Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Al-Ula

For one person, living is cheaper in Al-Ula: $1,184 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Al-Ula
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Al-Ula Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Al-Ula

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,184

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Al-Ula

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 Al-Ula actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,567 per month in Mexico City vs $1,184 in Al-Ula, rent included.

Mexico City $1,567
Al-Ula $1,184

A couple spends around $2,450 per month in Mexico City vs $1,757 in Al-Ula, rent included.

Mexico City $2,450
Al-Ula $1,757

A family of three spends $3,333 per month in Mexico City vs $2,330 in Al-Ula, rent included.

Mexico City $3,333
Al-Ula $2,330

Mexico City costs about 32% more than Al-Ula, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Mexico City sits 16% above the global median, while Al-Ula is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.75 MX$199

$6.11 SAR 22.91

75.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.3 MX$929

$36.80 SAR 138

36.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.10 MX$205

$7.96 SAR 29.87

39.45%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.89 SAR 7.08

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 SAR 8.62

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.1

$3.17 SAR 11.89

16.09%

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

$1.65 MX$30.42

$0.86 SAR 3.24

91.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 MX$24.08

$0.26 SAR 0.98

400.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.32 MX$61.3

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.54 MX$102

Milk (1 liter)

$1.77 MX$32.68

$1.74 SAR 6.52

1.72%

White Bread (500g)

$3.05 MX$56.4

$1.27 SAR 4.75

140.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.20

$2.30 SAR 8.62

-12.61%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.1

$2.32 SAR 8.72

19.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.91 MX$220

$7.39 SAR 27.75

61.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.33 MX$172

$8.07 SAR 30.27

15.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.02 MX$278

$12.67 SAR 47.54

18.55%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 MX$56.8

$2.25 SAR 8.45

36.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.97

$1.76 SAR 6.60

10.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.54

$1.58 SAR 5.94

28.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.21 MX$40.92

$1.57 SAR 5.89

40.76%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.41

$1.23 SAR 4.61

64.23%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.67

$1.28 SAR 4.79

42.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$1.22 SAR 4.58

24.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 MX$23.65

$0.54 SAR 2.02

137.04%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.86 SAR 10.71

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 SAR 6.68

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 SAR 7.91

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.27 MX$97.4

$6.74 SAR 25.28

-21.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.12 MX$298

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 MX$36.05

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$78.6

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.82

$1.09 SAR 4.08

-71.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.85 MX$367

$36.77 SAR 138

-46.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 MX$36.93

$2.61 SAR 9.80

-23.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.86

$1.85 SAR 6.95

-71.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.62 MX$104

$13.14 SAR 49.29

-57.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$0.65 SAR 2.44

133.85%

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

$21.0K MX$388.7K

$44.0K SAR 165.2K

-52.23%

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

$25.2K MX$465.3K

$21.3K SAR 79.9K

18.21%

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

$62.5 MX$1,155

$106 SAR 397

-41.00%

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

$28.77 MX$532

$33.21 SAR 125

-13.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.45 MX$637

$65.8 SAR 247

-47.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,055

$82.4 SAR 309

-30.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 MX$458

Cinema Ticket

$6.67 MX$123

$13.33 SAR 50.0

-49.96%

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

$431 MX$7,964

$425 SAR 1,596

1.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.7K MX$216.9K

$8,102 SAR 30.4K

44.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.8 MX$1,308

$42.74 SAR 160

65.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.8 MX$958

$55.4 SAR 208

-6.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 MX$2,011

$96.2 SAR 361

13.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 MX$2,076

$87.6 SAR 329

28.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,051 MX$19.4K

$576 SAR 2,162

82.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$665 MX$12.3K

$372 SAR 1,397

78.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,346 MX$43.3K

$832 SAR 3,121

182.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,227 MX$22.7K

$572 SAR 2,147

114.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,554 MX$65.7K

$2,323 SAR 8,718

52.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,977 MX$36.5K

$1,382 SAR 5,187

43.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$975 MX$18.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

5.54

103.97%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Last update for Al-Ula: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$665 42.4%

Al-Ula

$372 31.5% 44% $293

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$323 20.6%

Al-Ula

$203 17.1% 37.2% $120

Eating Out

Mexico City

$203 13%

Al-Ula

$115 9.7% 43.2% $88

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$155 9.9%

Al-Ula

$127 10.7% 18% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 8%

Al-Ula

$205 17.3% 63% $79

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$70 4.5%

Al-Ula

$109 9.2% 54.8% $39

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.6%

Al-Ula

$53 4.5% 106% $27

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,051 in Mexico City versus $576 in Al-Ula. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50.0 in Mexico City versus $37.00 in Al-Ula. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $323 vs $203 – making Al-Ula the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇸🇦 Al-Ula

🕒 Local time

03:33 3:33 AM

12:33 12:33 PM

9 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

32,413

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SAR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Al-Ula 13,120 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Al-Ula

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 Al-Ula: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,567 in Mexico City, $1,184 in Al-Ula – roughly 32% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,351 per month in Mexico City and $1,776 in Al-Ula. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Kindergarten costs $431 per month in Mexico City and $425 in Al-Ula. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 59% more in Mexico City, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Al-Ula, where all-in costs run around $1,184, than in Mexico City at $1,567. In Al-Ula it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mexico City it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Mexico City has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,184 in Al-Ula to $1,567 in Mexico City. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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 Al-Ula. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Mexico City makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.