Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Bamenda

For one person, living is cheaper in Bamenda: $670 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $11,300 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
32

Cost of Living Index in Bamenda
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Bamenda Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Bamenda

🇨🇲 Cameroon

$670

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,608 per month in Mexico City vs $670 in Bamenda, rent included.

Mexico City $1,608
Bamenda $670

A couple spends around $2,549 per month in Mexico City vs $897 in Bamenda, rent included.

Mexico City $2,549
Bamenda $897

A family of three spends $3,490 per month in Mexico City vs $1,123 in Bamenda, rent included.

Mexico City $3,490
Bamenda $1,123

Mexico City costs about 140% more than Bamenda, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Mexico City sits 18% above the global median, while Bamenda is 51% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$200

$5.05 FCFA 2,964

110.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$909

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$194

$6.52 FCFA 3,830

58.74%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$69.4

$1.17 FCFA 685

215.38%

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

$1.67 MX$31.32

$1.74 FCFA 1,022

-4.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.78

$0.63 FCFA 371

101.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$60.0

$1.56 FCFA 916

104.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$99.7

$1.66 FCFA 977

219.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.41

$2.78 FCFA 1,631

-38.13%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$57.1

$0.82 FCFA 485

270.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.48

$1.94 FCFA 1,143

Eggs

$2.89 MX$54.3

$2.96 FCFA 1,741

-2.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$206

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$174

$3.74 FCFA 2,196

147.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$284

$4.75 FCFA 2,791

218.53%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$57.3

$2.59 FCFA 1,523

17.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.48

$0.82 FCFA 484

136.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.06

$1.17 FCFA 687

73.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.50

$1.29 FCFA 758

79.07%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$38.25

$2.98 FCFA 1,749

-31.54%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.83

$1.51 FCFA 890

19.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.80

$0.78 FCFA 457

89.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.82

$0.77 FCFA 452

64.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$99.7

$1.73 FCFA 1,018

206.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$303

$9.62 FCFA 5,652

67.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$37.27

$1.40 FCFA 820

41.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.9

$1.65 FCFA 971

157.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.73

$1.31 FCFA 767

-76.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$371

$8.99 FCFA 5,281

119.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.53

$0.61 FCFA 360

201.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.03

$0.62 FCFA 363

-14.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.5

$5.52 FCFA 3,244

-3.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.39

$1.44 FCFA 843

4.86%

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

$21.8K MX$408.8K

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

$24.0K MX$450.8K

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

$63.0 MX$1,184

$171 FCFA 100.7K

-63.25%

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

$27.39 MX$515

$30.03 FCFA 17.6K

-8.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$670

$42.80 FCFA 25.1K

-16.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,108

$17.19 FCFA 10.1K

242.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$120

$8.48 FCFA 4,982

-24.53%

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

$432 MX$8,111

$169 FCFA 99.5K

154.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.7K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,282

$25.42 FCFA 14.9K

168.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$999

$42.49 FCFA 25.0K

25.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,026

$46.74 FCFA 27.5K

130.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,204

$51.2 FCFA 30.1K

129.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.9K

$68.7 FCFA 40.3K

1521.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.4K

$33.55 FCFA 19.7K

2017.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.6K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$68.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$40.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.8K

$97.3 FCFA 57.2K

872.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Bamenda: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Bamenda

$34 5% 95.3% $677

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Bamenda

$171 * 25.6% 46.3% $148

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Bamenda

$95 14.1% 52.4% $104

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Bamenda

$75 11.1% 52.1% $81

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Bamenda

$244 36.4% 93.7% $118

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Bamenda

$34 5.1% 52.4% $38

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Bamenda

$18 2.7% 29.6% $7.5

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,113 in Mexico City versus $69 in Bamenda. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Mexico City are about 9.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇨🇲 Bamenda

🕒 Local time

11:34 11:34 AM

18:34 6:34 PM

7 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

1,735,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Central African CFA Franc XAF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1,000 XAF = 1.7 USD

1,000 XAF = 1.53 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

XAF, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.97 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Central African CFA Franc exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 587 XAF (1,000 XAF = 1.7 USD). 1 EUR = 656 XAF (1,000 XAF = 1.53 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Bamenda 11,780 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Bamenda

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 Bamenda: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City, $670 in Bamenda – Bamenda comes out roughly 58% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,412 per month in Mexico City and $1,006 in Bamenda. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Bamenda, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $69 there versus $1,113 in Mexico City.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $670 in Bamenda. That makes Bamenda about 58% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $432 per month in Mexico City and $169 in Bamenda. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Bamenda, where all-in costs run around $670, than in Mexico City at $1,608. In Bamenda it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mexico City it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Bamenda – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Bamenda. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Mexico City makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.