Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Alba Iulia

For one person, living is cheaper in Alba Iulia: $901 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $8,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Alba Iulia
Learn more

Alba Iulia Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Alba Iulia

🇷🇴 Romania

$901

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Alba Iulia

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 Alba Iulia actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $901 in Alba Iulia.

Mexico City $1,608
Alba Iulia $901

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,378 in Alba Iulia.

Mexico City $2,549
Alba Iulia $1,378

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $1,855 in Alba Iulia.

Mexico City $3,490
Alba Iulia $1,855

Living in Mexico City is roughly 78% more expensive than in Alba Iulia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Alba Iulia is 34% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$198

$8.60 RON 41.32

23.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$901

$30.98 RON 149

56.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$193

$5.88 RON 28.25

76.02%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$68.8

$2.28 RON 10.95

61.84%

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

$1.67 MX$31.07

$1.75 RON 8.43

-4.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.59

$1.48 RON 7.13

-14.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.5

$1.97 RON 9.45

61.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$2.04 RON 9.79

160.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.15

$1.23 RON 5.91

39.84%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$56.7

$1.08 RON 5.20

181.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.43 RON 6.86

35.66%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$53.8

$2.69 RON 12.93

7.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$205

$7.53 RON 36.17

45.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$172

$6.03 RON 28.97

53.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$282

$10.80 RON 51.9

40.09%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$56.8

$0.92 RON 4.44

231.52%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.31 RON 6.29

48.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.75

$1.26 RON 6.06

61.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.15

$2.33 RON 11.20

-0.86%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.94

$0.72 RON 3.44

183.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.55

$0.59 RON 2.83

205.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.58

$0.87 RON 4.18

70.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.63

$0.61 RON 2.92

108.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$98.9

$5.18 RON 24.88

2.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$300

$4.28 RON 20.56

276.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.97

$1.12 RON 5.36

76.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.3

$1.27 RON 6.11

234.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.69

$0.75 RON 3.60

-58.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$368

$16.98 RON 81.6

16.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.25

$0.64 RON 3.06

187.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.94

$0.63 RON 3.03

-15.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$98.7

$4.47 RON 21.46

18.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.16

$1.50 RON 7.20

0.67%

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

$21.8K MX$405.5K

$28.8K RON 138.4K

-24.44%

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

$24.0K MX$447.1K

$23.7K RON 114.1K

1.05%

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

$63.0 MX$1,174

$125 RON 598

-49.43%

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

$27.39 MX$511

$7.31 RON 35.12

274.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$665

$9.01 RON 43.29

295.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,099

$29.55 RON 142

99.46%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$441

$30.83 RON 148

-23.32%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$119

$5.09 RON 24.44

25.74%

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

$432 MX$8,045

$435 RON 2,092

-0.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$212.9K

$6,969 RON 33.5K

63.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,272

$38.02 RON 183

79.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$990

$23.94 RON 115

121.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,009

$73.8 RON 355

46.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,186

$61.7 RON 297

90.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.8K

$296 RON 1,422

276.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.2K

$283 RON 1,360

151.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.2K

$612 RON 2,941

322.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.2K

$478 RON 2,298

194.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$67.7K

$1,643 RON 7,894

121.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$39.8K

$1,401 RON 6,732

52.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

$903 RON 4,340

4.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

6.97

62.84%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Alba Iulia: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Alba Iulia

$283 31.4% 60.2% $428

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Alba Iulia

$185 20.5% 42.2% $135

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Alba Iulia

$141 15.6% 29.2% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Alba Iulia

$89 9.9% 43% $67

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Alba Iulia

$141 15.6% 11.7% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Alba Iulia

$40 4.4% 44.6% $32

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Alba Iulia

$24 2.6% 6.7% $1.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $296 in Alba Iulia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 5% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $31 in Alba Iulia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $185 per month, with Alba Iulia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇷🇴 Alba Iulia

🕒 Local time

08:08 8:08 AM

16:08 4:08 PM

8 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

63,536

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 RON = 0.208 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.81 RON (1 RON = 0.208 USD). 1 EUR = 5.35 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Between locations

Mexico City Alba Iulia 10,730 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Alba Iulia

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 Alba Iulia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Alba Iulia is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 78% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 5% higher in Mexico City, 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 $296 in Alba Iulia. 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 $901 in Alba Iulia – a 78% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Alba Iulia runs roughly 14% less than in Mexico City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

At $901 in Alba Iulia versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Alba Iulia but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Alba Iulia the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Expats usually find Alba Iulia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 44% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.