Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Nis

For one person, living is cheaper in Nis: $1,033 a month against $1,561 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Nis
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Nis Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,561

/mo nomad

Nis

🇷🇸 Serbia

$1,033

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,561 in Mexico City versus $1,033 in Nis.

Mexico City $1,561
Nis $1,033

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,440 in Mexico City versus $1,512 in Nis.

Mexico City $2,440
Nis $1,512

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,319 in Mexico City versus $1,991 in Nis.

Mexico City $3,319
Nis $1,991

Living in Mexico City is roughly 51% more expensive than in Nis, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 16% above, Nis is 23% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.12 MX$204

$8.78 RSD 915

26.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.99 MX$900

$33.92 RSD 3,533

44.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.23 MX$206

$9.57 RSD 997

17.35%

Cappuccino

$3.76 MX$69.0

$1.97 RSD 206

90.86%

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

$1.65 MX$30.34

$2.31 RSD 241

-28.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.28 MX$23.48

$1.74 RSD 181

-26.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.26 MX$59.8

$3.61 RSD 377

-9.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.66 MX$104

$4.49 RSD 468

26.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 MX$33.23

$1.14 RSD 119

58.77%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 MX$54.0

$0.70 RSD 73.0

320.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.05 MX$37.62

$1.76 RSD 183

16.48%

Eggs

$2.93 MX$53.7

$2.35 RSD 245

24.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.95 MX$219

$7.65 RSD 797

56.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.51 MX$175

$5.72 RSD 596

66.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.84 MX$273

$10.59 RSD 1,103

40.13%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 MX$57.7

$1.11 RSD 116

182.88%

Banana (1kg)

$2.01 MX$36.99

$1.68 RSD 175

19.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.08 MX$38.10

$1.50 RSD 157

38.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.22 MX$40.72

$2.17 RSD 226

2.30%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$37.82

$0.78 RSD 81.6

164.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.88 MX$34.46

$0.72 RSD 74.5

161.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.18

$0.64 RSD 66.4

131.25%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 MX$24.70

$0.58 RSD 60.4

132.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.41 MX$99.3

$4.42 RSD 460

22.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.86 MX$310

$5.78 RSD 602

191.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.43

$0.72 RSD 75.1

175.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.32 MX$79.4

$1.29 RSD 134

234.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 MX$6.33

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.23 MX$371

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.10 MX$38.47

$1.84 RSD 192

14.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.74

$0.66 RSD 68.6

-19.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$99.3

$8.29 RSD 864

-34.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$27.91

$1.89 RSD 197

-19.58%

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

$21.7K MX$399.0K

$30.7K RSD 3.2M

-29.32%

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

$24.8K MX$455.6K

$24.0K RSD 2.5M

3.48%

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

$63.0 MX$1,156

$160 RSD 16.7K

-60.76%

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

$28.88 MX$530

$19.03 RSD 1,982

51.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.93 MX$623

$22.20 RSD 2,312

52.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.8 MX$1,024

$30.54 RSD 3,181

82.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.90 MX$457

$15.65 RSD 1,630

59.11%

Cinema Ticket

$6.77 MX$124

$4.68 RSD 488

44.66%

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

$428 MX$7,854

$252 RSD 26.3K

69.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K MX$218.0K

$4,989 RSD 519.7K

137.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.0 MX$1,286

$88.4 RSD 9,213

-20.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.7 MX$986

$37.42 RSD 3,898

43.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 MX$2,016

$99.3 RSD 10.3K

10.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 MX$2,115

$112 RSD 11.6K

3.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,062 MX$19.5K

$398 RSD 41.4K

167.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$671 MX$12.3K

$277 RSD 28.9K

142.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,379 MX$43.7K

$591 RSD 61.6K

302.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,260 MX$23.1K

$397 RSD 41.4K

217.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,716 MX$68.2K

$2,531 RSD 263.6K

46.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,976 MX$36.3K

$1,884 RSD 196.3K

4.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$997 MX$18.3K

$901 RSD 93.8K

10.67%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

5.12

120.70%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 6, 2026

Last update for Nis: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$671 42.4%

Nis

$277 27.1% 58.7% $394

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$327 20.7%

Nis

$182 17.8% 44.4% $145

Eating Out

Mexico City

$207 13.1%

Nis

$166 16.2% 19.9% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$157 9.9%

Nis

$152 14.8% 3.4% $5.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 8%

Nis

$202 19.7% 60.4% $76

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$69 4.4%

Nis

$40 3.9% 42.4% $29

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.7%

Nis

$5.1 * 0.5% 80.5% $21

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,062 in Mexico City and $398 in Nis. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 11% 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 $34.00 in Nis for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $327 vs $182 per month, with Nis cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇷🇸 Nis

🕒 Local time

23:37 11:37 PM

07:37 7:37 AM

8 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

78,470

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Serbian Dinar RSD din

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

1,000 RSD = 9.6 USD

1,000 RSD = 8.56 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RSD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.59 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

Serbian Dinar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 104 RSD (1,000 RSD = 9.6 USD). 1 EUR = 117 RSD (1,000 RSD = 8.56 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Between locations

Mexico City Nis 10,810 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Nis

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 Nis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City and Nis differ by about 51% in total monthly costs ($1,561 vs $1,033 including rent). Nis is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 11% higher in Mexico City, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,062 in Mexico City versus $398 in Nis. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $428 in Mexico City versus $252 in Nis. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Nis – a meal for two runs $34.00 versus $49.00 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,033 in Nis versus $1,561 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Nis but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Nis 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.

Safety-wise, Mexico City and Nis are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Nis gentler on the wallet – expenses run 51% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.