Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Makati and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Makati: $1,228 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $4,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Makati
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Makati Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Makati

🇵🇭 Philippines

$1,228

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,228 in Makati versus $1,567 in Mexico City.

Makati $1,228
Mexico City $1,567

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,028 in Makati versus $2,450 in Mexico City.

Makati $2,028
Mexico City $2,450

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,828 in Makati versus $3,333 in Mexico City.

Makati $2,828
Mexico City $3,333

Living in Makati costs roughly 22% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Makati is 9% below, Mexico City is 16% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.22 ₱392

$10.75 MX$199

-42.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.57 ₱2,491

$50.3 MX$929

-21.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.88 ₱307

$11.10 MX$205

-56.04%

Cappuccino

$2.55 ₱161

$3.68 MX$68.1

-30.71%

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

$1.06 ₱67.0

$1.65 MX$30.42

-35.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ₱31.54

$1.30 MX$24.08

-61.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.38 ₱150

$3.32 MX$61.3

-28.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.21 ₱202

$5.54 MX$102

-42.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.90 ₱120

$1.77 MX$32.68

7.34%

White Bread (500g)

$1.29 ₱81.5

$3.05 MX$56.4

-57.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.06 ₱67.0

$2.01 MX$37.20

-47.26%

Eggs

$2.47 ₱155

$2.77 MX$51.1

-10.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 ₱459

$11.91 MX$220

-38.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.86 ₱306

$9.33 MX$172

-47.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.03 ₱442

$15.02 MX$278

-53.20%

Apples (1kg)

$4.04 ₱254

$3.08 MX$56.8

31.17%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 ₱122

$1.95 MX$35.97

-0.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.22 ₱203

$2.03 MX$37.54

58.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 ₱144

$2.21 MX$40.92

3.62%

Potato (1kg)

$3.48 ₱219

$2.02 MX$37.41

72.28%

Onion (1kg)

$3.59 ₱226

$1.82 MX$33.67

97.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.06 ₱66.8

$1.52 MX$28.07

-30.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.11 ₱69.7

$1.28 MX$23.65

-13.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.69 ₱169

$5.27 MX$97.4

-48.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.11 ₱511

$16.12 MX$298

-49.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 ₱82.9

$1.95 MX$36.05

-32.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.98 ₱124

$4.25 MX$78.6

-53.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.90 ₱56.4

$0.31 MX$5.82

190.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.8 ₱3,575

$19.85 MX$367

186.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.67 ₱41.91

$2.00 MX$36.93

-66.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.21 ₱13.16

$0.53 MX$9.86

-60.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.93 ₱121

$5.62 MX$104

-65.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 ₱78.8

$1.52 MX$28.07

-17.76%

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

$21.3K ₱1.3M

$21.0K MX$388.7K

1.08%

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

$19.6K ₱1.2M

$25.2K MX$465.3K

-22.31%

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

$153 ₱9,620

$62.5 MX$1,155

144.52%

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

$16.06 ₱1,011

$28.77 MX$532

-44.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.37 ₱2,038

$34.45 MX$637

-6.04%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.9 ₱3,456

$57.1 MX$1,055

-3.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.14 ₱890

$24.81 MX$458

-43.01%

Cinema Ticket

$7.22 ₱454

$6.67 MX$123

8.25%

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

$794 ₱50.0K

$431 MX$7,964

84.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,321 ₱460.9K

$11.7K MX$216.9K

-37.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.2 ₱3,850

$70.8 MX$1,308

-13.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.86 ₱2,321

$51.8 MX$958

-28.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.5 ₱5,129

$109 MX$2,011

-25.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 ₱6,510

$112 MX$2,076

-7.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$815 ₱51.3K

$1,051 MX$19.4K

-22.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$417 ₱26.3K

$665 MX$12.3K

-37.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,274 ₱143.2K

$2,346 MX$43.3K

-3.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,069 ₱67.3K

$1,227 MX$22.7K

-12.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,869 ₱369.5K

$3,554 MX$65.7K

65.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,738 ₱235.4K

$1,977 MX$36.5K

89.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$601 ₱37.9K

$975 MX$18.0K

-38.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.5

11.3

-33.63%

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

Last update for Makati: October 12, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Makati

$417 34%

Mexico City

$665 42.4% 59.3% $248

Groceries & Markets

Makati

$231 18.8%

Mexico City

$323 20.6% 39.5% $91

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Makati

$201 16.4%

Mexico City

$126 8% 37.5% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Makati

$127 10.4%

Mexico City

$155 9.9% 21.5% $27

Eating Out

Makati

$120 9.7%

Mexico City

$203 13% 69.7% $83

Sport & Entertainment

Makati

$69 5.6%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 1.6% $1.1

Getting Around

Makati

$62 5.1%

Mexico City

$26 1.6% 58.5% $36

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $815 in Makati and $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 62% 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: $40.00 in Makati vs $50.0 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $231 vs $323 per month, with Makati cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Makati

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

21:57 9:57 PM

07:57 7:57 AM

14 h behind Makati

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

582,602

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Makati Mexico City 14,220 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Makati
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

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

Makati wins on cost – living expenses run 28% lower than in Mexico City. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Makati the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 62% 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: $815 in Makati 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 $1,228 per month in Makati versus $1,567 in Mexico City – a 28% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Makati runs roughly 186% less than in Mexico City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,228 in Makati versus $1,567 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Makati but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Makati the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Makati delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,228 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Makati hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Makati 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 Makati gentler on the wallet – expenses run 28% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.