Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Iowa City, IA

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,674 a month against $2,239 in Iowa City, IA, rent and utilities included – about $6,800 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
107

Cost of Living Index in Iowa City, IA
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Iowa City, IA Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Iowa City, IA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,239

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Iowa City, IA

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,674 in Mexico City versus $2,239 in Iowa City, IA.

Mexico City $1,674
Iowa City, IA $2,239

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,606 in Mexico City versus $3,243 in Iowa City, IA.

Mexico City $2,606
Iowa City, IA $3,243

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,537 in Mexico City versus $4,246 in Iowa City, IA.

Mexico City $3,537
Iowa City, IA $4,246

Living in Mexico City costs roughly 25% less than in Iowa City, IA, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 24% above, Iowa City, IA 66% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.59 MX$197

$14.86 $14.86

-28.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.0 MX$966

$64.9 $64.9

-19.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 MX$200

$9.02 $9.02

18.96%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$70.6

$5.72 $5.72

-33.57%

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

$1.61 MX$29.99

$2.78 $2.78

-42.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.54

$2.22 $2.22

-45.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 MX$59.1

$5.04 $5.04

-36.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 MX$101

$6.97 $6.97

-21.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$31.94

$0.96 $0.96

79.17%

White Bread (500g)

$2.97 MX$55.2

$2.75 $2.75

8.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 MX$35.82

$2.02 $2.02

-4.46%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.6

$3.68 $3.68

-24.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.67 MX$217

$9.22 $9.22

26.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.48 MX$176

$10.48 $10.48

-9.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.37 MX$286

$20.19 $20.19

-23.87%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 MX$57.7

$3.40 $3.40

-8.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.46

$1.15 $1.15

70.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 MX$36.86

$2.66 $2.66

-25.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.34 MX$43.43

$4.68 $4.68

-50.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.63

$1.98 $1.98

2.02%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.93

$2.35 $2.35

-22.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 MX$28.72

$1.70 $1.70

-9.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$24.40

$2.34 $2.34

-44.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.35 MX$99.5

$9.65 $9.65

-44.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.19 MX$301

$13.30 $13.30

21.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 MX$36.43

$1.75 $1.75

12.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$80.9

$4.28 $4.28

1.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.67

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$363

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 MX$35.66

$3.91 $3.91

-50.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 MX$8.79

$2.05 $2.05

-77.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$101

$43.91 $43.91

-87.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.59

$1.01 $1.01

46.53%

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

$21.4K MX$397.5K

$27.2K $27.2K

-21.46%

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

$23.8K MX$441.8K

$26.2K $26.2K

-9.27%

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

$62.0 MX$1,153

$271 $271

-77.09%

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

$28.47 MX$530

$46.61 $46.61

-38.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.11 MX$634

$80.8 $80.8

-57.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.4 MX$1,086

$29.52 $29.52

97.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$456

$20.31 $20.31

20.63%

Cinema Ticket

$6.59 MX$123

$13.83 $13.83

-52.35%

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

$434 MX$8,076

$1,287 $1,287

-66.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.0K MX$261.0K

$14.7K $14.7K

-4.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.4 MX$1,271

$63.9 $63.9

6.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.8 MX$1,019

$47.41 $47.41

15.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 MX$2,062

$98.3 $98.3

12.76%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 MX$2,157

$116 $116

-0.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$21.9K

$1,302 $1,302

-9.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$771 MX$14.3K

$1,002 $1,002

-23.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,570 MX$47.8K

$1,906 $1,906

34.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,420 MX$26.4K

$1,638 $1,638

-13.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,586 MX$66.7K

$3,489 $3,489

2.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.4K

$1,843 $1,843

12.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.6K

$3,887 $3,887

-74.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

6.45

75.97%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Iowa City, IA: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$771 46.1%

Iowa City, IA

$1K 44.7% 29.9% $231

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$324 19.3%

Iowa City, IA

$348 15.5% 7.6% $24

Eating Out

Mexico City

$201 12%

Iowa City, IA

$274 12.2% 36.5% $73

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$158 9.4%

Iowa City, IA

$147 6.6% 6.9% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$125 7.4%

Iowa City, IA

$398 17.8% 220% $273

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.3%

Iowa City, IA

$57 2.6% 20.1% $14

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.5%

Iowa City, IA

$14 * 0.6% 43.3% $11

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 $1,179 in Mexico City and $1,302 in Iowa City, IA. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Iowa City, IA pays about 3.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $52 in Mexico City vs $65 in Iowa City, IA for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $324 vs $348 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇺🇸 Iowa City, IA

🕒 Local time

14:51 2:51 PM

Same time as Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

74,828

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.83 EUR

1 USD = 0.897 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 7, 2026: 1 USD = 18.6 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.72 MXN (100 MXN = 4.83 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 7, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.897 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Iowa City, IA 2,570 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Iowa City, IA

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 Iowa City, IA: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City is about 25% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, utilities, and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 74% 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 $1,302 in Iowa City, IA. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $434 in Mexico City versus $1,287 in Iowa City, IA. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Mexico City – a meal for two runs $52 versus $65 in Iowa City, IA. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Mexico City 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.

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