Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Cajamarca

For one person, living is cheaper in Cajamarca: $711 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $10,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Cajamarca
Learn more

Cajamarca Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Cajamarca

🇵🇪 Peru

$711

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,567 in Mexico City versus $711 in Cajamarca.

Mexico City $1,567
Cajamarca $711

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,450 in Mexico City versus $1,189 in Cajamarca.

Mexico City $2,450
Cajamarca $1,189

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,333 in Mexico City versus $1,666 in Cajamarca.

Mexico City $3,333
Cajamarca $1,666

Living in Mexico City is roughly 120% more expensive than in Cajamarca, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 16% above, Cajamarca is 47% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.75 MX$199

$3.11 PEN 10.70

245.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.3 MX$929

$28.79 PEN 98.9

74.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.10 MX$205

$5.88 PEN 20.20

88.78%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.1

$2.88 PEN 9.89

27.78%

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

$1.65 MX$30.42

$0.77 PEN 2.63

114.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 MX$24.08

$0.56 PEN 1.94

132.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.32 MX$61.3

$2.55 PEN 8.75

30.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.54 MX$102

$3.49 PEN 11.99

58.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.77 MX$32.68

$1.35 PEN 4.63

31.11%

White Bread (500g)

$3.05 MX$56.4

$3.11 PEN 10.69

-1.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.20

$1.27 PEN 4.35

58.27%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.1

$2.39 PEN 8.19

15.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.91 MX$220

$7.25 PEN 24.91

64.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.33 MX$172

$7.63 PEN 26.20

22.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.02 MX$278

$16.10 PEN 55.3

-6.71%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 MX$56.8

$0.84 PEN 2.88

266.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.97

$0.91 PEN 3.12

114.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.54

$1.14 PEN 3.92

78.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.21 MX$40.92

$0.84 PEN 2.87

163.10%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.41

$0.88 PEN 3.03

129.55%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.67

$0.77 PEN 2.63

136.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$0.89 PEN 3.04

70.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 MX$23.65

$0.75 PEN 2.57

70.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.27 MX$97.4

$7.09 PEN 24.34

-25.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.12 MX$298

$11.58 PEN 39.76

39.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 MX$36.05

$2.67 PEN 9.18

-26.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$78.6

$2.58 PEN 8.86

64.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.82

$0.59 PEN 2.03

-47.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.85 MX$367

$8.67 PEN 29.76

128.95%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 MX$36.93

$2.64 PEN 9.05

-24.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.86

$1.69 PEN 5.80

-68.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.62 MX$104

$5.79 PEN 19.90

-2.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$1.40 PEN 4.81

8.57%

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

$21.0K MX$388.7K

$23.6K PEN 81.2K

-11.02%

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

$25.2K MX$465.3K

$28.5K PEN 98.0K

-11.81%

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

$62.5 MX$1,155

$58.0 PEN 199

7.72%

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

$28.77 MX$532

$9.31 PEN 31.96

209.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.45 MX$637

$20.16 PEN 69.2

70.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,055

$32.98 PEN 113

73.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 MX$458

$17.47 PEN 60.0

42.01%

Cinema Ticket

$6.67 MX$123

$3.73 PEN 12.82

78.82%

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

$431 MX$7,964

$147 PEN 505

192.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.7K MX$216.9K

$4,322 PEN 14.8K

171.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.8 MX$1,308

$42.77 PEN 147

65.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.8 MX$958

$28.77 PEN 98.8

80.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 MX$2,011

$74.0 PEN 254

47.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 MX$2,076

$72.5 PEN 249

54.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,051 MX$19.4K

$199 PEN 683

428.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$665 MX$12.3K

$117 PEN 401

469.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,346 MX$43.3K

$514 PEN 1,766

356.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,227 MX$22.7K

$313 PEN 1,076

291.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,554 MX$65.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,977 MX$36.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$975 MX$18.0K

$557 PEN 1,913

75.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

2.73%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Last update for Cajamarca: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$665 42.4%

Cajamarca

$117 16.4% 82.4% $548

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$323 20.6%

Cajamarca

$244 34.3% 24.3% $78

Eating Out

Mexico City

$203 13%

Cajamarca

$102 14.4% 49.7% $101

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$155 9.9%

Cajamarca

$98 13.8% 36.6% $57

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 8%

Cajamarca

$87 12.3% 30.4% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$70 4.5%

Cajamarca

$40 5.7% 42.6% $30

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.6%

Cajamarca

$22 3.1% 14.2% $3.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,051 in Mexico City and $199 in Cajamarca. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 75% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $50.0 in Mexico City vs $29.00 in Cajamarca for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $323 vs $244 per month, with Cajamarca cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇵🇪 Cajamarca

🕒 Local time

10:17 10:17 AM

11:17 11:17 AM

1 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

218,741

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Cajamarca 3,720 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Cajamarca

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 Cajamarca: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cajamarca is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 120% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 75% higher in Mexico City, 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: $1,051 in Mexico City versus $199 in Cajamarca. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Cajamarca runs roughly 129% less than in Mexico City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $431 in Mexico City versus $147 in Cajamarca. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $711 in Cajamarca versus $1,567 in Mexico City, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cajamarca but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Cajamarca the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Cajamarca is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Mexico City, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Mexico City and Cajamarca are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Cajamarca gentler on the wallet – expenses run 120% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.