Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Long Island, NY and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,608 a month against $4,225 in Long Island, NY, rent and utilities included – about $31,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

201

Cost of Living Index in Long Island, NY
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Long Island, NY Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Long Island, NY

🇺🇸 United States

$4,225

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $4,225 per month in Long Island, NY vs $1,608 in Mexico City, rent included.

Long Island, NY $4,225
Mexico City $1,608

A couple spends around $5,930 per month in Long Island, NY vs $2,549 in Mexico City, rent included.

Long Island, NY $5,930
Mexico City $2,549

A family of three spends $7,634 per month in Long Island, NY vs $3,490 in Mexico City, rent included.

Long Island, NY $7,634
Mexico City $3,490

Long Island, NY costs about 163% more than Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Long Island, NY and Mexico City sit above the global median – Long Island, NY by 210%, Mexico City by 18%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.14 $25.14

$10.62 MX$200

136.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.5 $98.5

$48.35 MX$909

103.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.99 $10.99

$10.35 MX$194

6.18%

Cappuccino

$5.08 $5.08

$3.69 MX$69.4

37.67%

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

$2.14 $2.14

$1.67 MX$31.32

28.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.58 $1.58

$1.27 MX$23.78

24.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.02 $8.02

$3.19 MX$60.0

151.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.91 $7.91

$5.31 MX$99.7

48.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 $1.32

$1.72 MX$32.41

-23.26%

White Bread (500g)

$4.26 $4.26

$3.04 MX$57.1

40.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 $1.94

$1.94 MX$36.48

Eggs

$5.26 $5.26

$2.89 MX$54.3

82.01%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.21 $7.21

$10.97 MX$206

-34.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.89 $11.89

$9.25 MX$174

28.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.22 $16.22

$15.13 MX$284

7.20%

Apples (1kg)

$4.27 $4.27

$3.05 MX$57.3

40.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.20 $1.20

$1.94 MX$36.48

-38.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.07 $2.07

$2.03 MX$38.06

1.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.16 $6.16

$2.31 MX$43.50

166.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.07 $1.07

$2.04 MX$38.25

-47.55%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 $2.18

$1.80 MX$33.83

21.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 $1.48

$1.48 MX$27.80

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.85 $2.85

$1.27 MX$23.82

124.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.85 $11.85

$5.30 MX$99.7

123.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.58 $17.58

$16.10 MX$303

9.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.98 MX$37.27

-11.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.09 $4.09

$4.25 MX$79.9

-3.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.97 $2.97

$0.31 MX$5.73

858.06%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$130 $130

$19.73 MX$371

556.66%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 $2.99

$1.84 MX$34.53

62.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.00 $2.00

$0.53 MX$10.03

277.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.41 $24.41

$5.30 MX$99.5

360.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.11 $1.11

$1.51 MX$28.39

-26.49%

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

$27.5K $27.5K

$21.8K MX$408.8K

26.37%

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

$26.3K $26.3K

$24.0K MX$450.8K

9.55%

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

$192 $192

$63.0 MX$1,184

204.49%

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

$48.26 $48.26

$27.39 MX$515

76.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.7 $53.7

$35.67 MX$670

50.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.30 $31.30

$58.9 MX$1,108

-46.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$102 $102

$23.64 MX$444

331.05%

Cinema Ticket

$14.69 $14.69

$6.40 MX$120

129.53%

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

$2,444 $2,444

$432 MX$8,111

466.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.5K $23.5K

$11.4K MX$214.7K

106.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.07 $40.07

$68.2 MX$1,282

-41.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.7 $56.7

$53.1 MX$999

6.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.3 $76.3

$108 MX$2,026

-29.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$155 $155

$117 MX$2,204

32.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,189 $3,189

$1,113 MX$20.9K

186.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,820 $2,820

$710 MX$13.4K

296.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,670 $5,670

$2,588 MX$48.6K

119.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$4,315 $4,315

$1,406 MX$26.4K

206.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,973 $5,973

$3,631 MX$68.2K

64.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,241 $4,241

$2,135 MX$40.1K

98.62%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,981 $4,981

$946 MX$17.8K

426.44%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.63

11.35

-41.59%

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

Last update for Long Island, NY: October 25, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Long Island, NY

$2.8K 66.8%

Mexico City

$710 44.2% 74.8% $2.1K

Groceries & Markets

Long Island, NY

$382 9%

Mexico City

$320 19.9% 16.3% $62

Eating Out

Long Island, NY

$366 8.7%

Mexico City

$199 12.4% 45.7% $167

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Long Island, NY

$294 7%

Mexico City

$126 7.8% 57.1% $168

Getting Around

Long Island, NY

$154 3.7%

Mexico City

$25 1.6% 83.5% $129

Clothing & Footwear

Long Island, NY

$148 3.5%

Mexico City

$156 9.7% 5.4% $8

Sport & Entertainment

Long Island, NY

$61 1.4%

Mexico City

$72 4.5% 18.2% $11

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $3,189 in Long Island, NY versus $1,113 in Mexico City. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Long Island, NY are about 5.3 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $99 in Long Island, NY versus $48 in Mexico City. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $382 vs $320 – making Mexico City the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Long Island, NY

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

02:34 2:34 AM

01:34 1:34 AM

1 h behind Long Island, NY

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,804,968

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.896 EUR

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.896 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.97 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Long Island, NY Mexico City 3,430 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Long Island, NY
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

Long Island, NY vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $4,225 in Long Island, NY, $1,608 in Mexico City – Mexico City comes out roughly 62% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $6,337 per month in Long Island, NY and $2,412 in Mexico City. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Mexico City, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,113 there versus $3,189 in Long Island, NY.

Kindergarten costs $2,444 per month in Long Island, NY and $432 in Mexico City. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 19% more in Long Island, NY, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Mexico City, where all-in costs run around $1,608, than in Long Island, NY at $4,225. In Mexico City it covers expenses comfortably, while in Long Island, NY it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Long Island, NY has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,608 in Mexico City to $4,225 in Long Island, NY. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Mexico City. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Long Island, NY makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.