Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Mutare

For one person, living is cheaper in Mutare: $780 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $10,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Mexico City, Mexico
Mutare, Zimbabwe
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,674
/mo nomad
Mutare
🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
$780
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,674 in Mexico City versus $780 in Mutare.

  • Mexico City $1,674
  • Mutare $780

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,606 in Mexico City versus $1,212 in Mutare.

  • Mexico City $2,606
  • Mutare $1,212

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,537 in Mexico City versus $1,643 in Mutare.

  • Mexico City $3,537
  • Mutare $1,643

Living in Mexico City is roughly 115% more expensive than in Mutare, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 24% above, Mutare is 42% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Mexico City
Mutare
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.59 MX$197
$9.80 ZWL 260
8.06%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$52.0 MX$964
$44.81 ZWL 1,189
15.96%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.73 MX$199
$4.48 ZWL 119
139.51%
Cappuccino
$3.80 MX$70.5
$1.21 ZWL 32.22
214.05%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.61 MX$29.93
$0.73 ZWL 19.31
120.55%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.21 MX$22.49
$0.47 ZWL 12.35
157.45%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.18 MX$59.0
$1.24 ZWL 32.84
156.45%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.44 MX$101
$1.84 ZWL 48.80
195.65%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
Mutare
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.72 MX$31.88
$1.22 ZWL 32.51
40.98%
White Bread (500g)
$2.97 MX$55.1
$0.98 ZWL 26.02
203.06%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.93 MX$35.74
$1.27 ZWL 33.79
51.97%
Eggs
$2.77 MX$51.5
$1.92 ZWL 50.9
44.27%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.67 MX$217
$2.97 ZWL 78.9
292.93%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.48 MX$176
$3.91 ZWL 104
142.46%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.37 MX$285
$5.12 ZWL 136
200.20%
Apples (1kg)
$3.10 MX$57.6
$2.06 ZWL 54.6
50.49%
Banana (1kg)
$1.96 MX$36.39
$1.72 ZWL 45.56
13.95%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.98 MX$36.78
$2.05 ZWL 54.5
-3.41%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.34 MX$43.34
$1.03 ZWL 27.31
127.18%
Potato (1kg)
$2.02 MX$37.56
$1.67 ZWL 44.33
20.96%
Onion (1kg)
$1.82 MX$33.86
$0.97 ZWL 25.80
87.63%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.54 MX$28.66
$0.52 ZWL 13.81
196.15%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.31 MX$24.35
$1.00 ZWL 26.47
31.00%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.35 MX$99.3
$1.19 ZWL 31.49
349.58%
Wine (Bottle)
$16.19 MX$300
$5.85 ZWL 155
176.75%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.96 MX$36.36
$1.22 ZWL 32.45
60.66%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.35 MX$80.8
$1.67 ZWL 44.26
160.48%
🚌 Getting Around
Mexico City
Mutare
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.30 MX$5.66
$0.73 ZWL 19.26
-58.90%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$19.49 MX$362
$27.36 ZWL 726
-28.76%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.92 MX$35.58
$2.98 ZWL 79.1
-35.57%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.47 MX$8.77
$2.03 ZWL 53.9
-76.85%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.41 MX$100
$5.05 ZWL 134
7.13%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.48 MX$27.53
$1.81 ZWL 47.99
-18.23%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.4K MX$396.6K
$21.8K ZWL 577.9K
-1.85%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.8K MX$440.9K
$24.1K ZWL 640.4K
-1.55%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
Mutare
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$62.0 MX$1,151
$50.3 ZWL 1,336
23.14%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$28.47 MX$528
$14.71 ZWL 390
93.54%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$34.11 MX$633
$59.6 ZWL 1,583
-42.81%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
Mutare
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$58.4 MX$1,084
$39.90 ZWL 1,059
46.34%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$24.50 MX$455
$4.95 ZWL 131
394.95%
Cinema Ticket
$6.59 MX$122
$10.17 ZWL 270
-35.20%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Mexico City
Mutare
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$434 MX$8,059
$150 ZWL 3,983
189.34%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$14.0K MX$260.5K
$8,598 ZWL 228.2K
63.24%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
Mutare
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$68.4 MX$1,269
$9.93 ZWL 263
588.32%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$54.8 MX$1,017
$9.69 ZWL 257
465.53%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$111 MX$2,057
$25.39 ZWL 674
336.59%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$116 MX$2,153
$20.14 ZWL 534
475.92%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
Mutare
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,179 MX$21.9K
$356 ZWL 9,447
231.28%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$771 MX$14.3K
$247 ZWL 6,542
212.70%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,570 MX$47.7K
$747 ZWL 19.8K
243.92%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,420 MX$26.3K
$393 ZWL 10.4K
261.30%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,586 MX$66.5K
$254 ZWL 6,751
1309.63%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,064 MX$38.3K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Mexico City
Mutare
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,003 MX$18.6K
$254 ZWL 6,728
295.53%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.35
13.69
-17.09%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Mutare: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
$771
Mutare
$247 68% $524
Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
$324
Mutare
$155 52.2% $169
Eating Out
Mexico City
$201
Mutare
$121 39.6% $80
Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
$158
Mutare
$29 81.4% $128
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
$125
Mutare
$125 0.1% $0.1
Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
$72
Mutare
$60 15.8% $11
Getting Around
Mexico City
$25
Mutare
$43 73.7% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,179 in Mexico City and $356 in Mutare. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays about 4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $52 in Mexico City vs $45 in Mutare for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $324 vs $155 per month, with Mutare cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🇿🇼 Mutare
🕒 Local time
10:21 10:21 AM
18:21 6:21 PM
8 h ahead of Mexico City
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
9,209,944 Capital
188,243
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

ZWL, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.56 MXN (100 MXN = 5.39 USD). 1 EUR = 20.85 MXN (100 MXN = 4.8 EUR).

Zimbabwean Dollar exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 26.54 ZWL (100 ZWL = 3.77 USD). 1 EUR = 29.82 ZWL (100 ZWL = 3.35 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Mexico City Mutare 14,970 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Mexico City
  • Mutare

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 Mutare: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Mexico City and in Mutare?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,674 in Mexico City and $780 in Mutare, so Mutare is about 53% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city pays better: Mexico City or Mutare?
Average pay in Mexico City is about 4 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
How do apartment prices compare in Mexico City and in Mutare?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,179 in Mexico City versus $356 in Mutare. 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 Mutare?
A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 29% less than in Mutare. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Mexico City and Mutare?
Childcare runs $434 in Mexico City versus $150 in Mutare. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city is more doable on $1,000 per month?
At $780 in Mutare versus $1,674 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Mutare but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Mutare the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Mexico City and Mutare?
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.
How do I decide between Mexico City and Mutare?
It comes down to priorities – Mutare wins on affordability, Mexico City on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.

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?