Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lusaka and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Lusaka: $876 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $8,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in Lusaka
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Lusaka Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Lusaka

🇿🇲 Zambia

$876

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $876 in Lusaka versus $1,567 in Mexico City.

Lusaka $876
Mexico City $1,567

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,497 in Lusaka versus $2,450 in Mexico City.

Lusaka $1,497
Mexico City $2,450

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,117 in Lusaka versus $3,333 in Mexico City.

Lusaka $2,117
Mexico City $3,333

Living in Lusaka costs roughly 44% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lusaka is 35% below, Mexico City is 16% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.63 ZMW 112

$10.75 MX$199

-47.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.45 ZMW 606

$50.3 MX$929

-39.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.14 ZMW 102

$11.10 MX$205

-53.69%

Cappuccino

$2.86 ZMW 56.8

$3.68 MX$68.1

-22.28%

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

$0.78 ZMW 15.60

$1.65 MX$30.42

-52.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.45 ZMW 8.92

$1.30 MX$24.08

-65.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.29 ZMW 25.56

$3.32 MX$61.3

-61.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 ZMW 46.24

$5.54 MX$102

-58.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 ZMW 33.20

$1.77 MX$32.68

-5.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.23 ZMW 24.48

$3.05 MX$56.4

-59.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.09 ZMW 41.62

$2.01 MX$37.20

3.98%

Eggs

$1.90 ZMW 37.77

$2.77 MX$51.1

-31.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.34 ZMW 206

$11.91 MX$220

-13.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.41 ZMW 128

$9.33 MX$172

-31.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.47 ZMW 129

$15.02 MX$278

-56.92%

Apples (1kg)

$3.45 ZMW 68.5

$3.08 MX$56.8

12.01%

Banana (1kg)

$2.45 ZMW 48.71

$1.95 MX$35.97

25.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.62 ZMW 72.1

$2.03 MX$37.54

78.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.58 ZMW 31.35

$2.21 MX$40.92

-28.51%

Potato (1kg)

$2.62 ZMW 52.0

$2.02 MX$37.41

29.70%

Onion (1kg)

$1.88 ZMW 37.39

$1.82 MX$33.67

3.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 ZMW 22.93

$1.52 MX$28.07

-24.34%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.75 ZMW 14.96

$1.28 MX$23.65

-41.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.07 ZMW 61.1

$5.27 MX$97.4

-41.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.23 ZMW 203

$16.12 MX$298

-36.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 ZMW 28.24

$1.95 MX$36.05

-27.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.24 ZMW 44.47

$4.25 MX$78.6

-47.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.03 ZMW 20.44

$0.31 MX$5.82

232.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.4 ZMW 1,003

$19.85 MX$367

154.11%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.47 ZMW 49.14

$2.00 MX$36.93

23.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.52 ZMW 30.29

$0.53 MX$9.86

186.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.12 ZMW 102

$5.62 MX$104

-8.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ZMW 29.71

$1.52 MX$28.07

-1.97%

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

$7,550 ZMW 150.2K

$21.0K MX$388.7K

-64.10%

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

$27.2K ZMW 540.1K

$25.2K MX$465.3K

7.84%

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

$79.3 ZMW 1,577

$62.5 MX$1,155

26.90%

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

$10.56 ZMW 210

$28.77 MX$532

-63.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.0 ZMW 1,093

$34.45 MX$637

59.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.9 ZMW 1,072

$57.1 MX$1,055

-5.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.21 ZMW 303

$24.81 MX$458

-38.69%

Cinema Ticket

$6.06 ZMW 121

$6.67 MX$123

-9.15%

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

$141 ZMW 2,802

$431 MX$7,964

-67.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.7K ZMW 331.8K

$11.7K MX$216.9K

42.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.49 ZMW 467

$70.8 MX$1,308

-66.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$15.47 ZMW 308

$51.8 MX$958

-70.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$45.00 ZMW 895

$109 MX$2,011

-58.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.8 ZMW 1,429

$112 MX$2,076

-36.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$392 ZMW 7,794

$1,051 MX$19.4K

-62.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$181 ZMW 3,597

$665 MX$12.3K

-72.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 ZMW 21.8K

$2,346 MX$43.3K

-53.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$602 ZMW 12.0K

$1,227 MX$22.7K

-50.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,949 ZMW 38.8K

$3,554 MX$65.7K

-45.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,934 ZMW 98.1K

$1,977 MX$36.5K

149.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$311 ZMW 6,182

$975 MX$18.0K

-68.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

156.64%

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

Last update for Lusaka: October 10, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Lusaka

$239 27.3%

Mexico City

$323 20.6% 35% $84

Accommodation & Living

Lusaka

$181 20.6%

Mexico City

$665 42.4% 268% $484

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lusaka

$145 16.5%

Mexico City

$126 8% 13.2% $19

Eating Out

Lusaka

$111 12.6%

Mexico City

$203 13% 83.3% $92

Clothing & Footwear

Lusaka

$70 8%

Mexico City

$155 9.9% 121% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Lusaka

$66 7.5%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 6.7% $4.4

Getting Around

Lusaka

$65 7.4%

Mexico City

$26 1.6% 60.1% $39

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $392 in Lusaka and $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 214% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $30.00 in Lusaka vs $50.0 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $239 vs $323 per month, with Lusaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇲 Lusaka

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

22:11 10:11 PM

14:11 2:11 PM

8 h behind Lusaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,742,979 Capital

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Zambian Kwacha ZMW ZK

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZMW = 5.03 USD

100 ZMW = 4.47 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to ZMW – Zambian Kwacha Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇲 Zambian Kwacha (ZK)

Zambian Kwacha exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 19.89 ZMW (100 ZMW = 5.03 USD). 1 EUR = 22.36 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.47 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to ZMW in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Lusaka Mexico City 14,440 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Lusaka
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

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

Lusaka and Mexico City differ by about 79% in total monthly costs ($876 vs $1,567 including rent). Lusaka is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 214% lower in Mexico City. 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: $392 in Lusaka versus $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $876 per month in Lusaka versus $1,567 in Mexico City – a 79% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Lusaka runs roughly 154% less than in Mexico City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $876 in Lusaka versus $1,567 in Mexico City, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lusaka but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Lusaka 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.

Expats usually find Lusaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 79% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.