Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Northam

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,548 a month against $2,498 in Northam, rent and utilities included – about $11,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

75

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
121

Cost of Living Index in Northam
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Northam Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,548

/mo nomad

Northam

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,498

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,548 in Mexico City versus $2,498 in Northam.

Mexico City $1,548
Northam $2,498

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,436 in Mexico City versus $3,618 in Northam.

Mexico City $2,436
Northam $3,618

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,323 in Mexico City versus $4,737 in Northam.

Mexico City $3,323
Northam $4,737

Living in Mexico City costs roughly 38% less than in Northam, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 14% above, Northam 84% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.02 MX$205

$19.97 A$28.37

-44.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.68 MX$908

$85.1 A$121

-42.80%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.90 MX$203

$10.55 A$15.00

3.32%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.7

$4.48 A$6.36

-17.86%

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

$1.63 MX$30.46

$2.84 A$4.03

-42.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.25 MX$23.28

$2.29 A$3.25

-45.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.25 MX$60.6

$8.30 A$11.79

-60.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.53 MX$103

$8.10 A$11.51

-31.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 MX$31.78

$1.74 A$2.48

-2.30%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 MX$56.3

$2.58 A$3.66

17.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.92 MX$35.86

$1.98 A$2.82

-3.03%

Eggs

$2.73 MX$51.0

$4.48 A$6.36

-39.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.77 MX$220

$6.37 A$9.05

84.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 MX$178

$9.12 A$12.96

4.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.41 MX$269

$14.08 A$20.01

2.34%

Apples (1kg)

$3.02 MX$56.3

$2.73 A$3.88

10.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.33

$3.25 A$4.62

-41.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.99 MX$37.03

$3.44 A$4.89

-42.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.19 MX$40.75

$4.92 A$6.99

-55.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.92 MX$35.75

$2.89 A$4.11

-33.56%

Onion (1kg)

$1.87 MX$34.81

$1.97 A$2.81

-5.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 MX$26.86

$2.25 A$3.20

-36.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.60

$0.73 A$1.04

73.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.22 MX$97.3

$41.37 A$58.8

-87.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.17 MX$302

$3.49 A$4.96

363.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 MX$35.35

$4.40 A$6.25

-56.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.22 MX$78.7

$3.51 A$4.99

20.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 MX$6.36

$2.92 A$4.15

-88.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.65 MX$366

$80.6 A$114

-75.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 MX$37.23

$3.53 A$5.02

-43.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.52 MX$9.76

$1.46 A$2.07

-64.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.34 MX$99.6

$41.14 A$58.5

-87.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$28.39

$1.35 A$1.91

12.59%

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

$22.1K MX$411.7K

$26.9K A$38.2K

-17.78%

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

$24.5K MX$457.1K

$29.5K A$41.9K

-16.81%

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

$61.1 MX$1,139

$196 A$278

-68.82%

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

$28.58 MX$533

$24.09 A$34.24

18.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.47 MX$643

$64.3 A$91.4

-46.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,051

$56.5 A$80.2

-0.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.88 MX$464

$17.81 A$25.31

39.70%

Cinema Ticket

$6.66 MX$124

$17.30 A$24.59

-61.50%

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

$427 MX$7,964

$2,328 A$3,307

-81.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K MX$217.0K

$23.2K A$33.0K

-49.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.8 MX$1,264

$77.3 A$110

-12.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.0 MX$969

$66.3 A$94.2

-21.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 MX$1,977

$123 A$174

-13.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 MX$2,099

$161 A$229

-30.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,025 MX$19.1K

$1,391 A$1,976

-26.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$654 MX$12.2K

$1,190 A$1,691

-45.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,308 MX$43.0K

$2,173 A$3,088

6.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,242 MX$23.2K

$1,783 A$2,533

-30.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,613 MX$67.4K

$5,780 A$8,213

-37.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,936 MX$36.1K

$4,889 A$6,947

-60.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$964 MX$18.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

5.91

91.20%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 20, 2026

Last update for Northam: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$654 42.3%

Northam

$1.2K 47.6% 81.9% $536

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$318 20.6%

Northam

$314 12.6% 1.3% $4.2

Eating Out

Mexico City

$204 13.2%

Northam

$323 12.9% 58.6% $119

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$152 9.8%

Northam

$192 7.7% 26.2% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$124 8%

Northam

$284 11.4% 129% $160

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$70 4.5%

Northam

$91 3.7% 30.7% $21

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.7%

Northam

$103 4.1% 302% $77

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,025 in Mexico City and $1,391 in Northam. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $49 in Mexico City vs $85 in Northam. Groceries flip the comparison at $318 vs $314, with Northam cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇦🇺 Northam

🕒 Local time

17:58 5:58 PM

07:58 7:58 AM

14 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

6,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.79 EUR

1 AUD = 0.704 USD

1 AUD = 0.628 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 18.65 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.89 MXN (100 MXN = 4.79 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.704 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 AUD (1 AUD = 0.628 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Northam 16,200 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Northam

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 Northam: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City and Northam differ by about 61% in total monthly costs ($1,548 vs $2,498 including rent). Mexico City is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,322 in Mexico City and $3,747 in Northam 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: $1,025 in Mexico City versus $1,391 in Northam. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $427 in Mexico City versus $2,328 in Northam. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Mexico City – a meal for two runs $49 versus $85 in Northam. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,548 in Mexico City versus $2,498 in Northam, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in Northam. 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.