Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Guatemala City

For one person, living is cheaper in Guatemala City: $1,342 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $3,200 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
65

Cost of Living Index in Guatemala City
Learn more

Guatemala City Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Guatemala City

🇬🇹 Guatemala

$1,342

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $1,342 in Guatemala City.

Mexico City $1,608
Guatemala City $1,342

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $2,012 in Guatemala City.

Mexico City $2,549
Guatemala City $2,012

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $2,682 in Guatemala City.

Mexico City $3,490
Guatemala City $2,682

Living in Mexico City is roughly 20% more expensive than in Guatemala City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$199

$6.70 Q 51.2

58.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$908

$50.3 Q 384

-3.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$194

$7.73 Q 59.1

33.89%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$69.3

$3.36 Q 25.64

9.82%

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

$1.67 MX$31.29

$1.10 Q 8.40

51.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.76

$0.94 Q 7.16

35.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.9

$3.35 Q 25.63

-4.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$99.6

$4.70 Q 35.89

12.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.38

$2.09 Q 15.94

-17.70%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$57.1

$3.02 Q 23.06

0.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.44

$2.02 Q 15.41

-3.96%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$54.2

$2.46 Q 18.79

17.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$206

$6.23 Q 47.58

76.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$174

$9.22 Q 70.5

0.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$284

$13.25 Q 101

14.19%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$57.2

$3.96 Q 30.30

-22.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.45

$1.72 Q 13.15

12.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.02

$2.91 Q 22.26

-30.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.46

$1.61 Q 12.29

43.48%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$38.21

$1.53 Q 11.72

33.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.79

$2.16 Q 16.52

-16.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.77

$0.74 Q 5.62

100.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.80

$1.15 Q 8.82

10.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$99.6

$3.95 Q 30.21

34.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$302

$8.32 Q 63.6

93.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$37.23

$1.74 Q 13.32

13.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.8

$2.64 Q 20.21

60.98%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.73

$1.00 Q 7.61

-69.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$371

$11.02 Q 84.2

79.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.50

$5.35 Q 40.89

-65.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.02

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.4

$10.40 Q 79.5

-49.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.36

$1.34 Q 10.25

12.69%

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

$21.8K MX$408.4K

$26.9K Q 205.9K

-19.25%

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

$24.0K MX$450.3K

$25.1K Q 192.0K

-4.55%

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

$63.0 MX$1,182

$73.9 Q 565

-14.77%

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

$27.39 MX$514

$28.90 Q 221

-5.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$670

$45.99 Q 351

-22.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,107

$37.09 Q 283

58.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

$13.17 Q 101

79.50%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$120

$6.30 Q 48.15

1.59%

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

$432 MX$8,103

$347 Q 2,651

24.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.5K

$6,617 Q 50.6K

72.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,281

$48.69 Q 372

40.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$997

$48.32 Q 369

9.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,023

$118 Q 903

-8.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,202

$111 Q 849

5.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.9K

$816 Q 6,237

36.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.3K

$545 Q 4,166

30.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.6K

$1,552 Q 11.9K

66.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.4K

$822 Q 6,279

71.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$68.2K

$2,038 Q 15.6K

78.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$40.1K

$1,100 Q 8,403

94.15%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.8K

$866 Q 6,615

9.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

11.62

-2.32%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Guatemala City: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Guatemala City

$545 40.6% 23.3% $165

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Guatemala City

$280 20.8% 12.5% $40

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Guatemala City

$151 11.3% 23.8% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Guatemala City

$147 10.9% 5.8% $9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Guatemala City

$149 11.1% 18% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Guatemala City

$50 3.7% 30.7% $22

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Guatemala City

$20 * 1.5% 20.1% $5.1

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 $1,113 in Mexico City and $816 in Guatemala City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 9% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $50 in Guatemala City. Groceries flip the comparison at $320 vs $280, with Guatemala City cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇬🇹 Guatemala City

🕒 Local time

13:29 1:29 PM

Same time as Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

2,450,212 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Guatemalan Quetzal GTQ Q

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 GTQ = 0.131 USD

1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GTQ, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Guatemalan Quetzal exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 7.64 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.131 USD). 1 EUR = 8.53 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Guatemala City 1,060 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Guatemala City

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 Guatemala City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Guatemala City wins on cost – living expenses run 17% lower than in Mexico City. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Guatemala City the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 9% higher in Mexico City, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $816 in Guatemala City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Mexico City – a meal for two runs $48 versus $50 in Guatemala City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,608 per month in Mexico City versus $1,342 in Guatemala City – Guatemala City is about 17% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Guatemala City is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both work as nomad bases, but Guatemala City delivers better value at $1,342 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Guatemala City hard to pass up.

It comes down to priorities – Guatemala City wins on affordability, Mexico City on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.