Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Joao Pessoa

For one person, living is cheaper in Joao Pessoa: $969 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $8,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Joao Pessoa
Learn more

Joao Pessoa Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Joao Pessoa

🇧🇷 Brazil

$969

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Joao Pessoa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,674 in Mexico City versus $969 in Joao Pessoa.

Mexico City $1,674
Joao Pessoa $969

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,606 in Mexico City versus $1,496 in Joao Pessoa.

Mexico City $2,606
Joao Pessoa $1,496

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,537 in Mexico City versus $2,023 in Joao Pessoa.

Mexico City $3,537
Joao Pessoa $2,023

Living in Mexico City is roughly 73% more expensive than in Joao Pessoa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 24% above, Joao Pessoa is 28% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.59 MX$199

$6.54 R$35.89

61.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.0 MX$978

$27.48 R$151

89.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 MX$202

$7.37 R$40.46

45.59%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$71.4

$1.42 R$7.82

167.61%

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

$1.61 MX$30.35

$0.97 R$5.33

65.98%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.81

$0.66 R$3.65

83.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 MX$59.8

$1.70 R$9.35

87.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 MX$102

$3.39 R$18.61

60.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.32

$1.13 R$6.20

52.21%

White Bread (500g)

$2.97 MX$55.8

$1.90 R$10.42

56.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 MX$36.24

$1.42 R$7.78

35.92%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$52.2

$1.89 R$10.36

46.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.67 MX$220

$7.74 R$42.45

50.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.48 MX$178

$4.62 R$25.34

105.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.37 MX$289

$6.85 R$37.61

124.38%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 MX$58.4

$2.95 R$16.20

5.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.90

$0.94 R$5.17

108.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 MX$37.30

$0.83 R$4.57

138.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.34 MX$43.95

$1.07 R$5.90

118.69%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$38.08

$1.51 R$8.27

33.77%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$34.34

$1.17 R$6.42

55.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 MX$29.06

$0.70 R$3.85

120.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$24.70

$0.99 R$5.45

32.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.35 MX$101

$2.81 R$15.44

90.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.19 MX$305

$8.38 R$46.02

93.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 MX$36.87

$1.49 R$8.20

31.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$81.9

$3.03 R$16.64

43.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.74

$0.99 R$5.43

-69.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$367

$63.2 R$347

-69.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 MX$36.08

$1.85 R$10.15

3.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 MX$8.90

$1.89 R$10.38

-75.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$102

$2.99 R$16.43

80.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.92

$1.21 R$6.65

22.31%

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

$21.4K MX$402.2K

$22.0K R$120.5K

-2.64%

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

$23.8K MX$447.1K

$30.7K R$168.5K

-22.65%

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

$62.0 MX$1,167

$119 R$654

-47.98%

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

$28.47 MX$536

$20.81 R$114

36.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.11 MX$642

$21.65 R$119

57.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.4 MX$1,099

$35.08 R$193

66.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$461

$27.65 R$152

-11.39%

Cinema Ticket

$6.59 MX$124

$9.70 R$53.2

-32.06%

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

$434 MX$8,172

$400 R$2,194

8.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.0K MX$264.1K

$6,320 R$34.7K

122.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.4 MX$1,286

$50.6 R$278

35.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.8 MX$1,031

$62.0 R$340

-11.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 MX$2,086

$80.9 R$444

37.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 MX$2,183

$71.6 R$393

62.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$22.2K

$369 R$2,025

219.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$771 MX$14.5K

$251 R$1,375

207.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,570 MX$48.4K

$612 R$3,357

320.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,420 MX$26.7K

$483 R$2,653

193.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,586 MX$67.5K

$2,264 R$12.4K

58.35%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.8K

$1,122 R$6,159

83.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.9K

$476 R$2,614

110.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

3.18%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Joao Pessoa: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$771 46.1%

Joao Pessoa

$251 25.9% 67.5% $520

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$324 19.3%

Joao Pessoa

$191 19.7% 40.9% $132

Eating Out

Mexico City

$201 12%

Joao Pessoa

$113 11.7% 43.5% $87

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$158 9.4%

Joao Pessoa

$119 12.3% 24.3% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$125 7.4%

Joao Pessoa

$162 16.7% 29.7% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.3%

Joao Pessoa

$54 5.6% 23.9% $17

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.5%

Joao Pessoa

$78 8.1% 214% $53

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,179 in Mexico City and $369 in Joao Pessoa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays about 2.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $52 in Mexico City vs $27 in Joao Pessoa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $324 vs $191 per month, with Joao Pessoa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇧🇷 Joao Pessoa

🕒 Local time

21:15 9:15 PM

00:15 12:15 AM

3 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

833,932

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.31 USD

100 MXN = 4.75 EUR

1 BRL = 0.182 USD

1 BRL = 0.163 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 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.82 MXN (100 MXN = 5.31 USD). 1 EUR = 21.05 MXN (100 MXN = 4.75 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 5.49 BRL (1 BRL = 0.182 USD). 1 EUR = 6.14 BRL (1 BRL = 0.163 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mexico City Joao Pessoa 7,630 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Joao Pessoa

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 Joao Pessoa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,674 in Mexico City and $969 in Joao Pessoa, so Joao Pessoa is about 42% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Mexico City is about 2.1 times higher, 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: $1,179 in Mexico City versus $369 in Joao Pessoa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $434 in Mexico City versus $400 in Joao Pessoa. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 69% higher in Mexico City. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $969 in Joao Pessoa versus $1,674 in Mexico City, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Joao Pessoa but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Joao Pessoa 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.

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