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

🙂 Solo nomad: Mexico City is 14% cheaper than Arenal without rent, and 9.1% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Mexico City is 1.4% cheaper than Arenal without rent, and 2.2% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.38 MX$253

$10.9 ₡5,456

22.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.7 MX$997

$58.6 ₡29.3K

-10.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.31 MX$176

$9.82 ₡4,918

-5.19%

Cappuccino

$3.61 MX$68.3

$3.8 ₡1,904

-5.00%

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

$1.64 MX$30.91

$1.98 ₡990

-17.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.12 MX$21.14

$1.61 ₡805

-30.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.26 MX$61.7

$3 ₡1,502

8.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.82 MX$91.1

$4.73 ₡2,367

1.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 MX$31.24

$2.06 ₡1,033

-19.90%

White Bread (500g)

$2.74 MX$51.7

$2.85 ₡1,428

-3.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.92 MX$36.28

$2.22 ₡1,112

-13.51%

Eggs

$2.51 MX$47.53

$2.93 ₡1,469

-14.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.89 MX$187

$9.74 ₡4,874

1.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.39 MX$159

$9.08 ₡4,546

-7.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.95 MX$226

$13.84 ₡6,931

-13.66%

Apples (1kg)

$2.87 MX$54.3

$4.4 ₡2,203

-34.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 MX$32.85

$1.51 ₡756

15.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$2 MX$37.81

$4.36 ₡2,183

-54.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.07 MX$39.14

$3.55 ₡1,779

-41.69%

Potato (1kg)

$2.05 MX$38.78

$3.52 ₡1,765

-41.76%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 MX$41.22

$3.21 ₡1,605

-32.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.38 MX$26.16

$0.97 ₡484

42.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.11 MX$21.06

$2.85 ₡1,427

-61.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.16 MX$78.6

$5.38 ₡2,695

-22.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.05 MX$209

$18.66 ₡9,343

-40.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.75 MX$33.16

$2.52 ₡1,259

-30.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.7 MX$70

$2.95 ₡1,476

25.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.38 MX$7.25

$1.04 ₡520

-63.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.97 MX$359

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.36 MX$25.72

$1.78 ₡891

-23.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.28 MX$5.25

$1.84 ₡921

-84.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.3 MX$100

$8.11 ₡4,058

-34.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 MX$25.63

$1.4 ₡700

-2.86%

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

$18.8K MX$354.6K

$37.7K ₡18.9M

-50.22%

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

$23.4K MX$441.7K

$33.1K ₡16.6M

-29.49%

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

$39.97 MX$756

$94.5 ₡47.3K

-57.69%

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

$27.48 MX$519

$25.71 ₡12.9K

6.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.22 MX$571

$59.1 ₡29.6K

-48.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.6 MX$994

$57.8 ₡28.9K

-9.00%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.84 MX$507

$23.97 ₡12K

11.97%

Cinema Ticket

$6.32 MX$120

$9.73 ₡4,873

-35.05%

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

$437 MX$8,258

$561 ₡280.7K

-22.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.6K MX$199.9K

$12.7K ₡6.4M

-16.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.2 MX$1,082

$61.6 ₡30.8K

-7.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.14 MX$853

$52.4 ₡26.2K

-13.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 MX$1,928

$126 ₡63.1K

-19.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$109 MX$2,056

$108 ₡54K

0.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,000 MX$18.9K

$759 ₡380.1K

31.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$622 MX$11.8K

$597 ₡299K

4.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,160 MX$40.8K

$1,533 ₡767.2K

40.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,235 MX$23.3K

$968 ₡484.4K

27.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,566 MX$67.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,480 MX$46.9K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$867 MX$16.4K

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: October 28, 2025

Last update for Arenal: October 27, 2025

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