Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Makassar and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Makassar: $632 a month against $1,548 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $11,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in Makassar
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Makassar Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index

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Makassar

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$632

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,548

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $632 in Makassar versus $1,548 in Mexico City.

Makassar $632
Mexico City $1,548

Estimated couple costs with rent: $977 in Makassar versus $2,436 in Mexico City.

Makassar $977
Mexico City $2,436

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,322 in Makassar versus $3,323 in Mexico City.

Makassar $1,322
Mexico City $3,323

Living in Makassar costs roughly 59% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Makassar is 53% below, Mexico City is 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.62 Rp 29.1K

$11.02 MX$204

-85.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$8.67 Rp 156.1K

$48.68 MX$900

-82.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.23 Rp 58.1K

$10.90 MX$201

-70.37%

Cappuccino

$1.92 Rp 34.6K

$3.68 MX$68.1

-47.83%

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

$0.47 Rp 8,457

$1.63 MX$30.18

-71.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 Rp 6,013

$1.25 MX$23.07

-73.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.45 Rp 44.1K

$3.25 MX$60.1

-24.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.13 Rp 56.4K

$5.53 MX$102

-43.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 Rp 27.6K

$1.70 MX$31.50

-10.00%

White Bread (500g)

$0.97 Rp 17.5K

$3.02 MX$55.8

-67.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.57 Rp 10.3K

$1.92 MX$35.53

-70.31%

Eggs

$1.54 Rp 27.7K

$2.73 MX$50.5

-43.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.42 Rp 115.5K

$11.77 MX$218

-45.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.42 Rp 61.6K

$9.53 MX$176

-64.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.23 Rp 94.2K

$14.41 MX$266

-63.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.45 Rp 44.1K

$3.02 MX$55.8

-18.87%

Banana (1kg)

$1.31 Rp 23.6K

$1.89 MX$35.01

-30.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.96 Rp 35.3K

$1.99 MX$36.70

-1.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.26 Rp 22.6K

$2.19 MX$40.38

-42.47%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 Rp 23.1K

$1.92 MX$35.43

-33.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 Rp 26.6K

$1.87 MX$34.49

-20.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.74 Rp 13.3K

$1.44 MX$26.62

-48.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.39 Rp 6,988

$1.27 MX$23.39

-69.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.60 Rp 46.9K

$5.22 MX$96.4

-50.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.14 Rp 398.6K

$16.17 MX$299

36.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 Rp 32.7K

$1.90 MX$35.03

-4.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.87 Rp 51.7K

$4.22 MX$78.0

-31.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.27 Rp 4,851

$0.34 MX$6.30

-20.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$4.18 Rp 75.2K

$19.65 MX$363

-78.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.50 Rp 8,925

$2.00 MX$36.90

-75.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.37 Rp 6,710

$0.52 MX$9.67

-28.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.67 Rp 48.0K

$5.34 MX$98.7

-50.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.80 Rp 14.3K

$1.52 MX$28.13

-47.37%

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

$23.8K Rp 428.5M

$22.1K MX$408.0K

7.84%

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

$31.9K Rp 574.3M

$24.5K MX$452.9K

30.17%

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

$90.3 Rp 1.6M

$61.1 MX$1,129

47.78%

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

$2.61 Rp 46.9K

$28.58 MX$528

-90.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.29 Rp 455.3K

$34.47 MX$637

-26.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.58 Rp 388.5K

$56.4 MX$1,042

-61.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.40 Rp 151.1K

$24.88 MX$460

-66.24%

Cinema Ticket

$3.36 Rp 60.5K

$6.66 MX$123

-49.55%

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

$94.2 Rp 1.7M

$427 MX$7,891

-77.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,803 Rp 68.5M

$11.6K MX$215.0K

-67.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$26.97 Rp 485.5K

$67.8 MX$1,253

-60.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$23.43 Rp 421.7K

$52.0 MX$960

-54.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.0 Rp 1.3M

$106 MX$1,959

-29.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$39.92 Rp 718.5K

$113 MX$2,080

-64.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$224 Rp 4.0M

$1,025 MX$18.9K

-78.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$143 Rp 2.6M

$654 MX$12.1K

-78.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$528 Rp 9.5M

$2,308 MX$42.7K

-77.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$364 Rp 6.6M

$1,242 MX$22.9K

-70.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,151 Rp 20.7M

$3,613 MX$66.8K

-68.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$794 Rp 14.3M

$1,936 MX$35.8K

-58.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$214 Rp 3.8M

$964 MX$17.8K

-77.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.46

11.3

-16.28%

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

Last update for Makassar: October 17, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Makassar

$193 30.6%

Mexico City

$318 20.6% 64.6% $125

Accommodation & Living

Makassar

$143 22.6%

Mexico City

$654 42.3% 358% $512

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Makassar

$118 18.7%

Mexico City

$124 8% 5.1% $6

Clothing & Footwear

Makassar

$74 11.8%

Mexico City

$152 9.8% 105% $78

Eating Out

Makassar

$67 10.7%

Mexico City

$204 13.2% 203% $136

Sport & Entertainment

Makassar

$28 4.5%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 146% $41

Getting Around

Makassar

$7.6 1.2%

Mexico City

$26 1.7% 237% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $224 in Makassar and $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 351% 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: $9.00 in Makassar vs $49.00 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $193 vs $318 per month, with Makassar cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Makassar

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

21:17 9:17 PM

07:17 7:17 AM

14 h behind Makassar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,427,619

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Makassar Mexico City 15,550 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Makassar
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

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

Makassar wins on cost – living expenses run 145% lower than in Mexico City. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Makassar the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 351% 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: $224 in Makassar versus $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Makassar runs roughly 370% less than in Mexico City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $94.2 in Makassar versus $427 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $632 in Makassar versus $1,548 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Makassar but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Makassar the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Makassar delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $632 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Makassar hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Makassar gentler on the wallet – expenses run 145% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.