Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Alajuela Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Alajuela

🙂 Solo nomad: Mexico City is 4.3% cheaper than Alajuela without rent, and 9% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Mexico City is 17.9% cheaper than Alajuela without rent, and 2.4% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.12 MX$232

$10.08 ₡4,768

30.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$53.8 MX$952

$40.17 ₡19.0K

33.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.40 MX$166

$9.68 ₡4,577

-2.89%

Cappuccino

$3.56 MX$63.0

$3.75 ₡1,773

-5.07%

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

$1.60 MX$28.37

$1.96 ₡927

-18.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.15 MX$20.44

$1.29 ₡610

-10.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.16 MX$55.9

$2.21 ₡1,044

42.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.85 MX$85.8

$3.65 ₡1,726

32.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 MX$28.92

$1.86 ₡880

-12.37%

White Bread (500g)

$2.73 MX$48.40

$2.47 ₡1,166

10.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.88 MX$33.25

$2.22 ₡1,048

-15.32%

Eggs

$2.63 MX$46.58

$2.25 ₡1,063

16.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.89 MX$175

$9.67 ₡4,570

2.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.40 MX$149

$9.04 ₡4,273

-7.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.63 MX$206

$13.90 ₡6,572

-16.33%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 MX$52.6

$3.85 ₡1,822

-22.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.78 MX$31.59

$1.45 ₡686

22.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.06 MX$36.38

$4.14 ₡1,958

-50.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.97 MX$34.96

$2.86 ₡1,350

-31.12%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 MX$36.92

$2.88 ₡1,360

-27.43%

Onion (1kg)

$2.26 MX$39.99

$2.64 ₡1,247

-14.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 MX$25.81

$1.00 ₡474

46.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 MX$19.29

$2.51 ₡1,187

-56.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.34 MX$76.8

$4.95 ₡2,338

-12.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.62 MX$241

$20.49 ₡9,689

-33.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.67 MX$29.63

$2.14 ₡1,012

-21.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.54 MX$62.6

$2.42 ₡1,145

46.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.36 MX$6.37

$0.83 ₡394

-56.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.96 MX$336

$112 ₡53.0K

-83.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 MX$23.43

$1.38 ₡652

-4.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.30 MX$5.33

$1.32 ₡622

-77.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.49 MX$97.2

$8.05 ₡3,804

-31.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 MX$23.66

$1.40 ₡662

-4.29%

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

$19.1K MX$338.3K

$37.7K ₡17.8M

-49.30%

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

$23.8K MX$420.6K

$32.8K ₡15.5M

-27.65%

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

$41.11 MX$728

$44.80 ₡21.2K

-8.24%

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

$27.78 MX$492

$19.66 ₡9,297

41.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.00 MX$531

$33.13 ₡15.7K

-9.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.5 MX$948

$65.7 ₡31.1K

-18.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.13 MX$463

$43.81 ₡20.7K

-40.36%

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 MX$111

$9.13 ₡4,315

-31.22%

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

$439 MX$7,777

$303 ₡143.3K

44.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.7K MX$190.1K

$2,356 ₡1.1M

355.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.1 MX$1,011

$62.9 ₡29.7K

-9.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.30 MX$802

$52.3 ₡24.7K

-13.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 MX$1,845

$121 ₡57.2K

-13.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 MX$1,916

$100 ₡47.4K

7.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$996 MX$17.6K

$704 ₡332.9K

41.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$624 MX$11.0K

$607 ₡286.8K

2.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,106 MX$37.3K

$1,013 ₡479.1K

107.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,218 MX$21.6K

$934 ₡441.6K

30.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,799 MX$67.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,230 MX$39.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,096 MX$19.4K

$2,039 ₡964.1K

-46.23%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.34

10.17

11.50%

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

Last update for Mexico City: March 1, 2026

Last update for Alajuela: March 2, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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