Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Kingston

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,567 a month against $1,668 in Kingston, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index
81

Cost of Living Index in Kingston
Learn more

Kingston Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Kingston

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$1,668

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,567 in Mexico City versus $1,668 in Kingston.

Mexico City $1,567
Kingston $1,668

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,450 in Mexico City versus $2,812 in Kingston.

Mexico City $2,450
Kingston $2,812

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,333 in Mexico City versus $3,955 in Kingston.

Mexico City $3,333
Kingston $3,955

Living in Mexico City costs roughly 6% less than in Kingston, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 16% above, Kingston 24% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.75 MX$199

$13.29 JMD 2,099

-19.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.3 MX$929

$73.8 JMD 11.7K

-31.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.10 MX$205

$8.14 JMD 1,285

36.36%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.1

$5.45 JMD 861

-32.48%

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

$1.65 MX$30.42

$1.14 JMD 180

44.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 MX$24.08

$0.72 JMD 115

80.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.32 MX$61.3

$2.16 JMD 341

53.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.54 MX$102

$3.11 JMD 491

78.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.77 MX$32.68

$4.19 JMD 661

-57.76%

White Bread (500g)

$3.05 MX$56.4

$3.78 JMD 598

-19.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.20

$1.61 JMD 254

24.84%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.1

$3.48 JMD 550

-20.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.91 MX$220

$11.40 JMD 1,801

4.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.33 MX$172

$6.35 JMD 1,003

46.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.02 MX$278

$10.40 JMD 1,644

44.42%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 MX$56.8

$6.05 JMD 957

-49.09%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.97

$3.82 JMD 604

-48.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.54

$7.25 JMD 1,146

-72.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.21 MX$40.92

$3.06 JMD 484

-27.78%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.41

$3.21 JMD 506

-37.07%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.67

$2.62 JMD 415

-30.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$3.13 JMD 494

-51.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 MX$23.65

$1.44 JMD 228

-11.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.27 MX$97.4

$9.48 JMD 1,498

-44.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.12 MX$298

$11.36 JMD 1,795

41.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 MX$36.05

$2.86 JMD 453

-31.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$78.6

$3.88 JMD 613

9.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.82

$0.75 JMD 119

-58.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.85 MX$367

$37.27 JMD 5,888

-46.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 MX$36.93

$1.22 JMD 192

63.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.86

$3.20 JMD 505

-83.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.62 MX$104

$6.31 JMD 996

-10.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$1.39 JMD 219

9.35%

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

$21.0K MX$388.7K

$44.3K JMD 7.0M

-52.51%

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

$25.2K MX$465.3K

$32.8K JMD 5.2M

-23.19%

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

$62.5 MX$1,155

$167 JMD 26.4K

-62.54%

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

$28.77 MX$532

$29.86 JMD 4,717

-3.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.45 MX$637

$53.4 JMD 8,443

-35.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,055

$61.9 JMD 9,787

-7.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 MX$458

$17.61 JMD 2,782

40.89%

Cinema Ticket

$6.67 MX$123

$13.15 JMD 2,078

-49.28%

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

$431 MX$7,964

$359 JMD 56.7K

20.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.7K MX$216.9K

$8,382 JMD 1.3M

40.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.8 MX$1,308

$23.75 JMD 3,752

198.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.8 MX$958

$31.13 JMD 4,918

66.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 MX$2,011

$76.9 JMD 12.2K

41.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 MX$2,076

$100 JMD 15.9K

11.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,051 MX$19.4K

$975 JMD 154.0K

7.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$665 MX$12.3K

$563 JMD 89.0K

18.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,346 MX$43.3K

$2,142 JMD 338.5K

9.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,227 MX$22.7K

$1,421 JMD 224.6K

-13.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,554 MX$65.7K

$2,876 JMD 454.4K

23.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,977 MX$36.5K

$2,044 JMD 323.0K

-3.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$975 MX$18.0K

$735 JMD 116.1K

32.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

9.45

19.58%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Last update for Kingston: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$665 42.4%

Kingston

$563 33.8% 15.3% $102

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$323 20.6%

Kingston

$384 23% 19.1% $62

Eating Out

Mexico City

$203 13%

Kingston

$221 13.2% 8.6% $18

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$155 9.9%

Kingston

$105 6.3% 32.4% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 8%

Kingston

$250 15% 99% $124

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$70 4.5%

Kingston

$88 5.3% 25.3% $18

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.6%

Kingston

$57 3.5% 123% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,051 in Mexico City and $975 in Kingston. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 33% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $50.0 in Mexico City vs $74.0 in Kingston for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $323 vs $384 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇯🇲 Kingston

🕒 Local time

10:50 10:50 AM

11:50 11:50 AM

1 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

660,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JMD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.78 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.63 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mexico City Kingston 2,360 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Kingston

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 Kingston: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City wins on cost – living expenses run 6% lower than in Kingston. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Mexico City the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 33% higher in Mexico City, 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: $1,051 in Mexico City versus $975 in Kingston. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $431 in Mexico City versus $359 in Kingston. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 19% higher in Kingston. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,567 in Mexico City versus $1,668 in Kingston, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in Kingston. The gap between the two cities makes Mexico City the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Mexico City delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,567 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Mexico City hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Mexico City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Kingston. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.