Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Kuala Lipis

For one person, living is cheaper in Kuala Lipis: $897 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $8,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Kuala Lipis
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Kuala Lipis Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Kuala Lipis

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$897

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Kuala Lipis

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

A single person spends $1,608 per month in Mexico City vs $897 in Kuala Lipis, rent included.

Mexico City $1,608
Kuala Lipis $897

A couple spends around $2,549 per month in Mexico City vs $1,420 in Kuala Lipis, rent included.

Mexico City $2,549
Kuala Lipis $1,420

A family of three spends $3,490 per month in Mexico City vs $1,944 in Kuala Lipis, rent included.

Mexico City $3,490
Kuala Lipis $1,944

Mexico City costs about 79% more than Kuala Lipis, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Mexico City sits 18% above the global median, while Kuala Lipis is 34% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$198

$3.59 MYR 14.62

195.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$901

$24.70 MYR 101

95.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$193

$4.98 MYR 20.31

107.83%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$68.8

$2.99 MYR 12.20

23.41%

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

$1.67 MX$31.07

$0.85 MYR 3.48

96.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.59

$0.42 MYR 1.70

202.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.5

$3.21 MYR 13.06

-0.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$5.63 MYR 22.94

-5.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.15

$1.95 MYR 7.96

-11.79%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$56.7

$1.08 MYR 4.38

181.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.47 MYR 6.00

31.97%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$53.8

$1.78 MYR 7.24

62.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$205

$9.81 MYR 39.99

11.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$172

$3.17 MYR 12.92

191.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$282

$9.58 MYR 39.01

57.93%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$56.8

$3.59 MYR 14.64

-15.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.85 MYR 7.54

4.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.75

$2.75 MYR 11.22

-26.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.15

$1.83 MYR 7.46

26.23%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.94

$2.16 MYR 8.80

-5.56%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.55

$2.05 MYR 8.36

-12.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.58

$1.49 MYR 6.06

-0.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.63

$0.52 MYR 2.11

144.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$98.9

$4.46 MYR 18.17

18.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$300

$19.69 MYR 80.2

-18.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.97

$2.71 MYR 11.04

-26.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.3

$4.44 MYR 18.08

-4.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.69

$0.66 MYR 2.67

-53.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$368

$13.50 MYR 55.0

46.15%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.25

$1.20 MYR 4.91

53.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.94

$0.36 MYR 1.46

47.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$98.7

$8.79 MYR 35.81

-39.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.16

$0.81 MYR 3.29

86.42%

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

$21.8K MX$405.5K

$44.9K MYR 183.1K

-51.59%

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

$24.0K MX$447.1K

$34.8K MYR 142.0K

-31.17%

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

$63.0 MX$1,174

$49.77 MYR 203

26.54%

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

$27.39 MX$511

$8.30 MYR 33.81

230.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$665

$27.35 MYR 111

30.42%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,099

$40.93 MYR 167

44.00%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$441

$7.48 MYR 30.46

216.04%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$119

$4.88 MYR 19.88

31.15%

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

$432 MX$8,045

$276 MYR 1,125

56.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$212.9K

$10.3K MYR 42.0K

10.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,272

$51.6 MYR 210

32.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$990

$29.76 MYR 121

78.53%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,009

$77.7 MYR 317

38.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,186

$86.8 MYR 354

35.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.8K

$385 MYR 1,571

188.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.2K

$268 MYR 1,092

165.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.2K

$693 MYR 2,824

273.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.2K

$558 MYR 2,272

152.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$67.7K

$2,178 MYR 8,872

66.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$39.8K

$1,305 MYR 5,315

63.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

4.51

151.66%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Kuala Lipis: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Kuala Lipis

$268 29.9% 62.3% $443

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Kuala Lipis

$251 28% 21.4% $68

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Kuala Lipis

$112 12.5% 43.6% $87

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Kuala Lipis

$111 12.3% 29% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Kuala Lipis

$85 9.5% 32.2% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Kuala Lipis

$51 5.7% 29.3% $21

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Kuala Lipis

$19 2.1% 24.9% $6.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,113 in Mexico City versus $385 in Kuala Lipis. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $48 in Mexico City versus $25 in Kuala Lipis. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $320 vs $251 – making Kuala Lipis the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇲🇾 Kuala Lipis

🕒 Local time

17:07 5:07 PM

07:07 7:07 AM

14 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

20,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.07 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.54 MYR (1 MYR = 0.22 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Mexico City Kuala Lipis 16,510 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Kuala Lipis

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 Kuala Lipis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Mexico City is pricier by about 79%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,412 per month in Mexico City and $1,345 in Kuala Lipis. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kuala Lipis, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $385 there versus $1,113 in Mexico City.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $897 in Kuala Lipis. That makes Kuala Lipis about 44% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 32% less in Kuala Lipis. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Kuala Lipis, where all-in costs run around $897, than in Mexico City at $1,608. In Kuala Lipis it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mexico City it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Kuala Lipis – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

For expats, Kuala Lipis is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 44% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.