Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexicali and Caracas

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexicali: $949 a month against $1,312 in Caracas, rent and utilities included – about $4,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

46

Cost of Living Index in Mexicali
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Mexicali Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Caracas
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Caracas Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexicali

🇲🇽 Mexico

$949

/mo nomad

Caracas

🇻🇪 Venezuela

$1,312

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexicali and in Caracas

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Mexicali and in Caracas actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $949 per month in Mexicali vs $1,312 in Caracas, rent included.

Mexicali $949
Caracas $1,312

A couple spends around $1,525 per month in Mexicali vs $2,236 in Caracas, rent included.

Mexicali $1,525
Caracas $2,236

A family of three spends $2,101 per month in Mexicali vs $3,160 in Caracas, rent included.

Mexicali $2,101
Caracas $3,160

Mexicali is about 28% cheaper than Caracas, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Mexicali and Caracas are more affordable than the global median – Mexicali 29% lower, Caracas 2% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.10 MX$222

$10.63 VES 9,293

13.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.24 MX$629

$68.2 VES 59.6K

-49.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.69 MX$123

$10.99 VES 9,611

-39.13%

Cappuccino

$3.43 MX$62.9

$3.73 VES 3,266

-8.04%

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

$1.34 MX$24.60

$1.54 VES 1,349

-12.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.12 MX$20.65

$1.28 VES 1,122

-12.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.23 MX$59.2

$2.05 VES 1,796

57.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.26 MX$78.2

$2.91 VES 2,546

46.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.20 MX$22.10

$2.76 VES 2,413

-56.52%

White Bread (500g)

$2.39 MX$43.96

$2.32 VES 2,030

3.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 MX$28.33

$1.89 VES 1,655

-18.52%

Eggs

$2.76 MX$50.7

$4.82 VES 4,219

-42.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.42 MX$44.48

$10.18 VES 8,900

-76.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.00 MX$110

$9.44 VES 8,260

-36.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.66 MX$122

$11.51 VES 10.1K

-42.14%

Apples (1kg)

$1.63 MX$29.85

$7.23 VES 6,322

-77.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 MX$25.74

$1.96 VES 1,713

-28.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.40 MX$25.78

$2.13 VES 1,864

-34.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.63 MX$29.98

$2.37 VES 2,070

-31.22%

Potato (1kg)

$1.41 MX$25.91

$2.24 VES 1,956

-37.05%

Onion (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.03

$2.24 VES 1,957

-36.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 MX$24.70

$1.61 VES 1,411

-16.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 MX$15.66

$2.41 VES 2,104

-64.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.01 MX$73.7

$4.57 VES 3,994

-12.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.06 MX$148

$12.02 VES 10.5K

-32.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.94 MX$35.61

$1.37 VES 1,196

41.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.90 MX$71.6

$2.17 VES 1,896

79.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.05 MX$19.20

$0.51 VES 449

105.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$35.15 MX$645

$29.63 VES 25.9K

18.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.84 MX$52.1

$4.88 VES 4,271

-41.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.26 MX$41.57

$2.68 VES 2,346

-15.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.06 MX$350

$15.17 VES 13.3K

25.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 MX$24.60

$0.86 VES 754

55.81%

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

$21.7K MX$399.3K

$25.1K VES 22.0M

-13.50%

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

$24.4K MX$447.3K

$38.6K VES 33.8M

-36.95%

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

$47.14 MX$866

$22.07 VES 19.3K

113.59%

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

$22.65 MX$416

$11.81 VES 10.3K

91.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.19 MX$554

$38.64 VES 33.8K

-21.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.21 MX$720

$66.8 VES 58.5K

-41.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.63 MX$305

$17.23 VES 15.1K

-3.48%

Cinema Ticket

$4.08 MX$75.0

$6.48 VES 5,666

-37.04%

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

$210 MX$3,860

$159 VES 139.5K

31.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,724 MX$86.7K

$6,138 VES 5.4M

-23.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$34.95 MX$642

$77.8 VES 68.0K

-55.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.98 MX$605

$50.6 VES 44.2K

-34.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.4 MX$1,420

$136 VES 119.2K

-43.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$38.03 MX$698

$136 VES 119.2K

-72.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$998 MX$18.3K

$619 VES 541.0K

61.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$276 MX$5,059

$418 VES 365.3K

-34.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,357 MX$24.9K

$1,106 VES 966.9K

22.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$556 MX$10.2K

$887 VES 775.5K

-37.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,638 MX$48.4K

$1,458 VES 1.3M

80.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,474 MX$27.1K

$690 VES 603.7K

113.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$860 MX$15.8K

$304 VES 265.6K

183.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.07

-45.14%

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

Last update for Mexicali: October 6, 2026

Last update for Caracas: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexicali

$276 29.1%

Caracas

$418 31.4% 51.6% $142

Groceries & Markets

Mexicali

$197 20.8%

Caracas

$340 25.6% 72.5% $143

Eating Out

Mexicali

$192 20.3%

Caracas

$190 14.3% 1.2% $2.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexicali

$100 10.5%

Caracas

$73 5.5% 27.5% $27

Clothing & Footwear

Mexicali

$83 8.7%

Caracas

$180 13.6% 119% $98

Getting Around

Mexicali

$53 5.6%

Caracas

$50 3.8% 6.6% $3.5

Sport & Entertainment

Mexicali

$47 5%

Caracas

$80 6% 68.4% $32

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $998 in Mexicali versus $619 in Caracas. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 183% higher in Mexicali, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $34.00 in Mexicali versus $68.0 in Caracas. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $197 vs $340 – making Mexicali the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexicali

🇻🇪 Caracas

🕒 Local time

03:15 3:15 AM

06:15 6:15 AM

3 h ahead of Mexicali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

854,186

3,274,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Venezuelan Bolívar VES Bs.S

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

1,000 VES = 1.14 USD

1,000 VES = 1.02 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VES, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.57 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

Venezuelan Bolívar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 875 VES (1,000 VES = 1.14 USD). 1 EUR = 980 VES (1,000 VES = 1.02 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexicali Caracas 5,530 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexicali
Caracas

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

Mexicali vs Caracas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Caracas is pricier by about 38%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,423 per month in Mexicali and $1,968 in Caracas. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Mexicali, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 19% less in Mexicali. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $210 per month in Mexicali and $159 in Caracas. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Mexicali, where all-in costs run around $949, than in Caracas at $1,312. In Mexicali it covers expenses comfortably, while in Caracas it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Mexicali – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Mexicali. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Caracas makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.