Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Guanacaste

For one person, living costs are similar in Mexico City and in Guanacaste: $1,608 and $1,534 a month, rent and utilities included.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Guanacaste
Learn more

Guanacaste Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Guanacaste

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,534

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,608 per month in Mexico City vs $1,534 in Guanacaste, rent included.

Mexico City $1,608
Guanacaste $1,534

A couple spends around $2,549 per month in Mexico City vs $2,421 in Guanacaste, rent included.

Mexico City $2,549
Guanacaste $2,421

A family of three spends $3,490 per month in Mexico City vs $3,307 in Guanacaste, rent included.

Mexico City $3,490
Guanacaste $3,307

Mexico City costs about 5% more than Guanacaste, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Mexico City and Guanacaste sit above the global median – Mexico City by 18%, Guanacaste by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$198

$10.77 ₡4,860

-1.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$901

$47.69 ₡21.5K

1.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$193

$11.68 ₡5,270

-11.39%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$68.8

$4.44 ₡2,003

-16.89%

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

$1.67 MX$31.07

$2.70 ₡1,220

-38.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.59

$1.93 ₡871

-34.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.5

$3.10 ₡1,398

2.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$4.47 ₡2,019

18.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.15

$2.04 ₡921

-15.69%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$56.7

$3.19 ₡1,439

-4.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$2.42 ₡1,091

-19.83%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$53.8

$3.59 ₡1,618

-19.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$205

$5.63 ₡2,542

94.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$172

$4.30 ₡1,942

115.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$282

$11.09 ₡5,005

36.43%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$56.8

$2.68 ₡1,210

13.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.57 ₡708

23.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.75

$4.40 ₡1,988

-53.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.15

$1.53 ₡689

50.98%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.94

$3.86 ₡1,744

-47.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.55

$2.25 ₡1,017

-20.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.58

$0.90 ₡406

64.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.63

$3.07 ₡1,385

-58.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$98.9

$4.34 ₡1,958

22.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$300

$20.25 ₡9,140

-20.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.97

$2.80 ₡1,261

-29.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.3

$2.66 ₡1,202

59.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.69

$1.29 ₡584

-75.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$368

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.25

$2.50 ₡1,128

-26.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.94

$1.57 ₡706

-66.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$98.7

$8.85 ₡3,996

-40.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.16

$1.57 ₡709

-3.82%

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

$21.8K MX$405.5K

$33.7K ₡15.2M

-35.46%

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

$24.0K MX$447.1K

$41.3K ₡18.6M

-41.86%

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

$63.0 MX$1,174

$93.5 ₡42.2K

-32.66%

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

$27.39 MX$511

$36.18 ₡16.3K

-24.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$665

$32.69 ₡14.7K

9.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,099

$66.5 ₡30.0K

-11.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$441

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$119

$7.85 ₡3,542

-18.47%

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

$432 MX$8,045

$968 ₡436.8K

-55.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$212.9K

$17.5K ₡7.9M

-34.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,272

$66.5 ₡30.0K

2.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$990

$44.53 ₡20.1K

19.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,009

$86.6 ₡39.1K

24.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,186

$78.2 ₡35.3K

49.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.8K

$795 ₡358.9K

40.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.2K

$620 ₡279.6K

14.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.2K

$1,899 ₡856.7K

36.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.2K

$1,279 ₡577.2K

9.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$67.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$39.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

8.62

31.67%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Guanacaste: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Guanacaste

$620 40.4% 12.8% $91

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Guanacaste

$312 20.4% 2.2% $7.1

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Guanacaste

$217 14.2% 9.5% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Guanacaste

$124 8.1% 20.4% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Guanacaste

$162 10.6% 28.8% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Guanacaste

$82 5.4% 14.5% $10

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Guanacaste

$16 * 1% 39.1% $10

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,113 in Mexico City versus $795 in Guanacaste. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $48 in Mexico City versus $48 in Guanacaste. Groceries tell a different story – $320 in Mexico City vs $312 in Guanacaste – so Guanacaste wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇨🇷 Guanacaste

🕒 Local time

10:07 10:07 AM

Same time as Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

1,823

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, 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).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Guanacaste 1,800 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Guanacaste

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 Guanacaste: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Mexico City is pricier by about 5%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,412 per month in Mexico City and $2,301 in Guanacaste. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Guanacaste, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $795 there versus $1,113 in Mexico City.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $1,534 in Guanacaste. That’s a gap of about 5%.

Kindergarten costs $432 per month in Mexico City and $968 in Guanacaste. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,500 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,608 in Mexico City and $1,534 in Guanacaste. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Guanacaste costs $1,534 versus $1,608 in Mexico City. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.