Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Matamoros and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Matamoros: $1,223 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Matamoros
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Matamoros Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Matamoros

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,223

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,223 in Matamoros versus $1,608 in Mexico City.

Matamoros $1,223
Mexico City $1,608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,913 in Matamoros versus $2,549 in Mexico City.

Matamoros $1,913
Mexico City $2,549

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,604 in Matamoros versus $3,490 in Mexico City.

Matamoros $2,604
Mexico City $3,490

Living in Matamoros costs roughly 24% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Matamoros is 10% below, Mexico City is 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.16 MX$226

$10.62 MX$198

14.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.10 MX$915

$48.35 MX$901

1.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.21 MX$134

$10.35 MX$193

-30.34%

Cappuccino

$3.04 MX$56.7

$3.69 MX$68.7

-17.62%

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

$1.24 MX$23.15

$1.67 MX$31.05

-25.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.89 MX$16.66

$1.27 MX$23.58

-29.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.26 MX$42.17

$3.19 MX$59.5

-29.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.03 MX$75.1

$5.31 MX$98.9

-24.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.36 MX$25.42

$1.72 MX$32.13

-20.93%

White Bread (500g)

$2.25 MX$41.99

$3.04 MX$56.6

-25.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.66 MX$30.93

$1.94 MX$36.17

-14.43%

Eggs

$2.42 MX$45.16

$2.89 MX$53.8

-16.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.39 MX$138

$10.97 MX$204

-32.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.01 MX$131

$9.25 MX$172

-24.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.98 MX$242

$15.13 MX$282

-14.21%

Apples (1kg)

$2.34 MX$43.53

$3.05 MX$56.8

-23.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 MX$26.01

$1.94 MX$36.17

-27.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.08 MX$38.72

$2.03 MX$37.73

2.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.54 MX$28.77

$2.31 MX$43.12

-33.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.98 MX$36.94

$2.04 MX$37.91

-2.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.69 MX$31.51

$1.80 MX$33.53

-6.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.42 MX$26.52

$1.48 MX$27.56

-4.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.32

$1.27 MX$23.62

-5.51%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.50 MX$83.9

$5.30 MX$98.8

-15.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.37 MX$193

$16.10 MX$300

-35.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 MX$30.34

$1.98 MX$36.95

-17.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.49 MX$65.1

$4.25 MX$79.2

-17.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.67 MX$12.44

$0.31 MX$5.68

116.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.10 MX$486

$19.73 MX$368

32.29%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.59 MX$48.33

$1.84 MX$34.23

40.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.66 MX$31.01

$0.53 MX$9.94

213.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.36 MX$193

$5.30 MX$98.7

95.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.24 MX$23.15

$1.51 MX$28.14

-17.88%

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

$26.8K MX$499.4K

$21.8K MX$405.3K

23.22%

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

$23.8K MX$443.4K

$24.0K MX$446.9K

-0.77%

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

$60.0 MX$1,117

$63.0 MX$1,173

-4.81%

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

$23.23 MX$433

$27.39 MX$510

-15.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.06 MX$467

$35.67 MX$664

-29.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.46 MX$661

$58.9 MX$1,098

-39.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.94 MX$371

$23.64 MX$441

-15.65%

Cinema Ticket

$4.54 MX$84.6

$6.40 MX$119

-29.06%

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

$212 MX$3,953

$432 MX$8,041

-50.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,551 MX$84.8K

$11.4K MX$212.8K

-60.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.0 MX$1,025

$68.2 MX$1,271

-19.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.19 MX$637

$53.1 MX$990

-35.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.6 MX$1,744

$108 MX$2,008

-13.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.2 MX$1,643

$117 MX$2,185

-24.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$611 MX$11.4K

$1,113 MX$20.7K

-45.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$475 MX$8,855

$710 MX$13.2K

-33.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,087 MX$20.3K

$2,588 MX$48.2K

-58.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$818 MX$15.2K

$1,406 MX$26.2K

-41.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,171 MX$40.5K

$3,631 MX$67.6K

-40.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,200 MX$22.3K

$2,135 MX$39.8K

-43.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.31

11.35

-0.35%

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

Last update for Matamoros: October 27, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Matamoros

$475 38.9%

Mexico City

$710 44.2% 49.5% $235

Groceries & Markets

Matamoros

$250 20.4%

Mexico City

$320 19.9% 27.8% $69

Eating Out

Matamoros

$183 15%

Mexico City

$199 12.4% 8.3% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Matamoros

$122 10%

Mexico City

$156 9.7% 27.8% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Matamoros

$108 8.9%

Mexico City

$126 7.8% 16.4% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Matamoros

$45 3.6%

Mexico City

$72 4.5% 61.1% $27

Getting Around

Matamoros

$40 3.2%

Mexico City

$25 1.6% 35.8% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $611 in Matamoros and $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $49 in Matamoros vs $48 in Mexico City. Groceries flip the comparison at $250 vs $320, with Matamoros cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Matamoros

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

08:56 8:56 AM

07:56 7:56 AM

1 h behind Matamoros

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

510,739

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Matamoros Mexico City 740 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

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Matamoros
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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

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

Matamoros wins on cost – living expenses run 24% lower than in Mexico City. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Matamoros the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,835 in Matamoros and $2,412 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: $611 in Matamoros versus $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $212 in Matamoros versus $432 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 24% less than in Matamoros. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Matamoros is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.