Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Mambajao

For one person, living is cheaper in Mambajao: $497 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $14,100 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
24

Cost of Living Index in Mambajao
Learn more

Mambajao Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Mambajao

🇵🇭 Philippines

$497

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,674 per month in Mexico City vs $497 in Mambajao, rent included.

Mexico City $1,674
Mambajao $497

A couple spends around $2,606 per month in Mexico City vs $799 in Mambajao, rent included.

Mexico City $2,606
Mambajao $799

A family of three spends $3,537 per month in Mexico City vs $1,101 in Mambajao, rent included.

Mexico City $3,537
Mambajao $1,101

Mexico City costs about 237% more than Mambajao, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Mexico City sits 24% above the global median, while Mambajao is 63% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.59 MX$197

$1.36 ₱85.9

678.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.0 MX$967

$15.81 ₱1,002

228.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 MX$200

$3.20 ₱203

235.31%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$70.6

$2.18 ₱138

74.31%

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

$1.61 MX$30.01

$0.38 ₱23.92

323.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.55

$0.28 ₱17.78

332.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 MX$59.1

$0.94 ₱59.4

238.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 MX$101

$1.11 ₱70.6

390.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$31.96

$0.84 ₱53.0

104.76%

White Bread (500g)

$2.97 MX$55.2

$0.57 ₱36.41

421.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 MX$35.84

$0.67 ₱42.69

188.06%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.6

$1.20 ₱76.1

130.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.67 MX$217

$5.43 ₱344

114.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.48 MX$176

$4.17 ₱265

127.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.37 MX$286

$5.59 ₱354

174.96%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 MX$57.8

$2.28 ₱144

35.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.49

$1.50 ₱94.9

30.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 MX$36.88

$2.39 ₱152

-17.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.34 MX$43.46

$1.12 ₱71.1

108.93%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.66

$1.23 ₱78.2

64.23%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.95

$2.20 ₱139

-17.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 MX$28.74

$1.09 ₱68.8

41.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$24.42

$0.52 ₱33.24

151.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.35 MX$99.6

$2.91 ₱185

83.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.19 MX$301

$7.44 ₱472

117.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 MX$36.46

$1.01 ₱64.3

94.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$81.0

$1.15 ₱72.9

278.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.67

$0.21 ₱13.01

42.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$363

$12.49 ₱791

56.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 MX$35.68

$0.76 ₱47.97

152.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 MX$8.80

$0.22 ₱13.95

113.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$101

$1.86 ₱118

190.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.61

$1.23 ₱78.1

20.33%

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

$21.4K MX$397.7K

$20.9K ₱1.3M

2.10%

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

$23.8K MX$442.1K

$19.3K ₱1.2M

23.30%

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

$62.0 MX$1,154

$63.3 ₱4,011

-2.08%

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

$28.47 MX$530

$15.26 ₱967

86.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.11 MX$635

$19.19 ₱1,216

77.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.4 MX$1,087

$30.84 ₱1,954

89.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$456

$5.33 ₱338

359.66%

Cinema Ticket

$6.59 MX$123

$5.00 ₱317

31.80%

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

$434 MX$8,081

$128 ₱8,132

238.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.0K MX$261.2K

$7,987 ₱506.0K

75.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.4 MX$1,272

$32.01 ₱2,028

113.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.8 MX$1,020

$19.38 ₱1,228

182.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 MX$2,063

$69.5 ₱4,400

59.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 MX$2,158

$55.5 ₱3,514

109.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$21.9K

$96.7 ₱6,129

1119.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$771 MX$14.3K

$55.8 ₱3,532

1282.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,570 MX$47.8K

$235 ₱14.9K

992.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,420 MX$26.4K

$154 ₱9,745

822.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,586 MX$66.7K

$2,632 ₱166.7K

36.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.4K

$1,104 ₱70.0K

86.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.7K

$150 ₱9,497

569.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

6.92

64.02%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Mambajao: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$771 46.1%

Mambajao

$56 11.2% 92.8% $715

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$324 19.3%

Mambajao

$152 30.6% 53% $171

Eating Out

Mexico City

$201 12%

Mambajao

$56 11.3% 72% $144

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$158 9.4%

Mambajao

$79 16% 49.6% $78

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$125 7.4%

Mambajao

$98 19.7% 21.5% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.3%

Mambajao

$41 8.2% 42.9% $31

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.5%

Mambajao

$15 3.1% 39.3% $9.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,179 in Mexico City versus $97 in Mambajao. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Mexico City are about 6.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $52 in Mexico City versus $16 in Mambajao. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $324 vs $152 – making Mambajao the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇵🇭 Mambajao

🕒 Local time

20:18 8:18 PM

10:18 10:18 AM

14 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

41,094

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100 PHP = 1.58 USD

100 PHP = 1.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.95 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 63.36 PHP (100 PHP = 1.58 USD). 1 EUR = 71.33 PHP (100 PHP = 1.4 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Mambajao 14,250 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Mambajao

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 Mambajao: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City costs about 237% more than Mambajao, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,510 per month in Mexico City and $746 in Mambajao. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Mambajao, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $97 there versus $1,179 in Mexico City.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,674 in Mexico City and $497 in Mambajao. That makes Mambajao about 70% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 36% less in Mambajao. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Mambajao, where all-in costs run around $497, than in Mexico City at $1,674. In Mambajao it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mexico City it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

If budget matters most, go with Mambajao. 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.