Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Babahoyo

For one person, living is cheaper in Babahoyo: $797 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $9,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
40

Cost of Living Index in Babahoyo
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Babahoyo Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Babahoyo

🇪🇨 Ecuador

$797

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $797 in Babahoyo.

Mexico City $1,608
Babahoyo $797

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,299 in Babahoyo.

Mexico City $2,549
Babahoyo $1,299

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $1,801 in Babahoyo.

Mexico City $3,490
Babahoyo $1,801

Living in Mexico City is roughly 102% more expensive than in Babahoyo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Babahoyo is 41% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$198

$3.35 $3.35

217.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$901

$37.80 $37.80

27.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$193

$6.68 $6.68

54.94%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$68.8

$2.87 $2.87

28.57%

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

$1.67 MX$31.07

$0.83 $0.83

101.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.59

$0.82 $0.82

54.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.5

$2.83 $2.83

12.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$3.49 $3.49

52.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.15

$1.06 $1.06

62.26%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$56.7

$1.72 $1.72

76.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.55 $1.55

25.16%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$53.8

$1.94 $1.94

48.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$205

$6.64 $6.64

65.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$172

$4.80 $4.80

92.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$282

$7.27 $7.27

108.12%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$56.8

$2.14 $2.14

42.52%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.13 $1.13

71.68%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.75

$1.37 $1.37

48.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.15

$1.08 $1.08

113.89%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.94

$1.40 $1.40

45.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.55

$1.10 $1.10

63.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.58

$0.78 $0.78

89.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.63

$1.02 $1.02

24.51%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$98.9

$5.82 $5.82

-8.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$300

$7.38 $7.38

118.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.97

$1.38 $1.38

43.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.3

$2.85 $2.85

49.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.69

$0.30 $0.30

3.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$368

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.25

$1.52 $1.52

21.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.94

$1.12 $1.12

-52.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$98.7

$10.45 $10.45

-49.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.16

$0.72 $0.72

109.72%

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

$21.8K MX$405.5K

$22.7K $22.7K

-4.31%

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

$24.0K MX$447.1K

$34.1K $34.1K

-29.76%

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

$63.0 MX$1,174

$33.73 $33.73

86.72%

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

$27.39 MX$511

$12.14 $12.14

125.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$665

$26.59 $26.59

34.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,099

$29.18 $29.18

101.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$441

$16.29 $16.29

45.12%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$119

$7.88 $7.88

-18.78%

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

$432 MX$8,045

$299 $299

44.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$212.9K

$5,114 $5,114

123.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,272

$60.4 $60.4

12.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$990

$50.1 $50.1

6.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,009

$93.3 $93.3

15.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,186

$67.1 $67.1

74.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.8K

$395 $395

181.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.2K

$256 $256

177.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.2K

$772 $772

235.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.2K

$504 $504

179.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$67.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$39.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

10.09

12.49%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Babahoyo: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Babahoyo

$256 32.1% 64% $455

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Babahoyo

$185 23.2% 42.1% $135

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Babahoyo

$109 13.7% 45.1% $90

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Babahoyo

$122 15.3% 21.8% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Babahoyo

$72 9.1% 42.5% $54

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Babahoyo

$45 5.6% 37.4% $27

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Babahoyo

$8.3 * 1% 67.3% $17

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $395 in Babahoyo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $38 in Babahoyo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $185 per month, with Babahoyo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇪🇨 Babahoyo

🕒 Local time

16:14 4:14 PM

17:14 5:14 PM

1 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

84,164

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Babahoyo 3,190 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Babahoyo

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 Babahoyo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Babahoyo wins on cost – living expenses run 50% lower than in Mexico City. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Babahoyo the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $2,412 in Mexico City and $1,196 in Babahoyo to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $395 in Babahoyo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $299 in Babahoyo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Babahoyo – a meal for two runs $38 versus $48 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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.