Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Cuiaba

For one person, living is cheaper in Cuiaba: $1,018 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Cuiaba
Learn more

Cuiaba Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Cuiaba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,018

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $1,018 in Cuiaba.

Mexico City $1,608
Cuiaba $1,018

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,540 in Cuiaba.

Mexico City $2,549
Cuiaba $1,540

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $2,062 in Cuiaba.

Mexico City $3,490
Cuiaba $2,062

Living in Mexico City is roughly 58% more expensive than in Cuiaba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Cuiaba is 25% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$200

$5.16 R$27.77

105.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$909

$27.37 R$147

76.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$194

$7.52 R$40.48

37.63%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$69.4

$1.71 R$9.21

115.79%

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

$1.67 MX$31.32

$1.36 R$7.32

22.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.78

$0.72 R$3.85

76.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$60.0

$1.91 R$10.25

67.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$99.7

$2.54 R$13.65

109.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.41

$1.14 R$6.12

50.88%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$57.1

$1.49 R$8.03

104.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.48

$1.69 R$9.08

14.79%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$54.3

$2.95 R$15.87

-2.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$206

$16.16 R$87.0

-32.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$174

$4.24 R$22.83

118.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$284

$10.25 R$55.1

47.61%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$57.3

$2.21 R$11.88

38.01%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.48

$2.33 R$12.55

-16.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.06

$2.40 R$12.89

-15.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.50

$2.86 R$15.38

-19.23%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$38.25

$2.38 R$12.79

-14.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.83

$1.97 R$10.61

-8.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.80

$1.53 R$8.25

-3.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.82

$1.39 R$7.48

-8.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$99.7

$2.17 R$11.67

144.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$303

$10.90 R$58.7

47.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$37.27

$1.83 R$9.83

8.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.9

$2.88 R$15.52

47.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.73

$0.95 R$5.12

-67.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$371

$35.73 R$192

-44.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.53

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.03

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.5

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.39

$1.20 R$6.47

25.83%

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

$21.8K MX$408.8K

$28.1K R$151.0K

-22.45%

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

$24.0K MX$450.8K

$31.3K R$168.3K

-23.29%

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

$63.0 MX$1,184

$165 R$886

-61.73%

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

$27.39 MX$515

$17.94 R$96.5

52.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$670

$24.18 R$130

47.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,108

$24.40 R$131

141.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

$18.93 R$102

24.88%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$120

$5.66 R$30.43

13.07%

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

$432 MX$8,111

$408 R$2,194

5.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.7K

$8,796 R$47.3K

29.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,282

$72.2 R$389

-5.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$999

$46.11 R$248

15.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,026

$141 R$759

-23.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,204

$64.1 R$345

82.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.9K

$310 R$1,668

259.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.4K

$218 R$1,176

225.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.6K

$734 R$3,951

252.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.4K

$391 R$2,102

259.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$68.2K

$1,266 R$6,811

186.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$40.1K

$742 R$3,991

187.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.8K

$365 R$1,965

159.19%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

16.1

-29.50%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Cuiaba: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Cuiaba

$218 21.5% 69.3% $492

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Cuiaba

$265 26% 17.1% $55

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Cuiaba

$107 10.5% 46% $91

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Cuiaba

$146 14.3% 6.6% $10

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Cuiaba

$207 20.3% 64% $81

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Cuiaba

$36 3.5% 50.2% $36

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Cuiaba

$40 * 3.9% 55.3% $14

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 $310 in Cuiaba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays about 2.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $27 in Cuiaba for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $265 per month, with Cuiaba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇧🇷 Cuiaba

🕒 Local time

05:09 5:09 AM

07:09 7:09 AM

2 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

650,877

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 BRL = 0.186 USD

1 BRL = 0.167 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 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.97 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 5.38 BRL (1 BRL = 0.186 USD). 1 EUR = 6.01 BRL (1 BRL = 0.167 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Cuiaba 6,110 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Cuiaba

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 Cuiaba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cuiaba wins on cost – living expenses run 37% lower than in Mexico City. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Cuiaba the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Mexico City is about 2.6 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 $310 in Cuiaba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Cuiaba – a meal for two runs $27 versus $48 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,608 per month in Mexico City versus $1,018 in Cuiaba – Cuiaba is about 37% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Cuiaba 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.

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