Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Busan

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,683 a month against $1,798 in Busan, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. The total is higher in Busan despite lower rent and utilities.

81

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
87

Cost of Living Index in Busan
Learn more

Busan Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,683

/mo nomad

Busan

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,798

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,683 in Mexico City versus $1,798 in Busan.

Mexico City $1,683
Busan $1,798

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,616 in Mexico City versus $2,951 in Busan.

Mexico City $2,616
Busan $2,951

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,549 in Mexico City versus $4,104 in Busan.

Mexico City $3,549
Busan $4,104

Living in Mexico City costs roughly 6% less than in Busan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 26% above, Busan 34% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.98 MX$204

$7.67 ₩10.2K

43.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$51.9 MX$965

$49.50 ₩66.0K

4.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.54 MX$196

$6.60 ₩8,809

59.70%

Cappuccino

$3.67 MX$68.2

$3.73 ₩4,982

-1.61%

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

$1.66 MX$30.87

$1.77 ₩2,365

-6.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.56

$1.40 ₩1,875

-13.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.20 MX$59.5

$3.80 ₩5,066

-15.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.34 MX$99.3

$4.37 ₩5,832

22.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 MX$31.86

$2.29 ₩3,056

-25.33%

White Bread (500g)

$2.95 MX$54.9

$3.14 ₩4,192

-6.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.95 MX$36.16

$3.12 ₩4,159

-37.50%

Eggs

$2.84 MX$52.9

$2.62 ₩3,492

8.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.86 MX$221

$10.99 ₩14.7K

7.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.31 MX$173

$10.40 ₩13.9K

-10.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.38 MX$286

$24.69 ₩32.9K

-37.71%

Apples (1kg)

$3.13 MX$58.1

$11.01 ₩14.7K

-71.57%

Banana (1kg)

$2.00 MX$37.12

$3.69 ₩4,929

-45.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 MX$36.88

$8.33 ₩11.1K

-76.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.35 MX$43.75

$6.01 ₩8,019

-60.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.98 MX$36.90

$6.12 ₩8,171

-67.65%

Onion (1kg)

$1.88 MX$34.87

$3.34 ₩4,461

-43.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 MX$28.34

$2.76 ₩3,681

-44.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 MX$23.88

$1.34 ₩1,791

-4.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.16 MX$95.8

$3.32 ₩4,433

55.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.13 MX$300

$18.81 ₩25.1K

-14.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.07 MX$38.40

$2.38 ₩3,173

-13.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.46 MX$82.9

$3.67 ₩4,899

21.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.33 MX$6.14

$1.15 ₩1,534

-71.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.52 MX$363

$68.6 ₩91.5K

-71.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.13

$3.61 ₩4,816

-49.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.48 MX$8.83

$0.63 ₩844

-23.81%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.50 MX$102

$14.96 ₩20.0K

-63.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.46

$1.43 ₩1,906

6.99%

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

$21.7K MX$404.3K

$39.8K ₩53.1M

-45.38%

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

$23.9K MX$444.2K

$33.1K ₩44.1M

-27.72%

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

$62.2 MX$1,156

$197 ₩262.5K

-68.39%

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

$28.51 MX$530

$36.58 ₩48.8K

-22.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.82 MX$629

$26.77 ₩35.7K

26.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.1 MX$1,024

$42.05 ₩56.1K

30.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.93 MX$371

$10.18 ₩13.6K

95.78%

Cinema Ticket

$6.53 MX$121

$11.89 ₩15.9K

-45.08%

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

$428 MX$7,965

$639 ₩852.1K

-32.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.2K MX$264.2K

$22.1K ₩29.4M

-35.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.0 MX$1,301

$106 ₩140.9K

-33.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.2 MX$1,007

$66.1 ₩88.1K

-17.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 MX$2,029

$93.6 ₩124.9K

16.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,178

$126 ₩168.7K

-7.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,153 MX$21.4K

$742 ₩990.7K

55.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$782 MX$14.5K

$563 ₩751.8K

38.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,587 MX$48.1K

$2,181 ₩2.9M

18.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,438 MX$26.7K

$1,399 ₩1.9M

2.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,556 MX$66.1K

$5,334 ₩7.1M

-33.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,152 MX$40.0K

$3,295 ₩4.4M

-34.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,082 MX$20.1K

$2,595 ₩3.5M

-58.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

4.22

168.96%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 8, 2026

Last update for Busan: November 9, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$782 46.5%

Busan

$563 31.3% 28% $219

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$324 19.3%

Busan

$486 27% 49.9% $162

Eating Out

Mexico City

$202 12%

Busan

$166 9.3% 17.5% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$158 9.4%

Busan

$176 9.8% 11.8% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$125 7.4%

Busan

$260 14.5% 109% $136

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$68 4.1%

Busan

$66 3.7% 3.4% $2.3

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.5%

Busan

$80 4.5% 219% $55

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,153 in Mexico City and $742 in Busan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Busan pays about 2.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $52 in Mexico City vs $49 in Busan. Groceries flip the comparison at $324 vs $486, with Mexico City cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇰🇷 Busan

🕒 Local time

20:43 8:43 PM

11:43 11:43 AM

15 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

3,586,079

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.85 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.49 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 13, 2026: 1 USD = 18.59 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.63 MXN (100 MXN = 4.85 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of November 13, 2026: 1 USD = 1,334 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.49 USD). 1 EUR = 1,481 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.75 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Busan 12,100 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Busan

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 Busan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City wins on cost – living expenses run 6% lower than in Busan. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Mexico City the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 58% lower in Mexico City. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,153 in Mexico City versus $742 in Busan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 72% less than in Busan. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $428 in Mexico City versus $639 in Busan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Mexico City gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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