Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mashhad, Iraq and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mashhad: $756 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $11,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

36

Cost of Living Index in Mashhad
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Mashhad Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Mashhad

🇮🇶 Iraq

$756

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $756 in Mashhad versus $1,674 in Mexico City.

Mashhad $756
Mexico City $1,674

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,119 in Mashhad versus $2,606 in Mexico City.

Mashhad $1,119
Mexico City $2,606

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,481 in Mashhad versus $3,537 in Mexico City.

Mashhad $1,481
Mexico City $3,537

Living in Mashhad costs roughly 55% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mashhad is 44% below, Mexico City is 24% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.49 IQD 6,781

$10.59 MX$199

-57.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.73 IQD 40.4K

$52.0 MX$978

-48.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.73 IQD 10.2K

$10.73 MX$202

-37.28%

Cappuccino

$2.71 IQD 4,100

$3.80 MX$71.4

-28.68%

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

$0.36 IQD 542

$1.61 MX$30.35

-77.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.20 IQD 302

$1.21 MX$22.81

-83.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.37 IQD 5,090

$3.18 MX$59.8

5.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 IQD 5,126

$5.44 MX$102

-37.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.91 IQD 1,368

$1.72 MX$32.32

-47.09%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 IQD 1,106

$2.97 MX$55.8

-75.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.32 IQD 1,997

$1.93 MX$36.24

-31.61%

Eggs

$0.82 IQD 1,242

$2.77 MX$52.2

-70.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.41 IQD 5,157

$11.67 MX$220

-70.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$1.98 IQD 2,985

$9.48 MX$178

-79.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$2.95 IQD 4,463

$15.37 MX$289

-80.81%

Apples (1kg)

$1.03 IQD 1,556

$3.10 MX$58.4

-66.77%

Banana (1kg)

$0.91 IQD 1,377

$1.96 MX$36.90

-53.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.87 IQD 1,321

$1.98 MX$37.30

-56.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.64 IQD 971

$2.34 MX$43.95

-72.65%

Potato (1kg)

$0.59 IQD 898

$2.02 MX$38.08

-70.79%

Onion (1kg)

$0.56 IQD 840

$1.82 MX$34.34

-69.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.31 IQD 474

$1.54 MX$29.06

-79.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.21 IQD 321

$1.31 MX$24.70

-83.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$0.77 IQD 1,168

$5.35 MX$101

-85.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.82 IQD 17.9K

$16.19 MX$305

-26.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 IQD 2,898

$1.96 MX$36.87

-2.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 IQD 2,832

$4.35 MX$81.9

-57.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 IQD 520

$0.30 MX$5.74

13.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$367

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.96 IQD 2,965

$1.92 MX$36.08

2.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.31 IQD 1,972

$0.47 MX$8.90

178.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.42 IQD 9,699

$5.41 MX$102

18.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.54 IQD 810

$1.48 MX$27.92

-63.51%

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

$16.8K IQD 25.4M

$21.4K MX$402.2K

-21.43%

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

$16.5K IQD 25.0M

$23.8K MX$447.1K

-30.44%

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

$191 IQD 288.5K

$62.0 MX$1,167

208.03%

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

$19.44 IQD 29.4K

$28.47 MX$536

-31.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.59 IQD 58.3K

$34.11 MX$642

13.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.79 IQD 55.6K

$58.4 MX$1,099

-36.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$461

Cinema Ticket

$9.69 IQD 14.6K

$6.59 MX$124

47.04%

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

$143 IQD 215.6K

$434 MX$8,172

-67.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,191 IQD 4.8M

$14.0K MX$264.1K

-77.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.57 IQD 38.6K

$68.4 MX$1,286

-62.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.03 IQD 51.4K

$54.8 MX$1,031

-37.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$58.7 IQD 88.8K

$111 MX$2,086

-47.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$42.44 IQD 64.1K

$116 MX$2,183

-63.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$212 IQD 319.9K

$1,179 MX$22.2K

-82.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$139 IQD 210.6K

$771 MX$14.5K

-81.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$378 IQD 571.7K

$2,570 MX$48.4K

-85.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$319 IQD 482.6K

$1,420 MX$26.7K

-77.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$862 IQD 1.3M

$3,586 MX$67.5K

-75.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$491 IQD 742.5K

$2,064 MX$38.8K

-76.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.12

11.35

-63.70%

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

Last update for Mashhad: October 31, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mashhad

$249 32.9%

Mexico City

$125 7.4% 50% $124

Accommodation & Living

Mashhad

$139 18.4%

Mexico City

$771 46.1% 453% $631

Groceries & Markets

Mashhad

$115 15.2%

Mexico City

$324 19.3% 182% $209

Eating Out

Mashhad

$115 15.1%

Mexico City

$201 12% 75.1% $86

Clothing & Footwear

Mashhad

$72 9.6%

Mexico City

$158 9.4% 118% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Mashhad

$56 7.4%

Mexico City

$72 4.3% 27.4% $15

Getting Around

Mashhad

$9.9 * 1.3%

Mexico City

$25 1.5% 153% $15

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $212 in Mashhad and $1,179 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $27 in Mashhad vs $52 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $115 vs $324 per month, with Mashhad cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇶 Mashhad

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

11:16 11:16 AM

02:16 2:16 AM

9 h behind Mashhad

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

13,000

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR

100 MXN = 5.31 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to IQD – Iraqi Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇶 Iraqi Dinar (ع.د)

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,694 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.82 MXN (100 MXN = 5.31 USD). 1 EUR = 21.1 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

USD to IQD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Mashhad Mexico City 12,740 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Mashhad
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $756 in Mashhad and $1,674 in Mexico City, so Mashhad is about 55% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,134 in Mashhad and $2,510 in Mexico City to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $212 in Mashhad versus $1,179 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $143 in Mashhad versus $434 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Mashhad – a meal for two runs $27 versus $52 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $756 in Mashhad versus $1,674 in Mexico City, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Mashhad but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Mashhad 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.