Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and El Calafate

For one person, living is cheaper in El Calafate: $961 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $7,300 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
47

Cost of Living Index in El Calafate
Learn more

El Calafate Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

El Calafate

🇦🇷 Argentina

$961

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in El Calafate

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,567 in Mexico City versus $961 in El Calafate.

Mexico City $1,567
El Calafate $961

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,450 in Mexico City versus $1,574 in El Calafate.

Mexico City $2,450
El Calafate $1,574

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,333 in Mexico City versus $2,187 in El Calafate.

Mexico City $3,333
El Calafate $2,187

Living in Mexico City is roughly 63% more expensive than in El Calafate, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 16% above, El Calafate is 29% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.75 MX$199

$10.66 ARS 16.2K

0.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.3 MX$929

$33.87 ARS 51.4K

48.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.10 MX$205

$8.85 ARS 13.4K

25.42%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.1

$2.77 ARS 4,198

32.85%

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

$1.65 MX$30.42

$1.64 ARS 2,484

0.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 MX$24.08

$1.49 ARS 2,268

-12.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.32 MX$61.3

$2.08 ARS 3,157

59.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.54 MX$102

$2.93 ARS 4,452

89.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.77 MX$32.68

$1.24 ARS 1,887

42.74%

White Bread (500g)

$3.05 MX$56.4

$1.61 ARS 2,446

89.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.20

$1.93 ARS 2,930

4.15%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.1

$2.20 ARS 3,346

25.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.91 MX$220

$10.29 ARS 15.6K

15.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.33 MX$172

$6.07 ARS 9,209

53.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.02 MX$278

$9.50 ARS 14.4K

58.11%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 MX$56.8

$1.95 ARS 2,963

57.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.97

$2.11 ARS 3,205

-7.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.54

$1.33 ARS 2,015

52.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.21 MX$40.92

$2.62 ARS 3,973

-15.65%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.41

$1.19 ARS 1,808

69.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.67

$1.20 ARS 1,821

51.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$1.30 ARS 1,973

16.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 MX$23.65

$1.48 ARS 2,245

-13.51%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.27 MX$97.4

$3.16 ARS 4,800

66.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.12 MX$298

$4.97 ARS 7,536

224.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 MX$36.05

$2.06 ARS 3,133

-5.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$78.6

$3.16 ARS 4,799

34.49%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.82

$0.76 ARS 1,159

-59.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.85 MX$367

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 MX$36.93

$1.51 ARS 2,293

32.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.86

$0.87 ARS 1,322

-39.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.62 MX$104

$5.89 ARS 8,934

-4.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$1.05 ARS 1,600

44.76%

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

$21.0K MX$388.7K

$27.4K ARS 41.6M

-23.34%

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

$25.2K MX$465.3K

$30.2K ARS 45.9M

-16.70%

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

$62.5 MX$1,155

$66.5 ARS 100.9K

-6.02%

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

$28.77 MX$532

$16.85 ARS 25.6K

70.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.45 MX$637

$22.42 ARS 34.0K

53.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,055

$26.64 ARS 40.4K

114.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 MX$458

$13.53 ARS 20.5K

83.37%

Cinema Ticket

$6.67 MX$123

$6.34 ARS 9,617

5.21%

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

$431 MX$7,964

$224 ARS 340.0K

92.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.7K MX$216.9K

$2,679 ARS 4.1M

338.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.8 MX$1,308

$72.7 ARS 110.3K

-2.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.8 MX$958

$70.7 ARS 107.3K

-26.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 MX$2,011

$114 ARS 173.7K

-4.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 MX$2,076

$114 ARS 172.2K

-1.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,051 MX$19.4K

$342 ARS 518.6K

207.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$665 MX$12.3K

$235 ARS 357.2K

182.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,346 MX$43.3K

$695 ARS 1.1M

237.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,227 MX$22.7K

$533 ARS 809.3K

129.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,554 MX$65.7K

$1,858 ARS 2.8M

91.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,977 MX$36.5K

$1,600 ARS 2.4M

23.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$975 MX$18.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

58.5

-80.68%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Last update for El Calafate: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$665 42.4%

El Calafate

$235 24.5% 64.6% $430

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$323 20.6%

El Calafate

$231 24% 28.4% $92

Eating Out

Mexico City

$203 13%

El Calafate

$174 18.1% 14.4% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$155 9.9%

El Calafate

$167 17.4% 8% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 8%

El Calafate

$106 11% 15.9% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$70 4.5%

El Calafate

$39 4.1% 44.2% $31

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.6%

El Calafate

$8.9 * 0.9% 65.4% $17

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 $1,051 in Mexico City and $342 in El Calafate. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $50.0 in Mexico City vs $34.00 in El Calafate for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $323 vs $231 per month, with El Calafate cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇦🇷 El Calafate

🕒 Local time

08:05 8:05 AM

11:05 11:05 AM

3 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

22,844

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, 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).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,706 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Between locations

Mexico City El Calafate 8,190 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
El Calafate

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 El Calafate: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City and El Calafate differ by about 63% in total monthly costs ($1,567 vs $961 including rent). El Calafate is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,351 in Mexico City and $1,442 in El Calafate 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: $1,051 in Mexico City versus $342 in El Calafate. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $431 in Mexico City versus $224 in El Calafate. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in El Calafate – a meal for two runs $34.00 versus $50.0 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $961 in El Calafate versus $1,567 in Mexico City, a $2,000 budget is realistic in El Calafate but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes El Calafate 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 El Calafate gentler on the wallet – expenses run 63% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.