Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Medias

For one person, living is cheaper in Medias: $1,102 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 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
52

Cost of Living Index in Medias
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Medias Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Medias

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,102

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,674 in Mexico City versus $1,102 in Medias.

Mexico City $1,674
Medias $1,102

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,606 in Mexico City versus $1,683 in Medias.

Mexico City $2,606
Medias $1,683

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,537 in Mexico City versus $2,263 in Medias.

Mexico City $3,537
Medias $2,263

Living in Mexico City is roughly 52% more expensive than in Medias, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 24% above, Medias is 19% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.59 MX$197

$11.14 RON 53.0

-4.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.0 MX$967

$51.8 RON 246

0.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 MX$200

$7.35 RON 34.94

45.99%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$70.6

$3.70 RON 17.59

2.70%

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

$1.61 MX$30.01

$2.46 RON 11.68

-34.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.55

$2.25 RON 10.71

-46.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 MX$59.1

$3.20 RON 15.20

-0.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 MX$101

$3.27 RON 15.55

66.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$31.96

$1.23 RON 5.83

39.84%

White Bread (500g)

$2.97 MX$55.2

$1.43 RON 6.77

107.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 MX$35.84

$1.73 RON 8.24

11.56%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.6

$3.59 RON 17.05

-22.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.67 MX$217

$8.65 RON 41.13

34.91%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.48 MX$176

$6.69 RON 31.82

41.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.37 MX$286

$12.89 RON 61.3

19.24%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 MX$57.8

$1.48 RON 7.02

109.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.49

$1.48 RON 7.04

32.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 MX$36.88

$1.55 RON 7.35

27.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.34 MX$43.46

$2.58 RON 12.28

-9.30%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.66

$0.77 RON 3.66

162.34%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.95

$0.75 RON 3.57

142.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 MX$28.74

$0.80 RON 3.78

92.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$24.42

$0.75 RON 3.57

74.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.35 MX$99.6

$6.21 RON 29.50

-13.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.19 MX$301

$7.54 RON 35.85

114.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 MX$36.46

$1.23 RON 5.83

59.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$81.0

$1.80 RON 8.56

141.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.67

$0.70 RON 3.32

-57.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$363

$23.96 RON 114

-18.66%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 MX$35.68

$0.66 RON 3.14

190.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 MX$8.80

$0.68 RON 3.23

-30.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$101

$6.60 RON 31.35

-18.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.61

$1.38 RON 6.56

7.25%

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

$21.4K MX$397.7K

$29.0K RON 137.9K

-26.34%

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

$23.8K MX$442.1K

$25.2K RON 120.0K

-5.90%

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

$62.0 MX$1,154

$180 RON 857

-65.63%

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

$28.47 MX$530

$7.25 RON 34.47

292.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.11 MX$635

$9.26 RON 43.99

268.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.4 MX$1,087

$37.03 RON 176

57.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$456

$20.31 RON 96.6

20.63%

Cinema Ticket

$6.59 MX$123

$6.12 RON 29.10

7.68%

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

$434 MX$8,081

$438 RON 2,082

-0.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.0K MX$261.2K

$7,770 RON 36.9K

80.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.4 MX$1,272

$52.3 RON 249

30.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.8 MX$1,020

$35.51 RON 169

54.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 MX$2,063

$73.5 RON 349

50.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 MX$2,158

$90.8 RON 432

27.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$21.9K

$389 RON 1,850

202.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$771 MX$14.3K

$292 RON 1,389

163.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,570 MX$47.8K

$602 RON 2,862

326.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,420 MX$26.4K

$453 RON 2,152

213.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,586 MX$66.7K

$2,039 RON 9,690

75.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.4K

$1,480 RON 7,036

39.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

7.23

56.98%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Medias: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$771 46.1%

Medias

$292 26.5% 62.1% $479

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$324 19.3%

Medias

$222 20.2% 31.4% $101

Eating Out

Mexico City

$201 12%

Medias

$197 17.9% 1.8% $3.6

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$158 9.4%

Medias

$113 10.3% 27.9% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$125 7.4%

Medias

$197 17.9% 58% $72

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.3%

Medias

$49 4.5% 31.1% $22

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.5%

Medias

$31 2.8% 23.2% $5.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,179 in Mexico City and $389 in Medias. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $52 in Mexico City vs $52 in Medias. Groceries flip the comparison at $324 vs $222, with Medias cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇷🇴 Medias

🕒 Local time

20:03 8:03 PM

04:03 4:03 AM

8 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

53,564

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 RON = 0.21 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, 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).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 4.75 RON (1 RON = 0.21 USD). 1 EUR = 5.35 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Between locations

Mexico City Medias 10,780 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Medias

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 Medias: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medias is about 34% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, utilities, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $2,510 in Mexico City and $1,653 in Medias to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,179 in Mexico City versus $389 in Medias. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 46% higher in Mexico City. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,674 per month in Mexico City versus $1,102 in Medias – Medias is about 34% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,102 in Medias versus $1,674 in Mexico City, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Medias but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Medias 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.