Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Addis Ababa

For one person, living is cheaper in Addis Ababa: $1,300 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index
63

Cost of Living Index in Addis Ababa
Learn more

Addis Ababa Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Addis Ababa

🇪🇹 Ethiopia

$1,300

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Addis Ababa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $1,300 in Addis Ababa.

Mexico City $1,608
Addis Ababa $1,300

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,914 in Addis Ababa.

Mexico City $2,549
Addis Ababa $1,914

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $2,528 in Addis Ababa.

Mexico City $3,490
Addis Ababa $2,528

Living in Mexico City is roughly 24% more expensive than in Addis Ababa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Addis Ababa is 4% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$199

$4.07 ETB 654

160.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$908

$42.77 ETB 6,881

13.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$194

$6.63 ETB 1,067

56.11%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$69.3

$0.88 ETB 141

319.32%

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

$1.67 MX$31.29

$0.58 ETB 93.8

187.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.76

$0.64 ETB 103

98.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.9

$0.77 ETB 124

314.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$99.6

$2.23 ETB 359

138.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.38

$1.07 ETB 172

60.75%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$57.1

$1.16 ETB 186

162.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.44

$2.17 ETB 349

-10.60%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$54.2

$1.79 ETB 287

61.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$206

$7.51 ETB 1,209

46.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$174

$10.28 ETB 1,654

-10.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$284

$9.49 ETB 1,527

59.43%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$57.2

$5.25 ETB 844

-41.90%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.45

$0.64 ETB 102

203.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.02

$2.12 ETB 341

-4.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.46

$0.65 ETB 105

255.38%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$38.21

$0.50 ETB 81.0

308.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.79

$1.08 ETB 174

66.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.77

$0.69 ETB 111

114.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.80

$0.58 ETB 92.7

118.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$99.6

$8.01 ETB 1,289

-33.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$302

$5.68 ETB 914

183.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$37.23

$0.67 ETB 108

195.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.8

$1.22 ETB 196

248.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.73

$0.51 ETB 82.6

-39.22%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$371

$21.05 ETB 3,387

-6.27%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.50

$1.29 ETB 208

42.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.02

$0.29 ETB 47.28

82.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.4

$1.96 ETB 315

170.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.36

$0.96 ETB 155

57.29%

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

$21.8K MX$408.4K

$55.7K ETB 9.0M

-60.92%

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

$24.0K MX$450.3K

$56.1K ETB 9.0M

-57.26%

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

$63.0 MX$1,182

$202 ETB 32.5K

-68.85%

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

$27.39 MX$514

$7.50 ETB 1,206

265.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$670

$213 ETB 34.3K

-83.27%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,107

$44.97 ETB 7,236

31.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

$36.87 ETB 5,933

-35.88%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$120

$3.77 ETB 607

69.76%

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

$432 MX$8,103

$633 ETB 101.9K

-31.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.5K

$30.5K ETB 4.9M

-62.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,281

$32.81 ETB 5,279

107.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$997

$69.5 ETB 11.2K

-23.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,023

$77.5 ETB 12.5K

39.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,202

$82.9 ETB 13.3K

41.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.9K

$707 ETB 113.8K

57.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.3K

$392 ETB 63.0K

81.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.6K

$2,299 ETB 369.9K

12.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.4K

$774 ETB 124.5K

81.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$68.2K

$1,976 ETB 318.0K

83.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$40.1K

$1,025 ETB 165.0K

108.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.8K

$200 ETB 32.2K

372.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

18.5

-38.65%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Addis Ababa: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Addis Ababa

$392 30.1% 44.9% $319

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Addis Ababa

$213 16.4% 33.4% $107

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Addis Ababa

$76 5.9% 61.7% $122

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Addis Ababa

$118 9.1% 24.2% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Addis Ababa

$423 32.5% 236% $297

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Addis Ababa

$53 4% 26.8% $19

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Addis Ababa

$26 2% 1.6% $0.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $707 in Addis Ababa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays about 4.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $43 in Addis Ababa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $213 per month, with Addis Ababa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇪🇹 Addis Ababa

🕒 Local time

23:36 11:36 PM

08:36 8:36 AM

9 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

3,500,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Ethiopian Birr ETB Br

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1,000 ETB = 6.22 USD

1,000 ETB = 5.57 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ETB, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

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).

Ethiopian Birr exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 161 ETB (1,000 ETB = 6.22 USD). 1 EUR = 180 ETB (1,000 ETB = 5.57 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mexico City Addis Ababa 14,420 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Addis Ababa

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

Mexico City vs Addis Ababa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $1,300 in Addis Ababa, so Addis Ababa is about 19% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Mexico City is about 4.7 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $707 in Addis Ababa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,608 per month in Mexico City versus $1,300 in Addis Ababa – Addis Ababa is about 19% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 6% less than in Addis Ababa. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Addis Ababa 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.

It comes down to priorities – Addis Ababa wins on affordability, Mexico City on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.