Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and 'ali

For one person, living is cheaper in 'ali: $818 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $9,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index
40

Cost of Living Index in 'ali
Learn more

'ali Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

'ali

🇧🇭 Bahrain

$818

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in 'ali

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

A single person spends $1,567 per month in Mexico City vs $818 in 'ali, rent included.

Mexico City $1,567
'ali $818

A couple spends around $2,450 per month in Mexico City vs $1,299 in 'ali, rent included.

Mexico City $2,450
'ali $1,299

A family of three spends $3,333 per month in Mexico City vs $1,779 in 'ali, rent included.

Mexico City $3,333
'ali $1,779

Mexico City costs about 92% more than 'ali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Mexico City sits 16% above the global median, while 'ali is 39% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.75 MX$198

$5.36 BHD 2.02

100.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.3 MX$923

$53.3 BHD 20.14

-5.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.10 MX$204

$7.44 BHD 2.81

49.19%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$67.7

$5.01 BHD 1.89

-26.55%

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

$1.65 MX$30.25

$0.90 BHD 0.34

83.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 MX$23.94

$0.30 BHD 0.11

333.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.32 MX$61.0

$6.73 BHD 2.54

-50.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.54 MX$102

$10.18 BHD 3.84

-45.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.77 MX$32.50

$1.42 BHD 0.54

24.65%

White Bread (500g)

$3.05 MX$56.1

$1.07 BHD 0.40

185.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 MX$36.98

$2.26 BHD 0.85

-11.06%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$50.8

$2.22 BHD 0.84

24.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.91 MX$219

$8.64 BHD 3.26

37.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.33 MX$171

$6.45 BHD 2.44

44.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.02 MX$276

$8.86 BHD 3.34

69.53%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 MX$56.5

$2.30 BHD 0.87

33.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.77

$2.31 BHD 0.87

-15.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.32

$1.92 BHD 0.73

5.73%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.21 MX$40.68

$1.40 BHD 0.53

57.86%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.20

$1.04 BHD 0.39

94.23%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.47

$1.35 BHD 0.51

34.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 MX$27.91

$1.50 BHD 0.57

1.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 MX$23.52

$0.78 BHD 0.30

64.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.27 MX$96.8

$5.32 BHD 2.01

-0.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.12 MX$296

$18.80 BHD 7.10

-14.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 MX$35.84

$3.61 BHD 1.36

-45.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$78.1

$2.57 BHD 0.97

65.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.79

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.85 MX$365

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 MX$36.72

$5.42 BHD 2.05

-63.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.81

$3.46 BHD 1.31

-84.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.62 MX$103

$15.80 BHD 5.96

-64.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$27.91

$0.70 BHD 0.26

117.14%

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

$21.0K MX$386.4K

$36.7K BHD 13.9K

-42.71%

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

$25.2K MX$462.6K

$20.1K BHD 7,594

25.17%

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

$62.5 MX$1,148

$151 BHD 57.0

-58.59%

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

$28.77 MX$529

$24.17 BHD 9.12

19.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.45 MX$633

$35.75 BHD 13.50

-3.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,049

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 MX$456

Cinema Ticket

$6.67 MX$122

$10.67 BHD 4.03

-37.49%

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

$431 MX$7,918

$495 BHD 187

-12.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.7K MX$215.7K

$11.2K BHD 4,229

4.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.8 MX$1,301

$51.9 BHD 19.59

36.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.8 MX$952

$57.3 BHD 21.63

-9.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 MX$2,000

$89.2 BHD 33.67

22.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 MX$2,064

$89.2 BHD 33.67

25.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,051 MX$19.3K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$665 MX$12.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,346 MX$43.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,227 MX$22.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,554 MX$65.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,977 MX$36.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$975 MX$17.9K

$3,823 BHD 1,443

-74.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

6.21

81.96%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Last update for 'ali: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$665 42.4%

'ali

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$323 20.6%

'ali

$250 30.5% 22.6% $73

Eating Out

Mexico City

$203 13%

'ali

$184 22.5% 9.3% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$155 9.9%

'ali

$129 15.8% 16.3% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 8%

'ali

$211 25.8% 67.7% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$70 4.5%

'ali

$21 * 2.6% 69.7% $49

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.6%

'ali

$23 * 2.8% 11.9% $3.1

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Salaries run about 292% higher in 'ali, 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 $50.0 in Mexico City versus $53.0 in 'ali. Groceries tell a different story – $323 in Mexico City vs $250 in 'ali – so 'ali wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇧🇭 'ali

🕒 Local time

19:08 7:08 PM

04:08 4:08 AM

9 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

100,553

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Bahraini Dinar BHD .د.ب

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.44 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

1 BHD = 2.65 USD

1 BHD = 2.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BHD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 18.37 MXN (100 MXN = 5.44 USD). 1 EUR = 20.56 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

Bahraini Dinar exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 0.377 BHD (1 BHD = 2.65 USD). 1 EUR = 0.422 BHD (1 BHD = 2.37 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mexico City 'ali 13,980 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
'ali

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 'ali: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Mexico City is pricier by about 92%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,351 per month in Mexico City and $1,227 in 'ali. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50.0 in Mexico City and $53.0 in 'ali. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 29% 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 $1,500 monthly budget goes further in 'ali, where all-in costs run around $818, than in Mexico City at $1,567. In 'ali it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mexico City it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward 'ali – 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 'ali. 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.