Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and New York, NY

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,561 a month against $5,142 in New York, NY, rent and utilities included – about $43,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
245

Cost of Living Index in New York, NY
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New York, NY Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,561

/mo nomad

New York, NY

🇺🇸 United States

$5,142

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in New York, NY

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 New York, NY actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,561 in Mexico City versus $5,142 in New York, NY.

Mexico City $1,561
New York, NY $5,142

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,440 in Mexico City versus $7,455 in New York, NY.

Mexico City $2,440
New York, NY $7,455

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,319 in Mexico City versus $9,767 in New York, NY.

Mexico City $3,319
New York, NY $9,767

Living in Mexico City costs roughly 70% less than in New York, NY, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 16% above, New York, NY 284% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.12 MX$202

$26.46 $26.46

-57.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.99 MX$891

$119 $119

-58.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.23 MX$204

$14.43 $14.43

-22.18%

Cappuccino

$3.76 MX$68.4

$6.55 $6.55

-42.60%

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

$1.65 MX$30.05

$3.84 $3.84

-57.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.28 MX$23.27

$3.00 $3.00

-57.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.26 MX$59.2

$8.27 $8.27

-60.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.66 MX$103

$10.05 $10.05

-43.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 MX$32.92

$1.31 $1.31

38.17%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 MX$53.5

$4.90 $4.90

-40.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.05 MX$37.27

$7.16 $7.16

-71.37%

Eggs

$2.93 MX$53.2

$5.92 $5.92

-50.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.95 MX$217

$19.06 $19.06

-37.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.51 MX$173

$17.38 $17.38

-45.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.84 MX$270

$18.94 $18.94

-21.65%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 MX$57.2

$6.96 $6.96

-54.89%

Banana (1kg)

$2.01 MX$36.65

$2.08 $2.08

-3.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.08 MX$37.75

$6.10 $6.10

-65.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.22 MX$40.35

$6.95 $6.95

-68.06%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$37.47

$3.98 $3.98

-48.24%

Onion (1kg)

$1.88 MX$34.14

$4.44 $4.44

-57.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$26.93

$2.81 $2.81

-47.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 MX$24.47

$2.51 $2.51

-46.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.41 MX$98.4

$19.27 $19.27

-71.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.86 MX$307

$19.67 $19.67

-14.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.09

$3.08 $3.08

-35.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.32 MX$78.7

$3.68 $3.68

17.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 MX$6.27

$3.02 $3.02

-88.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.23 MX$368

$140 $140

-85.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.10 MX$38.11

$3.07 $3.07

-31.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.65

$2.13 $2.13

-75.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$98.3

$41.21 $41.21

-86.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$27.65

$1.11 $1.11

36.94%

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

$21.7K MX$395.3K

$35.0K $35.0K

-37.90%

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

$24.8K MX$451.4K

$25.4K $25.4K

-2.30%

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

$63.0 MX$1,145

$217 $217

-71.05%

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

$28.88 MX$525

$74.0 $74.0

-60.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.93 MX$617

$72.5 $72.5

-53.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.8 MX$1,015

$120 $120

-53.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.90 MX$453

$66.9 $66.9

-62.77%

Cinema Ticket

$6.77 MX$123

$22.32 $22.32

-69.67%

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

$428 MX$7,781

$3,425 $3,425

-87.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K MX$216.0K

$61.2K $61.2K

-80.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.0 MX$1,274

$76.3 $76.3

-8.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.7 MX$977

$55.5 $55.5

-3.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 MX$1,997

$119 $119

-7.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 MX$2,096

$131 $131

-11.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,062 MX$19.3K

$4,506 $4,506

-76.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$671 MX$12.2K

$3,155 $3,155

-78.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,379 MX$43.3K

$8,817 $8,817

-73.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,260 MX$22.9K

$5,532 $5,532

-77.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,716 MX$67.6K

$19.4K $19.4K

-80.83%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,976 MX$35.9K

$6,754 $6,754

-70.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$997 MX$18.1K

$5,290 $5,290

-81.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

6.82

65.69%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 6, 2026

Last update for New York, NY: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$671 42.4%

New York, NY

$3.2K 63.2% 370% $2.5K

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$327 20.7%

New York, NY

$546 11% 67.1% $219

Eating Out

Mexico City

$207 13.1%

New York, NY

$422 8.5% 104% $215

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$157 9.9%

New York, NY

$172 3.4% 9.4% $15

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 8%

New York, NY

$364 7.3% 189% $238

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$69 4.4%

New York, NY

$165 3.3% 138% $96

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.7%

New York, NY

$165 3.3% 528% $139

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,062 in Mexico City and $4,506 in New York, NY. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

New York, NY pays 431% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $49.00 in Mexico City vs $119 in New York, NY for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $327 vs $546 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇺🇸 New York, NY

🕒 Local time

20:56 8:56 PM

22:56 10:56 PM

2 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

8,804,190

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.5 USD

100 MXN = 4.9 EUR

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.19 MXN (100 MXN = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20.4 MXN (100 MXN = 4.9 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Mexico City New York, NY 3,340 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
New York, NY

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 New York, NY: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City and New York, NY differ by about 229% in total monthly costs ($1,561 vs $5,142 including rent). Mexico City is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 431% lower in New York, NY. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,062 in Mexico City versus $4,506 in New York, NY. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 590% less than in New York, NY. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $428 in Mexico City versus $3,425 in New York, NY. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,561 in Mexico City versus $5,142 in New York, NY, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in New York, NY. The gap between the two cities makes Mexico City 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.

Expats usually find Mexico City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 229% less than in New York, NY. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.