Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Cromwell

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,608 a month against $2,011 in Cromwell, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 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
97

Cost of Living Index in Cromwell
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Cromwell Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Cromwell

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,011

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $2,011 in Cromwell.

Mexico City $1,608
Cromwell $2,011

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $2,881 in Cromwell.

Mexico City $2,549
Cromwell $2,881

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $3,751 in Cromwell.

Mexico City $3,490
Cromwell $3,751

Living in Mexico City costs roughly 20% less than in Cromwell, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 18% above, Cromwell 48% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$200

$14.42 NZ$25.64

-26.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$909

$62.5 NZ$111

-22.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$194

$11.51 NZ$20.46

-10.08%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$69.4

$3.26 NZ$5.79

13.19%

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

$1.67 MX$31.32

$2.15 NZ$3.82

-22.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.78

$2.05 NZ$3.65

-38.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$60.0

$6.68 NZ$11.88

-52.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$99.7

$6.29 NZ$11.18

-15.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.41

$2.11 NZ$3.75

-18.48%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$57.1

$1.94 NZ$3.45

56.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.48

$1.69 NZ$3.01

14.79%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$54.3

$5.81 NZ$10.32

-50.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$206

$8.65 NZ$15.38

26.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$174

$9.37 NZ$16.66

-1.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$284

$16.61 NZ$29.52

-8.91%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$57.3

$3.07 NZ$5.45

-0.65%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.48

$2.32 NZ$4.13

-16.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.06

$3.18 NZ$5.65

-36.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.50

$5.02 NZ$8.92

-53.98%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$38.25

$1.85 NZ$3.29

10.27%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.83

$1.81 NZ$3.22

-0.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.80

$2.28 NZ$4.05

-35.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.82

$0.60 NZ$1.06

111.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$99.7

$21.12 NZ$37.55

-74.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$303

$8.94 NZ$15.89

80.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$37.27

$3.15 NZ$5.60

-37.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.9

$1.21 NZ$2.16

251.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.73

$1.88 NZ$3.33

-83.51%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$371

$93.3 NZ$166

-78.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.53

$2.22 NZ$3.94

-17.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.03

$2.09 NZ$3.72

-74.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.5

$28.85 NZ$51.3

-81.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.39

$1.83 NZ$3.25

-17.49%

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

$21.8K MX$408.8K

$28.2K NZ$50.1K

-22.78%

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

$24.0K MX$450.8K

$22.8K NZ$40.5K

5.21%

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

$63.0 MX$1,184

$110 NZ$196

-42.79%

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

$27.39 MX$515

$28.58 NZ$50.8

-4.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$670

$52.9 NZ$94.0

-32.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,108

$39.41 NZ$70.1

49.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

$7.00 NZ$12.45

237.71%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$120

$8.35 NZ$14.84

-23.35%

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

$432 MX$8,111

$796 NZ$1,415

-45.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.7K

$12.4K NZ$22.1K

-8.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,282

$59.8 NZ$106

14.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$999

$35.97 NZ$63.9

47.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,026

$90.7 NZ$161

18.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,204

$134 NZ$238

-12.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.9K

$1,013 NZ$1,800

9.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.4K

$932 NZ$1,657

-23.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.6K

$1,638 NZ$2,912

57.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.4K

$1,292 NZ$2,296

8.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$68.2K

$4,771 NZ$8,481

-23.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$40.1K

$3,354 NZ$5,962

-36.35%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.8K

$3,034 NZ$5,393

-68.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

6.6

71.97%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Cromwell: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Cromwell

$932 46.4% 31.2% $222

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Cromwell

$322 16% 0.7% $2.2

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Cromwell

$252 12.5% 26.8% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Cromwell

$144 7.2% 7.6% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Cromwell

$192 9.5% 52% $66

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Cromwell

$56 2.8% 21.8% $16

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Cromwell

$113 5.6% 346% $88

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $1,013 in Cromwell. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cromwell pays about 3.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $63 in Cromwell for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $322 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇳🇿 Cromwell

🕒 Local time

19:58 7:58 PM

14:58 2:58 PM

19 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

5,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.504 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, 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 = 20.98 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.563 USD). 1 EUR = 1.98 NZD (1 NZD = 0.504 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mexico City Cromwell 11,650 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Cromwell

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 Cromwell: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City is about 20% cheaper overall, especially in transport, eating out, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 69% 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: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $1,013 in Cromwell. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $796 in Cromwell. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Mexico City – a meal for two runs $48 versus $63 in Cromwell. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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, Cromwell on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.