.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,646 £3,486

$3,613 MX$66.8K

28.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,438 £2,579

$1,936 MX$35.8K

77.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$964 MX$17.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.09

11.3

-54.96%

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

Last update for Lerwick: October 18, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lerwick

$1K 43.7%

Mexico City

$654 42.3% 36.8% $382

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lerwick

$374 15.8%

Mexico City

$124 8% 66.8% $250

Eating Out

Lerwick

$317 13.4%

Mexico City

$204 13.2% 35.6% $113

Groceries & Markets

Lerwick

$298 12.6%

Mexico City

$318 20.6% 6.6% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Lerwick

$152 6.4%

Mexico City

$152 9.8% 0.1% $0.2

Getting Around

Lerwick

$111 4.7%

Mexico City

$26 1.7% 77% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Lerwick

$79 3.4%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 12.3% $9.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,112 in Lerwick and $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $99.0 in Lerwick vs $49.00 in Mexico City. Groceries flip the comparison at $298 vs $318, with Lerwick cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Lerwick

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

17:22 5:22 PM

10:22 10:22 AM

7 h behind Lerwick

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,000

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lerwick Mexico City 8,570 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Lerwick
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

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

Mexico City is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and transport. The 53% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $3,552 in Lerwick and $2,322 in Mexico City to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,112 in Lerwick versus $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,368 per month in Lerwick versus $1,548 in Mexico City – a 53% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 323% less than in Lerwick. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,548 in Mexico City versus $2,368 in Lerwick, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in Lerwick. The gap between the two cities makes Mexico City the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Mexico City is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Lerwick, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Lerwick 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.

Expats usually find Mexico City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 53% less than in Lerwick. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.