Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Batam

For one person, living is cheaper in Batam: $586 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $12,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
28

Cost of Living Index in Batam
Learn more

Batam Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Batam

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $586 in Batam.

Mexico City $1,608
Batam $586

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $984 in Batam.

Mexico City $2,549
Batam $984

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $1,382 in Batam.

Mexico City $3,490
Batam $1,382

Living in Mexico City is roughly 174% more expensive than in Batam, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Batam is 57% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$199

$1.95 Rp 35.3K

444.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$908

$8.07 Rp 146.3K

499.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$194

$3.90 Rp 70.7K

165.38%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$69.3

$2.05 Rp 37.1K

80.00%

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

$1.67 MX$31.29

$0.61 Rp 11.0K

173.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.76

$0.30 Rp 5,449

323.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.9

$2.47 Rp 44.7K

29.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$99.6

$3.66 Rp 66.4K

45.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.38

$1.12 Rp 20.3K

53.57%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$57.1

$1.09 Rp 19.8K

178.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.44

$0.81 Rp 14.7K

139.51%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$54.2

$1.22 Rp 22.1K

136.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$206

$7.45 Rp 135.0K

47.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$174

$2.47 Rp 44.8K

274.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$284

$4.31 Rp 78.1K

251.04%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$57.2

$2.17 Rp 39.2K

40.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.45

$2.00 Rp 36.2K

-3.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.02

$1.97 Rp 35.8K

3.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.46

$1.03 Rp 18.7K

124.27%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$38.21

$0.95 Rp 17.2K

114.74%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.79

$1.96 Rp 35.5K

-8.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.77

$1.29 Rp 23.4K

14.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.80

$0.44 Rp 8,036

188.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$99.6

$2.72 Rp 49.3K

94.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$302

$13.78 Rp 249.8K

16.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$37.23

$1.68 Rp 30.4K

17.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.8

$2.33 Rp 42.3K

82.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.73

$0.41 Rp 7,419

-24.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$371

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.50

$1.13 Rp 20.5K

62.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.02

$0.58 Rp 10.6K

-8.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.4

$3.42 Rp 62.0K

54.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.36

$0.84 Rp 15.2K

79.76%

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

$21.8K MX$408.4K

$27.6K Rp 499.6M

-21.09%

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

$24.0K MX$450.3K

$24.6K Rp 445.8M

-2.50%

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

$63.0 MX$1,182

$67.8 Rp 1.2M

-7.11%

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

$27.39 MX$514

$4.09 Rp 74.2K

569.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$670

$22.58 Rp 409.2K

57.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,107

$27.03 Rp 489.9K

118.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

$5.66 Rp 102.5K

317.67%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$120

$2.66 Rp 48.3K

140.60%

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

$432 MX$8,103

$83.0 Rp 1.5M

419.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.5K

$3,186 Rp 57.7M

258.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,281

$31.46 Rp 570.0K

116.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$997

$17.99 Rp 326.0K

195.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,023

$64.4 Rp 1.2M

67.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,202

$23.72 Rp 429.9K

394.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.9K

$265 Rp 4.8M

320.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.3K

$145 Rp 2.6M

389.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.6K

$796 Rp 14.4M

225.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.4K

$499 Rp 9.0M

181.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$68.2K

$542 Rp 9.8M

570.41%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$40.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.8K

$334 Rp 6.0M

183.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

13.17

-13.82%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Batam: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Batam

$145 24.8% 79.6% $565

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Batam

$172 29.3% 46.3% $148

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Batam

$75 12.8% 62.2% $124

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Batam

$62 10.6% 60.3% $94

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Batam

$94 16.1% 25% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Batam

$32 5.5% 54.9% $39

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Batam

$5.7 * 1% 77.7% $20

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 $265 in Batam. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays about 2.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $8 in Batam for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $172 per month, with Batam cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇮🇩 Batam

🕒 Local time

00:10 12:10 AM

13:10 1:10 PM

13 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

1,196,396

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.52 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18,120 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.52 USD). 1 EUR = 20,232 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Batam 16,610 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Batam

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 Batam: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Batam is about 64% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Mexico City is about 2.8 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $265 in Batam. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 86% higher in Mexico City. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,608 per month in Mexico City versus $586 in Batam – Batam is about 64% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $586 in Batam versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Batam but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Batam the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Batam wins on affordability, Mexico City on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.