Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Datong

For one person, living is cheaper in Datong: $709 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $10,800 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
34

Cost of Living Index in Datong
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Datong Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Datong

🇨🇳 China

$709

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $709 in Datong.

Mexico City $1,608
Datong $709

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,127 in Datong.

Mexico City $2,549
Datong $1,127

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $1,545 in Datong.

Mexico City $3,490
Datong $1,545

Living in Mexico City is roughly 127% more expensive than in Datong, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Datong is 48% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$198

$2.74 ¥18.23

287.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$901

$21.65 ¥144

123.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$193

$4.98 ¥33.15

107.83%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$68.8

$2.95 ¥19.65

25.08%

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

$1.67 MX$31.07

$0.46 ¥3.08

263.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.59

$0.27 ¥1.77

370.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.5

$0.88 ¥5.88

262.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$2.03 ¥13.50

161.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.15

$1.80 ¥11.99

-4.44%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$56.7

$1.55 ¥10.28

96.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$0.96 ¥6.36

102.08%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$53.8

$1.61 ¥10.71

79.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$205

$13.09 ¥87.1

-16.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$172

$3.23 ¥21.48

186.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$282

$10.09 ¥67.1

49.95%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$56.8

$1.81 ¥12.01

68.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.20 ¥8.01

61.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.75

$1.50 ¥9.98

35.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.15

$1.14 ¥7.57

102.63%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.94

$0.73 ¥4.87

179.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.55

$0.92 ¥6.12

95.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.58

$0.56 ¥3.70

164.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.63

$0.51 ¥3.42

149.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$98.9

$3.10 ¥20.62

70.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$300

$10.40 ¥69.2

54.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.97

$0.76 ¥5.05

160.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.3

$1.64 ¥10.91

159.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.69

$0.27 ¥1.77

14.81%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$368

$16.53 ¥110

19.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.25

$1.41 ¥9.35

30.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.94

$0.35 ¥2.35

51.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$98.7

$6.70 ¥44.57

-20.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.16

$1.17 ¥7.80

29.06%

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

$21.8K MX$405.5K

$19.4K ¥129.2K

12.08%

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

$24.0K MX$447.1K

$17.2K ¥114.2K

39.80%

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

$63.0 MX$1,174

$45.68 ¥304

37.87%

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

$27.39 MX$511

$9.63 ¥64.1

184.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$665

$11.68 ¥77.8

205.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,099

$41.21 ¥274

43.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$441

$13.73 ¥91.4

72.18%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$119

$5.87 ¥39.05

9.03%

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

$432 MX$8,045

$337 ¥2,242

28.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$212.9K

$17.0K ¥113.2K

-32.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,272

$43.28 ¥288

57.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$990

$30.52 ¥203

74.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,009

$72.2 ¥480

49.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,186

$72.7 ¥484

61.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.8K

$274 ¥1,821

306.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.2K

$189 ¥1,257

276.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.2K

$594 ¥3,955

335.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.2K

$358 ¥2,383

292.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$67.7K

$3,019 ¥20.1K

20.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$39.8K

$2,019 ¥13.4K

5.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

3.89

191.77%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Datong: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Datong

$189 26.6% 73.4% $522

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Datong

$198 27.9% 38.1% $122

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Datong

$84 11.8% 57.9% $115

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Datong

$98 13.9% 36.9% $57

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Datong

$67 9.5% 46.8% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Datong

$53 7.5% 26.2% $19

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Datong

$21 2.9% 18.4% $4.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $274 in Datong. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $22 in Datong for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $198 per month, with Datong cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇨🇳 Datong

🕒 Local time

17:12 5:12 PM

07:12 7:12 AM

14 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

3,318,057

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 6.65 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.41 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Datong 12,590 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Datong

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 Datong: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Datong wins on cost – living expenses run 56% lower than in Mexico City. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Datong the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $2,412 in Mexico City and $1,064 in Datong 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: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $274 in Datong. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $337 in Datong. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 62% higher in Mexico City. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $709 in Datong versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $800 budget is realistic in Datong but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Datong the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Expats usually find Datong gentler on the wallet – expenses run 56% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.