Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Ampang Jaya

For one person, living is cheaper in Ampang Jaya: $1,009 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $6,700 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
49

Cost of Living Index in Ampang Jaya
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Ampang Jaya Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Ampang Jaya

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$1,009

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Ampang Jaya

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

A single person spends $1,567 per month in Mexico City vs $1,009 in Ampang Jaya, rent included.

Mexico City $1,567
Ampang Jaya $1,009

A couple spends around $2,450 per month in Mexico City vs $1,506 in Ampang Jaya, rent included.

Mexico City $2,450
Ampang Jaya $1,506

A family of three spends $3,333 per month in Mexico City vs $2,003 in Ampang Jaya, rent included.

Mexico City $3,333
Ampang Jaya $2,003

Mexico City costs about 55% more than Ampang Jaya, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Mexico City sits 16% above the global median, while Ampang Jaya is 25% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.75 MX$199

$3.69 MYR 15.07

191.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.3 MX$929

$24.43 MYR 99.6

105.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.10 MX$205

$4.95 MYR 20.19

124.24%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.1

$3.06 MYR 12.48

20.26%

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

$1.65 MX$30.42

$0.93 MYR 3.79

77.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 MX$24.08

$0.55 MYR 2.26

136.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.32 MX$61.3

$4.37 MYR 17.82

-24.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.54 MX$102

$6.42 MYR 26.19

-13.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.77 MX$32.68

$1.74 MYR 7.10

1.72%

White Bread (500g)

$3.05 MX$56.4

$1.08 MYR 4.41

182.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.20

$1.50 MYR 6.10

34.00%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.1

$1.76 MYR 7.18

57.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.91 MX$220

$9.99 MYR 40.76

19.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.33 MX$172

$3.47 MYR 14.16

168.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.02 MX$278

$9.91 MYR 40.42

51.56%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 MX$56.8

$3.37 MYR 13.73

-8.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.97

$1.69 MYR 6.91

15.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.54

$3.21 MYR 13.09

-36.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.21 MX$40.92

$1.62 MYR 6.62

36.42%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.41

$1.43 MYR 5.83

41.26%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.67

$1.72 MYR 7.02

5.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$1.38 MYR 5.61

10.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 MX$23.65

$0.52 MYR 2.13

146.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.27 MX$97.4

$4.54 MYR 18.51

16.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.12 MX$298

$19.73 MYR 80.5

-18.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 MX$36.05

$2.85 MYR 11.61

-31.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$78.6

$4.58 MYR 18.70

-7.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.82

$1.01 MYR 4.10

-69.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.85 MX$367

$19.59 MYR 79.9

1.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 MX$36.93

$1.25 MYR 5.08

60.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.86

$0.35 MYR 1.44

51.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.62 MX$104

$6.21 MYR 25.33

-9.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$0.87 MYR 3.55

74.71%

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

$21.0K MX$388.7K

$42.5K MYR 173.4K

-50.51%

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

$25.2K MX$465.3K

$34.6K MYR 141.0K

-27.13%

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

$62.5 MX$1,155

$48.90 MYR 199

27.79%

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

$28.77 MX$532

$11.23 MYR 45.79

156.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.45 MX$637

$28.37 MYR 116

21.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,055

$36.16 MYR 148

57.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 MX$458

$7.54 MYR 30.76

229.05%

Cinema Ticket

$6.67 MX$123

$5.04 MYR 20.54

32.34%

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

$431 MX$7,964

$193 MYR 786

123.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.7K MX$216.9K

$4,453 MYR 18.2K

163.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.8 MX$1,308

$53.2 MYR 217

33.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.8 MX$958

$30.19 MYR 123

71.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 MX$2,011

$81.6 MYR 333

33.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 MX$2,076

$86.6 MYR 353

29.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,051 MX$19.4K

$436 MYR 1,780

140.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$665 MX$12.3K

$364 MYR 1,484

82.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,346 MX$43.3K

$1,491 MYR 6,083

57.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,227 MX$22.7K

$590 MYR 2,407

107.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,554 MX$65.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,977 MX$36.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$975 MX$18.0K

$836 MYR 3,412

16.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

4.51

150.55%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Last update for Ampang Jaya: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$665 42.4%

Ampang Jaya

$364 36.1% 45.3% $301

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$323 20.6%

Ampang Jaya

$249 24.7% 23% $74

Eating Out

Mexico City

$203 13%

Ampang Jaya

$122 12.1% 40% $81

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$155 9.9%

Ampang Jaya

$113 11.2% 26.8% $42

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 8%

Ampang Jaya

$88 8.8% 29.6% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$70 4.5%

Ampang Jaya

$46 4.6% 34.4% $24

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.6%

Ampang Jaya

$27 2.6% 3.3% $0.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,051 in Mexico City versus $436 in Ampang Jaya. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 17% higher in Mexico City, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50.0 in Mexico City versus $24.00 in Ampang Jaya. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $323 vs $249 – making Ampang Jaya the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇲🇾 Ampang Jaya

🕒 Local time

05:36 5:36 AM

19:36 7:36 PM

14 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

531,904

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, 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).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Ampang Jaya 16,620 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Ampang Jaya

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 Ampang Jaya: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,567 in Mexico City, $1,009 in Ampang Jaya – roughly 55% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,351 per month in Mexico City and $1,513 in Ampang Jaya. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,567 in Mexico City and $1,009 in Ampang Jaya. That's a gap of about 55%.

Public transport costs about 1% less in Ampang Jaya. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Ampang Jaya, where all-in costs run around $1,009, than in Mexico City at $1,567. In Ampang Jaya 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 $1,009 in Ampang Jaya 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 Ampang Jaya. 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.