Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Crato

For one person, living is cheaper in Crato: $823 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $10,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in Crato
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Crato Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Crato

🇧🇷 Brazil

$823

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,674 in Mexico City versus $823 in Crato.

Mexico City $1,674
Crato $823

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,606 in Mexico City versus $1,308 in Crato.

Mexico City $2,606
Crato $1,308

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,537 in Mexico City versus $1,793 in Crato.

Mexico City $3,537
Crato $1,793

Living in Mexico City is roughly 103% more expensive than in Crato, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 24% above, Crato is 39% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.59 MX$197

$5.47 R$29.85

93.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.0 MX$967

$29.34 R$160

77.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 MX$200

$7.12 R$38.86

50.70%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$70.6

$1.91 R$10.43

98.95%

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

$1.61 MX$30.01

$1.25 R$6.84

28.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.55

$0.70 R$3.82

72.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 MX$59.1

$1.88 R$10.28

69.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 MX$101

$2.82 R$15.39

92.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$31.96

$0.93 R$5.08

84.95%

White Bread (500g)

$2.97 MX$55.2

$1.54 R$8.42

92.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 MX$35.84

$1.16 R$6.31

66.38%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.6

$2.09 R$11.39

32.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.67 MX$217

$8.59 R$46.89

35.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.48 MX$176

$4.12 R$22.48

130.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.37 MX$286

$7.84 R$42.83

96.05%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 MX$57.8

$2.07 R$11.28

49.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.49

$1.23 R$6.71

59.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 MX$36.88

$1.12 R$6.12

76.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.34 MX$43.46

$1.52 R$8.32

53.95%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.66

$1.17 R$6.39

72.65%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.95

$1.01 R$5.49

80.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 MX$28.74

$0.76 R$4.18

102.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$24.42

$0.71 R$3.86

84.51%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.35 MX$99.6

$2.38 R$12.98

124.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.19 MX$301

$7.52 R$41.09

115.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 MX$36.46

$1.22 R$6.66

60.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$81.0

$1.98 R$10.82

119.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.67

$0.93 R$5.10

-67.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$363

$41.59 R$227

-53.14%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 MX$35.68

$1.20 R$6.54

60.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 MX$8.80

$0.86 R$4.69

-45.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$101

$7.64 R$41.73

-29.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.61

$1.16 R$6.33

27.59%

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

$21.4K MX$397.7K

$21.9K R$119.5K

-2.31%

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

$23.8K MX$442.1K

$31.6K R$172.8K

-24.94%

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

$62.0 MX$1,154

$71.7 R$391

-13.48%

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

$28.47 MX$530

$11.65 R$63.6

144.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.11 MX$635

$20.02 R$109

70.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.4 MX$1,087

$24.57 R$134

137.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$456

$25.53 R$139

-4.03%

Cinema Ticket

$6.59 MX$123

$6.67 R$36.42

-1.20%

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

$434 MX$8,081

$264 R$1,444

64.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.0K MX$261.2K

$6,689 R$36.5K

109.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.4 MX$1,272

$51.8 R$283

31.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.8 MX$1,020

$45.64 R$249

20.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 MX$2,063

$82.5 R$451

34.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 MX$2,158

$67.5 R$368

71.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$21.9K

$338 R$1,847

248.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$771 MX$14.3K

$229 R$1,252

236.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,570 MX$47.8K

$629 R$3,435

308.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,420 MX$26.4K

$449 R$2,451

216.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,586 MX$66.7K

$1,578 R$8,618

127.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.4K

$1,122 R$6,125

84.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

3.18%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Crato: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$771 46.1%

Crato

$229 27.9% 70.3% $542

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$324 19.3%

Crato

$180 21.8% 44.5% $144

Eating Out

Mexico City

$201 12%

Crato

$111 13.5% 44.7% $90

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$158 9.4%

Crato

$111 13.5% 29.3% $46

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$125 7.4%

Crato

$103 12.6% 17.1% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.3%

Crato

$38 4.6% 47% $34

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.5%

Crato

$51 6.2% 103% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,179 in Mexico City and $338 in Crato. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $52 in Mexico City vs $29 in Crato for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $324 vs $180 per month, with Crato cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇧🇷 Crato

🕒 Local time

09:04 9:04 AM

12:04 12:04 PM

3 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

131,050

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

1 BRL = 0.183 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.83 MXN (100 MXN = 4.8 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 5.46 BRL (1 BRL = 0.183 USD). 1 EUR = 6.11 BRL (1 BRL = 0.164 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Crato 7,180 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Crato

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 Crato: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Crato wins on cost – living expenses run 51% lower than in Mexico City. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Crato the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $2,510 in Mexico City and $1,235 in Crato 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: $1,179 in Mexico City versus $338 in Crato. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 53% less than in Crato. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $434 in Mexico City versus $264 in Crato. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Crato is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.