Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Imbituba

For one person, living is cheaper in Imbituba: $795 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $10,500 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
38

Cost of Living Index in Imbituba
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Imbituba Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Imbituba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$795

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,674 in Mexico City versus $795 in Imbituba.

Mexico City $1,674
Imbituba $795

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,606 in Mexico City versus $1,262 in Imbituba.

Mexico City $2,606
Imbituba $1,262

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,537 in Mexico City versus $1,729 in Imbituba.

Mexico City $3,537
Imbituba $1,729

Living in Mexico City is roughly 111% more expensive than in Imbituba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 24% above, Imbituba is 41% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.59 MX$199

$4.73 R$25.94

123.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.0 MX$976

$28.27 R$155

83.80%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 MX$201

$6.38 R$35.00

68.18%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$71.3

$1.79 R$9.80

112.29%

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

$1.61 MX$30.28

$1.06 R$5.80

51.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.76

$0.49 R$2.67

146.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 MX$59.7

$2.20 R$12.10

44.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 MX$102

$2.26 R$12.38

140.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.26

$0.93 R$5.12

84.95%

White Bread (500g)

$2.97 MX$55.7

$1.15 R$6.32

158.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 MX$36.17

$0.87 R$4.75

121.84%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$52.1

$2.05 R$11.24

35.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.67 MX$219

$7.55 R$41.43

54.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.48 MX$178

$2.95 R$16.16

221.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.37 MX$289

$6.19 R$33.96

148.30%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 MX$58.3

$1.47 R$8.07

110.88%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.82

$0.77 R$4.22

154.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 MX$37.22

$1.14 R$6.28

73.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.34 MX$43.86

$0.77 R$4.24

203.90%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$38.00

$0.72 R$3.98

180.56%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$34.26

$1.18 R$6.47

54.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 MX$29.00

$1.38 R$7.55

11.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$24.64

$0.93 R$5.09

40.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.35 MX$100

$3.01 R$16.52

77.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.19 MX$304

$8.63 R$47.35

87.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 MX$36.79

$1.07 R$5.90

83.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$81.7

$2.99 R$16.42

45.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.72

$0.92 R$5.07

-67.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$366

$41.53 R$228

-53.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 MX$36.01

$1.89 R$10.39

1.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 MX$8.88

$1.51 R$8.29

-68.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$102

$9.12 R$50.1

-40.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.86

$1.22 R$6.69

21.31%

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

$21.4K MX$401.4K

$22.5K R$123.6K

-5.10%

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

$23.8K MX$446.1K

$31.6K R$173.2K

-24.73%

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

$62.0 MX$1,164

$57.4 R$315

8.09%

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

$28.47 MX$535

$10.64 R$58.4

167.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.11 MX$641

$19.85 R$109

71.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.4 MX$1,097

$24.31 R$133

140.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$460

$25.89 R$142

-5.37%

Cinema Ticket

$6.59 MX$124

$8.34 R$45.76

-20.98%

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

$434 MX$8,155

$301 R$1,649

44.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.0K MX$263.6K

$6,099 R$33.5K

130.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.4 MX$1,284

$42.34 R$232

61.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.8 MX$1,029

$85.8 R$471

-36.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 MX$2,082

$84.1 R$461

31.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 MX$2,178

$64.5 R$354

79.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$22.1K

$330 R$1,809

257.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$771 MX$14.5K

$228 R$1,252

237.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,570 MX$48.3K

$631 R$3,464

307.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,420 MX$26.7K

$441 R$2,420

221.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,586 MX$67.3K

$1,549 R$8,497

131.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.8K

$1,156 R$6,342

78.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

10.5

8.10%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Imbituba: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$771 46.1%

Imbituba

$228 28.7% 70.4% $543

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$324 19.3%

Imbituba

$159 20% 51% $165

Eating Out

Mexico City

$201 12%

Imbituba

$100 12.6% 50.1% $100

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$158 9.4%

Imbituba

$125 15.7% 20.9% $33

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$125 7.4%

Imbituba

$88 11.1% 29.5% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.3%

Imbituba

$41 5.2% 42.7% $31

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.5%

Imbituba

$55 6.9% 119% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,179 in Mexico City and $330 in Imbituba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $52 in Mexico City vs $28 in Imbituba for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $324 vs $159 per month, with Imbituba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇧🇷 Imbituba

🕒 Local time

09:26 9:26 AM

12:26 12:26 PM

3 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

52,579

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

1 BRL = 0.182 USD

1 BRL = 0.162 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, 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).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 5.49 BRL (1 BRL = 0.182 USD). 1 EUR = 6.16 BRL (1 BRL = 0.162 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Imbituba 7,580 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Imbituba

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 Imbituba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Imbituba is about 53% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $2,510 in Mexico City and $1,192 in Imbituba to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,179 in Mexico City versus $330 in Imbituba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 104% higher in Mexico City. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Imbituba – a meal for two runs $28 versus $52 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $795 in Imbituba versus $1,674 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Imbituba but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Imbituba the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.