Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Jos

For one person, living is cheaper in Jos: $534 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $12,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Mexico City, Mexico
Jos, Nigeria
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,608
/mo nomad
Jos
🇳🇬 Nigeria
$534
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,608 per month in Mexico City vs $534 in Jos, rent included.

  • Mexico City $1,608
  • Jos $534

A couple spends around $2,549 per month in Mexico City vs $1,097 in Jos, rent included.

  • Mexico City $2,549
  • Jos $1,097

A family of three spends $3,490 per month in Mexico City vs $1,661 in Jos, rent included.

  • Mexico City $3,490
  • Jos $1,661

Mexico City costs about 201% more than Jos, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Mexico City sits 18% above the global median, while Jos is 61% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Mexico City
Jos
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.62 MX$199
$2.04 ₦2,738
420.59%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$48.35 MX$908
$30.16 ₦40.6K
60.31%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.35 MX$194
$3.97 ₦5,343
160.71%
Cappuccino
$3.69 MX$69.3
$3.25 ₦4,373
13.54%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.67 MX$31.29
$0.43 ₦573
288.37%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.27 MX$23.76
$0.67 ₦899
89.55%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.19 MX$59.9
$1.02 ₦1,371
212.75%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.31 MX$99.6
$1.98 ₦2,667
168.18%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
Jos
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.72 MX$32.38
$3.70 ₦4,975
-53.51%
White Bread (500g)
$3.04 MX$57.1
$0.87 ₦1,175
249.43%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.94 MX$36.44
$2.19 ₦2,941
-11.42%
Eggs
$2.89 MX$54.2
$1.79 ₦2,405
61.45%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.97 MX$206
$9.95 ₦13.4K
10.25%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.25 MX$174
$5.02 ₦6,751
84.26%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.13 MX$284
$4.02 ₦5,403
276.37%
Apples (1kg)
$3.05 MX$57.2
$2.00 ₦2,684
52.50%
Banana (1kg)
$1.94 MX$36.45
$1.45 ₦1,946
33.79%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.03 MX$38.02
$1.51 ₦2,032
34.44%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.31 MX$43.46
$2.27 ₦3,057
1.76%
Potato (1kg)
$2.04 MX$38.21
$1.78 ₦2,398
14.61%
Onion (1kg)
$1.80 MX$33.79
$2.41 ₦3,240
-25.31%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.48 MX$27.77
$0.59 ₦788
150.85%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.27 MX$23.80
$0.40 ₦536
217.50%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.30 MX$99.6
$1.95 ₦2,628
171.79%
Wine (Bottle)
$16.10 MX$302
$5.93 ₦7,977
171.50%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.98 MX$37.23
$1.20 ₦1,611
65.00%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.25 MX$79.8
$1.77 ₦2,380
140.11%
🚌 Getting Around
Mexico City
Jos
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.31 MX$5.73
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$19.73 MX$371
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.84 MX$34.50
$0.58 ₦783
217.24%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.53 MX$10.02
$0.87 ₦1,170
-39.08%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.30 MX$99.4
$1.83 ₦2,462
189.62%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.51 MX$28.36
$0.54 ₦725
179.63%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.8K MX$408.4K
$25.7K ₦34.5M
-15.20%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.0K MX$450.3K
$36.3K ₦48.8M
-33.86%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
Jos
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$63.0 MX$1,182
$100 ₦135.0K
-37.24%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$27.39 MX$514
$6.50 ₦8,742
321.38%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$35.67 MX$670
$28.97 ₦39.0K
23.13%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
Jos
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$58.9 MX$1,107
$39.52 ₦53.2K
49.14%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$23.64 MX$444
$12.03 ₦16.2K
96.51%
Cinema Ticket
$6.40 MX$120
$6.22 ₦8,360
2.89%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Mexico City
Jos
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$432 MX$8,103
$44.67 ₦60.1K
866.17%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.4K MX$214.5K
$1,001 ₦1.3M
1040.88%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
Jos
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$68.2 MX$1,281
$10.09 ₦13.6K
576.11%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$53.1 MX$997
$14.98 ₦20.1K
254.67%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$108 MX$2,023
$51.0 ₦68.6K
111.37%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$117 MX$2,202
$50.1 ₦67.4K
134.12%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
Jos
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,113 MX$20.9K
-
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$710 MX$13.3K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,588 MX$48.6K
$554 ₦745.7K
366.79%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,406 MX$26.4K
$483 ₦648.9K
191.38%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,631 MX$68.2K
$2,030 ₦2.7M
78.89%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,135 MX$40.1K
$1,485 ₦2.0M
43.82%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Mexico City
Jos
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$946 MX$17.8K
$102 ₦136.9K
829.78%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.35
22.5
-49.56%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Jos: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
$710
Jos
- * 100%
Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
$320
Jos
$203 36.4% $116
Eating Out
Mexico City
$199
Jos
$81 59.4% $118
Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
$156
Jos
$57 63.6% $99
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
$126
Jos
$136 7.8% $9.8
Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
$72
Jos
$52 27.6% $20
Getting Around
Mexico City
$25
Jos
$4.9 * 80.6% $21

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Salaries in Mexico City are about 9.3 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $48 in Mexico City versus $30 in Jos. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $320 vs $203 – making Jos the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🇳🇬 Jos
🕒 Local time
18:00 6:00 PM
01:00 1:00 AM
7 h ahead of Mexico City
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
9,209,944 Capital
900,000
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

NGN, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Nigerian Naira exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1,345 NGN (10,000 NGN = 7.44 USD). 1 EUR = 1,502 NGN (10,000 NGN = 6.66 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Mexico City Jos 11,490 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Mexico City
  • Jos

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 Jos: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
How do living costs in Mexico City and in Jos compare overall?
Monthly costs with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City, $534 in Jos – Jos comes out roughly 67% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.
What salary covers living expenses in Mexico City compared to Jos?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,412 per month in Mexico City and $800 in Jos. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has cheaper restaurants?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $48 in Mexico City and $30 in Jos. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Groceries cost about 57% more in Mexico City, though the gap depends on what you buy.
Which city is more doable on $1,200 per month?
A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Jos, where all-in costs run around $534, than in Mexico City at $1,608. In Jos it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mexico City it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
How does quality of life compare between Mexico City and Jos?
It depends on your priorities. Mexico City has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $534 in Jos to $1,608 in Mexico City. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.
How do I decide between Mexico City and Jos?
If budget matters most, go with Jos. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Mexico City makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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