Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Giessen

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,608 a month against $2,262 in Giessen, rent and utilities included – about $7,800 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
109

Cost of Living Index in Giessen
Learn more

Giessen Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Giessen

🇩🇪 Germany

$2,262

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,608 per month in Mexico City vs $2,262 in Giessen, rent included.

Mexico City $1,608
Giessen $2,262

A couple spends around $2,549 per month in Mexico City vs $3,161 in Giessen, rent included.

Mexico City $2,549
Giessen $3,161

A family of three spends $3,490 per month in Mexico City vs $4,059 in Giessen, rent included.

Mexico City $3,490
Giessen $4,059

Mexico City is about 29% cheaper than Giessen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Mexico City and Giessen sit above the global median – Mexico City by 18%, Giessen by 66%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$198

$21.48 €19.30

-50.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$901

$67.8 €60.9

-28.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$193

$13.28 €11.93

-22.06%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$68.8

$4.01 €3.60

-7.98%

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

$1.67 MX$31.07

$2.34 €2.10

-28.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.59

$1.97 €1.77

-35.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.5

$4.63 €4.16

-31.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$5.53 €4.96

-3.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.15

$1.32 €1.18

30.30%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$56.7

$2.15 €1.93

41.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$3.76 €3.37

-48.40%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$53.8

$3.59 €3.23

-19.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$205

$14.39 €12.92

-23.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$172

$10.96 €9.84

-15.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$282

$19.00 €17.07

-20.37%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$56.8

$3.02 €2.71

0.99%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.77 €1.59

9.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.75

$2.11 €1.89

-3.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.15

$3.91 €3.51

-40.92%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.94

$1.20 €1.08

70.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.55

$1.12 €1.01

60.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.58

$1.54 €1.38

-3.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.63

$1.29 €1.16

-1.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$98.9

$9.91 €8.90

-46.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$300

$5.68 €5.11

183.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.97

$0.99 €0.89

100.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.3

$1.51 €1.36

181.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.69

$3.81 €3.43

-91.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$368

$68.9 €61.9

-71.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.25

$5.60 €5.03

-67.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.94

$2.18 €1.96

-75.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$98.7

$38.52 €34.60

-86.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.16

$1.91 €1.72

-20.94%

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

$21.8K MX$405.5K

$29.9K €26.9K

-27.34%

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

$24.0K MX$447.1K

$38.6K €34.7K

-37.90%

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

$63.0 MX$1,174

$348 €312

-81.88%

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

$27.39 MX$511

$32.76 €29.43

-16.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$665

$52.1 €46.83

-31.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,099

$37.83 €33.99

55.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$441

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$119

$10.47 €9.41

-38.87%

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

$432 MX$8,045

$1,088 €977

-60.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$212.9K

$44.9K €40.4K

-74.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,272

$43.88 €39.42

55.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$990

$22.21 €19.95

139.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,009

$112 €101

-4.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,186

$152 €137

-22.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.8K

$713 €641

56.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.2K

$891 €800

-20.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.2K

$1,438 €1,292

79.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.2K

$1,209 €1,086

16.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$67.7K

$5,559 €4,994

-34.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$39.8K

$2,829 €2,541

-24.54%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

$2,667 €2,396

-64.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

3.96

186.62%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Giessen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Giessen

$891 39.4% 25.4% $180

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Giessen

$320 14.1% 0% $0

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Giessen

$311 13.8% 56.7% $113

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Giessen

$149 6.6% 4.6% $7.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Giessen

$433 19.1% 243% $307

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Giessen

$59 2.6% 18.1% $13

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Giessen

$101 4.5% 295% $75

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,113 in Mexico City versus $713 in Giessen. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Giessen are about 2.8 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $48 in Mexico City versus $68 in Giessen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $320 vs $320 – making Mexico City the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇩🇪 Giessen

🕒 Local time

12:41 12:41 PM

19:41 7:41 PM

7 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

89,179

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mexico City Giessen 9,540 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Giessen

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 Giessen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City, $2,262 in Giessen – roughly 41% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,412 per month in Mexico City and $3,393 in Giessen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Giessen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $713 there versus $1,113 in Mexico City.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $2,262 in Giessen. That’s a gap of about 41%.

Kindergarten costs $432 per month in Mexico City and $1,088 in Giessen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$3,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,608 in Mexico City and $2,262 in Giessen, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Mexico City has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,608 in Mexico City to $2,262 in Giessen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Mexico City. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Giessen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.