Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Fort Portal

For one person, living is cheaper in Fort Portal: $364 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $15,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Mexico City, Mexico
Fort Portal, Uganda
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,674
/mo nomad
Fort Portal
🇺🇬 Uganda
$364
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Fort Portal

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

A single person spends $1,674 per month in Mexico City vs $364 in Fort Portal, rent included.

  • Mexico City $1,674
  • Fort Portal $364

A couple spends around $2,606 per month in Mexico City vs $574 in Fort Portal, rent included.

  • Mexico City $2,606
  • Fort Portal $574

A family of three spends $3,537 per month in Mexico City vs $783 in Fort Portal, rent included.

  • Mexico City $3,537
  • Fort Portal $783

Mexico City costs about 360% more than Fort Portal, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Mexico City sits 24% above the global median, while Fort Portal is 73% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Mexico City
Fort Portal
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.59 MX$197
$2.37 UGX 9,990
346.84%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$52.0 MX$967
$23.66 UGX 99.8K
119.61%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.73 MX$200
$6.93 UGX 29.2K
54.83%
Cappuccino
$3.80 MX$70.6
$2.46 UGX 10.4K
54.47%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.61 MX$30.01
$0.37 UGX 1,545
335.14%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.21 MX$22.55
$0.24 UGX 1,004
404.17%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.18 MX$59.1
$1.20 UGX 5,049
165.00%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.44 MX$101
$1.72 UGX 7,235
216.28%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
Fort Portal
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.72 MX$31.96
$0.27 UGX 1,126
537.04%
White Bread (500g)
$2.97 MX$55.2
$0.68 UGX 2,850
336.76%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.93 MX$35.84
$0.90 UGX 3,795
114.44%
Eggs
$2.77 MX$51.6
$1.15 UGX 4,835
140.87%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.67 MX$217
$4.12 UGX 17.4K
183.25%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.48 MX$176
$4.14 UGX 17.5K
128.99%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.37 MX$286
$3.12 UGX 13.2K
392.63%
Apples (1kg)
$3.10 MX$57.8
$1.96 UGX 8,246
58.16%
Banana (1kg)
$1.96 MX$36.49
$0.71 UGX 2,996
176.06%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.98 MX$36.88
$1.20 UGX 5,052
65.00%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.34 MX$43.46
$1.13 UGX 4,786
107.08%
Potato (1kg)
$2.02 MX$37.66
$1.20 UGX 5,075
68.33%
Onion (1kg)
$1.82 MX$33.95
$0.57 UGX 2,386
219.30%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.54 MX$28.74
$0.73 UGX 3,081
110.96%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.31 MX$24.42
$0.49 UGX 2,046
167.35%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.35 MX$99.6
$2.30 UGX 9,700
132.61%
Wine (Bottle)
$16.19 MX$301
$4.57 UGX 19.3K
254.27%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.96 MX$36.46
$0.68 UGX 2,848
188.24%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.35 MX$81.0
$0.93 UGX 3,914
367.74%
🚌 Getting Around
Mexico City
Fort Portal
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.30 MX$5.67
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$19.49 MX$363
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.92 MX$35.68
$0.49 UGX 2,065
291.84%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.47 MX$8.80
$0.28 UGX 1,165
67.86%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.41 MX$101
$2.89 UGX 12.2K
87.20%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.48 MX$27.61
$1.16 UGX 4,905
27.59%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.4K MX$397.7K
$6,927 UGX 29.2M
208.54%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.8K MX$442.1K
$6,921 UGX 29.2M
243.25%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
Fort Portal
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$62.0 MX$1,154
$66.9 UGX 282.2K
-7.35%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$28.47 MX$530
$11.00 UGX 46.4K
158.82%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$34.11 MX$635
$32.84 UGX 138.5K
3.87%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
Fort Portal
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$58.4 MX$1,087
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$24.50 MX$456
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$6.59 MX$123
$7.16 UGX 30.2K
-7.96%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Mexico City
Fort Portal
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$434 MX$8,081
$267 UGX 1.1M
62.41%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$14.0K MX$261.2K
$16.1K UGX 67.9M
-12.87%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
Fort Portal
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$68.4 MX$1,272
$13.23 UGX 55.8K
416.63%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$54.8 MX$1,020
$12.29 UGX 51.8K
345.89%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$111 MX$2,063
$30.84 UGX 130.1K
259.44%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$116 MX$2,158
$40.94 UGX 172.7K
183.32%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
Fort Portal
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,179 MX$21.9K
-
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$771 MX$14.3K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,570 MX$47.8K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,420 MX$26.4K
-
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,586 MX$66.7K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,064 MX$38.4K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Mexico City
Fort Portal
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,003 MX$18.7K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.35
20.75
-45.30%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Fort Portal: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
$771
Fort Portal
- * 100%
Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
$324
Fort Portal
$112 65.2% $211
Eating Out
Mexico City
$201
Fort Portal
$81 59.6% $120
Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
$158
Fort Portal
$44 72.2% $114
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
$125
Fort Portal
$111 11.1% $14
Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
$72
Fort Portal
$14 * 80% $57
Getting Around
Mexico City
$25
Fort Portal
$1.9 * 92.5% $23

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $52 in Mexico City versus $24 in Fort Portal. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $324 vs $112 – making Fort Portal the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🇺🇬 Fort Portal
🕒 Local time
02:31 2:31 AM
11:31 11:31 AM
9 h ahead of Mexico City
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
9,209,944 Capital
54,275
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

UGX, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.91 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

Ugandan Shilling exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 4,217 UGX (10,000 UGX = 2.37 USD). 1 EUR = 4,739 UGX (10,000 UGX = 2.11 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Mexico City Fort Portal 14,070 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Mexico City
  • Fort Portal

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 Fort Portal: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Mexico City or Fort Portal?
Mexico City costs about 360% more than Fort Portal, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.
How much do you need to earn to live comfortably in Mexico City and in Fort Portal?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,510 per month in Mexico City and $546 in Fort Portal. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
How do dining costs compare in Mexico City and in Fort Portal?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $52 in Mexico City and $24 in Fort Portal. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
Are groceries more expensive in Mexico City or in Fort Portal?
Groceries cost about 188% more in Mexico City, though the gap depends on what you buy.
Can you live on $800/month in Mexico City or in Fort Portal?
A $800 monthly budget goes further in Fort Portal, where all-in costs run around $364, than in Mexico City at $1,674. In Fort Portal it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mexico City it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Which city offers a better quality of life: Mexico City or Fort Portal?
It depends on your priorities. Mexico City has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $364 in Fort Portal to $1,674 in Mexico City. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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