Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mandaluyong and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mandaluyong: $1,066 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $6,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

52

Cost of Living Index in Mandaluyong
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Mandaluyong Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Mandaluyong

🇵🇭 Philippines

$1,066

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,066 in Mandaluyong versus $1,608 in Mexico City.

Mandaluyong $1,066
Mexico City $1,608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,643 in Mandaluyong versus $2,549 in Mexico City.

Mandaluyong $1,643
Mexico City $2,549

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,221 in Mandaluyong versus $3,490 in Mexico City.

Mandaluyong $2,221
Mexico City $3,490

Living in Mandaluyong costs roughly 34% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mandaluyong is 22% below, Mexico City is 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.81 ₱307

$10.62 MX$199

-54.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.11 ₱1,026

$48.35 MX$908

-66.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.48 ₱222

$10.35 MX$194

-66.38%

Cappuccino

$2.20 ₱140

$3.69 MX$69.3

-40.38%

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

$0.96 ₱61.2

$1.67 MX$31.29

-42.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ₱30.98

$1.27 MX$23.76

-61.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.16 ₱73.8

$3.19 MX$59.9

-63.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 ₱148

$5.31 MX$99.6

-56.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 ₱105

$1.72 MX$32.38

-4.07%

White Bread (500g)

$1.31 ₱83.7

$3.04 MX$57.1

-56.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.94 ₱60.1

$1.94 MX$36.44

-51.55%

Eggs

$2.19 ₱140

$2.89 MX$54.2

-24.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.07 ₱323

$10.97 MX$206

-53.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.78 ₱305

$9.25 MX$174

-48.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.81 ₱434

$15.13 MX$284

-54.99%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱210

$3.05 MX$57.2

8.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.89 ₱121

$1.94 MX$36.45

-2.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.00 ₱191

$2.03 MX$38.02

47.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₱115

$2.31 MX$43.46

-22.08%

Potato (1kg)

$2.21 ₱141

$2.04 MX$38.21

8.33%

Onion (1kg)

$2.56 ₱163

$1.80 MX$33.79

42.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.62 ₱39.24

$1.48 MX$27.77

-58.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.48 ₱30.83

$1.27 MX$23.80

-62.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.81 ₱179

$5.30 MX$99.6

-46.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.55 ₱545

$16.10 MX$302

-46.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 ₱55.9

$1.98 MX$37.23

-55.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 ₱129

$4.25 MX$79.8

-52.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.32 ₱20.54

$0.31 MX$5.73

3.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$13.10 ₱835

$19.73 MX$371

-33.60%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.76 ₱48.25

$1.84 MX$34.50

-58.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.24 ₱15.33

$0.53 MX$10.02

-54.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.90 ₱121

$5.30 MX$99.4

-64.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.20 ₱76.3

$1.51 MX$28.36

-20.53%

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

$21.1K ₱1.3M

$21.8K MX$408.4K

-3.04%

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

$18.8K ₱1.2M

$24.0K MX$450.3K

-21.81%

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

$138 ₱8,815

$63.0 MX$1,182

119.66%

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

$17.04 ₱1,086

$27.39 MX$514

-37.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.94 ₱1,526

$35.67 MX$670

-32.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.69 ₱2,019

$58.9 MX$1,107

-46.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

Cinema Ticket

$6.03 ₱384

$6.40 MX$120

-5.78%

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

$132 ₱8,406

$432 MX$8,103

-69.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,937 ₱569.5K

$11.4K MX$214.5K

-21.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.86 ₱1,775

$68.2 MX$1,281

-59.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.00 ₱1,721

$53.1 MX$997

-49.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.5 ₱4,493

$108 MX$2,023

-34.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$55.2 ₱3,519

$117 MX$2,202

-52.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$727 ₱46.3K

$1,113 MX$20.9K

-34.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$457 ₱29.1K

$710 MX$13.3K

-35.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,395 ₱152.6K

$2,588 MX$48.6K

-7.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$996 ₱63.5K

$1,406 MX$26.4K

-29.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,203 ₱267.8K

$3,631 MX$68.2K

15.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,924 ₱186.3K

$2,135 MX$40.1K

36.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$537 ₱34.2K

$946 MX$17.8K

-43.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

11.35

-40.53%

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

Last update for Mandaluyong: October 26, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mandaluyong

$457 42.9%

Mexico City

$710 44.2% 55.3% $253

Groceries & Markets

Mandaluyong

$196 18.4%

Mexico City

$320 19.9% 63% $123

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mandaluyong

$179 16.8%

Mexico City

$126 7.8% 29.7% $53

Eating Out

Mandaluyong

$92 8.6%

Mexico City

$199 12.4% 117% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Mandaluyong

$81 7.6%

Mexico City

$156 9.7% 91.8% $75

Sport & Entertainment

Mandaluyong

$44 4.1%

Mexico City

$72 4.5% 64% $28

Getting Around

Mandaluyong

$16 1.5%

Mexico City

$25 1.6% 55.7% $9.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $727 in Mandaluyong and $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 76% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $16 in Mandaluyong vs $48 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $196 vs $320 per month, with Mandaluyong cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Mandaluyong

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

18:51 6:51 PM

04:51 4:51 AM

14 h behind Mandaluyong

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

425,758

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 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 November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 63.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.15 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

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

From you

Mandaluyong
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,066 in Mandaluyong and $1,608 in Mexico City, so Mandaluyong is about 34% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 43% lower in Mandaluyong. 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: $727 in Mandaluyong versus $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 63% higher in Mexico City. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Mandaluyong – a meal for two runs $16 versus $48 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Mandaluyong gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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 Mandaluyong gentler on the wallet – expenses run 34% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.