Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Ibaraki

For one person, living is cheaper in Ibaraki: $1,142 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $6,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
54

Cost of Living Index in Ibaraki
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Ibaraki Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Ibaraki

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,142

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,674 in Mexico City versus $1,142 in Ibaraki.

Mexico City $1,674
Ibaraki $1,142

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,606 in Mexico City versus $1,768 in Ibaraki.

Mexico City $2,606
Ibaraki $1,768

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,537 in Mexico City versus $2,395 in Ibaraki.

Mexico City $3,537
Ibaraki $2,395

Living in Mexico City is roughly 47% more expensive than in Ibaraki, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 24% above, Ibaraki is 16% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.59 MX$199

$6.20 ¥977

70.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.0 MX$976

$31.03 ¥4,888

67.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 MX$201

$5.22 ¥822

105.56%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$71.3

$3.15 ¥496

20.63%

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

$1.61 MX$30.28

$1.15 ¥181

40.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.76

$0.79 ¥124

53.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 MX$59.7

$2.65 ¥417

20.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 MX$102

$3.12 ¥491

74.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.26

$2.73 ¥429

-37.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.97 MX$55.7

$1.57 ¥247

89.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 MX$36.17

$4.10 ¥646

-52.93%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$52.1

$2.03 ¥319

36.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.67 MX$219

$10.34 ¥1,628

12.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.48 MX$178

$6.54 ¥1,031

44.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.37 MX$289

$16.75 ¥2,638

-8.24%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 MX$58.3

$3.71 ¥585

-16.44%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.82

$2.28 ¥359

-14.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 MX$37.22

$2.95 ¥464

-32.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.34 MX$43.86

$4.16 ¥655

-43.75%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$38.00

$2.47 ¥390

-18.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$34.26

$2.60 ¥410

-30.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 MX$29.00

$1.32 ¥208

16.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$24.64

$0.85 ¥134

54.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.35 MX$100

$4.29 ¥676

24.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.19 MX$304

$6.57 ¥1,035

146.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 MX$36.79

$1.86 ¥293

5.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$81.7

$2.08 ¥327

109.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.72

$1.64 ¥258

-81.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$366

$57.8 ¥9,109

-66.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 MX$36.01

$4.75 ¥749

-59.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 MX$8.88

$2.93 ¥461

-83.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$102

$25.58 ¥4,028

-78.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.86

$1.09 ¥172

35.78%

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

$21.4K MX$401.4K

$21.7K ¥3.4M

-1.55%

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

$23.8K MX$446.1K

$15.4K ¥2.4M

54.49%

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

$62.0 MX$1,164

$138 ¥21.7K

-54.95%

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

$28.47 MX$535

$24.35 ¥3,835

16.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.11 MX$641

$31.52 ¥4,964

8.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.4 MX$1,097

$50.6 ¥7,973

15.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$460

Cinema Ticket

$6.59 MX$124

$12.49 ¥1,967

-47.24%

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

$434 MX$8,155

$626 ¥98.6K

-30.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.0K MX$263.6K

$15.4K ¥2.4M

-9.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.4 MX$1,284

$26.34 ¥4,148

159.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.8 MX$1,029

$31.99 ¥5,039

71.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 MX$2,082

$67.6 ¥10.6K

63.98%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 MX$2,178

$81.0 ¥12.8K

43.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$22.1K

$403 ¥63.4K

192.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$771 MX$14.5K

$264 ¥41.6K

191.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,570 MX$48.3K

$1,028 ¥161.9K

150.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,420 MX$26.7K

$527 ¥83.0K

169.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,586 MX$67.3K

$4,712 ¥742.1K

-23.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.8K

$2,384 ¥375.5K

-13.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.8K

$2,498 ¥393.4K

-59.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

2.21

413.57%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Ibaraki: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$771 46.1%

Ibaraki

$264 23.2% 65.7% $507

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$324 19.3%

Ibaraki

$301 26.4% 7% $23

Eating Out

Mexico City

$201 12%

Ibaraki

$130 11.4% 35% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$158 9.4%

Ibaraki

$93 8.2% 40.9% $64

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$125 7.4%

Ibaraki

$193 17% 55.3% $69

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.3%

Ibaraki

$76 6.6% 5.6% $4

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.5%

Ibaraki

$84 7.3% 235% $59

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,179 in Mexico City and $403 in Ibaraki. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ibaraki pays about 2.5 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $52 in Mexico City vs $31 in Ibaraki for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $324 vs $301 per month, with Ibaraki cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇯🇵 Ibaraki

🕒 Local time

06:32 6:32 AM

21:32 9:32 PM

15 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

287,730

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.35 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.78 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 21.09 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 157 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.35 USD). 1 EUR = 177 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.65 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Between locations

Mexico City Ibaraki 11,670 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
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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 Ibaraki: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,674 in Mexico City and $1,142 in Ibaraki, so Ibaraki is about 32% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 60% lower in Mexico City. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,179 in Mexico City versus $403 in Ibaraki. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 8% higher in Mexico City. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Ibaraki – a meal for two runs $31 versus $52 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Ibaraki gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.