Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Montreux

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,608 a month against $3,440 in Montreux, rent and utilities included – about $22,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

Mexico City, Mexico
Montreux, Switzerland
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,608
/mo nomad
Montreux
🇨🇭 Switzerland
$3,440
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $3,440 in Montreux.

  • Mexico City $1,608
  • Montreux $3,440

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $5,245 in Montreux.

  • Mexico City $2,549
  • Montreux $5,245

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $7,050 in Montreux.

  • Mexico City $3,490
  • Montreux $7,050

Living in Mexico City costs roughly 53% less than in Montreux, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 18% above, Montreux 153% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Mexico City
Montreux
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.62 MX$200
$30.54 CHF 25.19
-65.23%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$48.35 MX$909
$125 CHF 103
-61.30%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.35 MX$194
$18.32 CHF 15.11
-43.50%
Cappuccino
$3.69 MX$69.4
$6.07 CHF 5.01
-39.21%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.67 MX$31.32
$4.61 CHF 3.80
-63.77%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.27 MX$23.78
$4.05 CHF 3.34
-68.64%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.19 MX$60.0
$9.70 CHF 8.00
-67.11%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.31 MX$99.7
$9.49 CHF 7.82
-44.05%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
Montreux
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.72 MX$32.41
$2.23 CHF 1.84
-22.87%
White Bread (500g)
$3.04 MX$57.1
$3.31 CHF 2.73
-8.16%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.94 MX$36.48
$3.32 CHF 2.74
-41.57%
Eggs
$2.89 MX$54.3
$7.09 CHF 5.85
-59.24%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.97 MX$206
$24.79 CHF 20.45
-55.75%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.25 MX$174
$28.28 CHF 23.32
-67.29%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.13 MX$284
$39.88 CHF 32.89
-62.06%
Apples (1kg)
$3.05 MX$57.3
$3.65 CHF 3.01
-16.44%
Banana (1kg)
$1.94 MX$36.48
$1.66 CHF 1.37
16.87%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.03 MX$38.06
$2.46 CHF 2.03
-17.48%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.31 MX$43.50
$4.60 CHF 3.80
-49.78%
Potato (1kg)
$2.04 MX$38.25
$1.86 CHF 1.53
9.68%
Onion (1kg)
$1.80 MX$33.83
$1.92 CHF 1.58
-6.25%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.48 MX$27.80
$1.97 CHF 1.63
-24.87%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.27 MX$23.82
$1.69 CHF 1.39
-24.85%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.30 MX$99.7
$11.00 CHF 9.08
-51.82%
Wine (Bottle)
$16.10 MX$303
$12.05 CHF 9.94
33.61%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.98 MX$37.27
$2.73 CHF 2.25
-27.47%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.25 MX$79.9
$3.25 CHF 2.68
30.77%
🚌 Getting Around
Mexico City
Montreux
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.31 MX$5.73
$4.21 CHF 3.47
-92.64%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$19.73 MX$371
$104 CHF 85.4
-80.95%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.84 MX$34.53
$7.47 CHF 6.16
-75.37%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.53 MX$10.03
$3.76 CHF 3.10
-85.90%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.30 MX$99.5
$64.8 CHF 53.4
-91.82%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.51 MX$28.39
$2.42 CHF 2.00
-37.60%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.8K MX$408.8K
$38.7K CHF 31.9K
-43.74%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.0K MX$450.8K
$39.6K CHF 32.7K
-39.45%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
Montreux
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$63.0 MX$1,184
$288 CHF 238
-78.16%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$27.39 MX$515
$37.64 CHF 31.04
-27.23%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$35.67 MX$670
$52.2 CHF 43.03
-31.63%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
Montreux
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$58.9 MX$1,108
$89.6 CHF 73.9
-34.23%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$23.64 MX$444
$45.58 CHF 37.60
-48.14%
Cinema Ticket
$6.40 MX$120
$24.18 CHF 19.95
-73.53%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Mexico City
Montreux
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$432 MX$8,111
$2,443 CHF 2,015
-82.33%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.4K MX$214.7K
$35.9K CHF 29.6K
-68.22%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
Montreux
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$68.2 MX$1,282
$135 CHF 111
-49.47%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$53.1 MX$999
$78.7 CHF 64.9
-32.46%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$108 MX$2,026
$168 CHF 139
-36.01%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$117 MX$2,204
$184 CHF 152
-36.21%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
Montreux
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,113 MX$20.9K
$1,773 CHF 1,462
-37.19%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$710 MX$13.4K
$1,473 CHF 1,215
-51.76%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,588 MX$48.6K
$2,960 CHF 2,441
-12.55%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,406 MX$26.4K
$2,500 CHF 2,062
-43.76%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,631 MX$68.2K
$16.4K CHF 13.5K
-77.86%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,135 MX$40.1K
$12.5K CHF 10.3K
-82.86%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Mexico City
Montreux
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$946 MX$17.8K
$8,161 CHF 6,731
-88.41%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.35
1.95
482.05%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Montreux: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
$710
Montreux
$1.5K 107% $762
Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
$320
Montreux
$575 80.1% $256
Eating Out
Mexico City
$199
Montreux
$474 139% $276
Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
$156
Montreux
$255 63.4% $99
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
$126
Montreux
$378 200% $252
Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
$72
Montreux
$138 92.3% $66
Getting Around
Mexico City
$25
Montreux
$147 476% $121

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $1,773 in Montreux. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Montreux pays about 8.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $125 in Montreux for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $575 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🇨🇭 Montreux
🕒 Local time
21:27 9:27 PM
04:27 4:27 AM
7 h ahead of Mexico City
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
9,209,944 Capital
26,208
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

CHF, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.98 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.825 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.921 CHF (1 CHF = 1.09 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Mexico City Montreux 9,620 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Mexico City
  • Montreux

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 Montreux: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Mexico City and in Montreux?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $3,440 in Montreux, so Mexico City is about 53% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city has better-paying jobs?
On paper, salaries run 88% lower in Mexico City. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
How do apartment prices compare in Mexico City and in Montreux?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $1,773 in Montreux. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How do commuting costs compare in Mexico City and in Montreux?
A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 81% less than in Montreux. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Mexico City and Montreux?
Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $2,443 in Montreux. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city is more doable on $3,000 per month?
At $1,608 in Mexico City versus $3,440 in Montreux, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in Montreux. The gap between the two cities makes Mexico City the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Where should families live: Mexico City or Montreux?
For families, Mexico City is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Montreux, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.
Where should expats move: Mexico City or Montreux?
Expats usually find Mexico City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 53% less than in Montreux. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

Mexico City vs other spots: cost of living compared

Similar cities

Show times on the 12-hour clock, temperatures in °F and distances in miles?