Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Oaxaca de Juarez

For one person, living is cheaper in Oaxaca de Juarez: $1,124 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Oaxaca de Juarez
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Oaxaca de Juarez Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Oaxaca de Juarez

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,124

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Oaxaca de Juarez

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 Oaxaca de Juarez actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $1,124 in Oaxaca de Juarez.

Mexico City $1,608
Oaxaca de Juarez $1,124

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,735 in Oaxaca de Juarez.

Mexico City $2,549
Oaxaca de Juarez $1,735

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $2,347 in Oaxaca de Juarez.

Mexico City $3,490
Oaxaca de Juarez $2,347

Living in Mexico City is roughly 43% more expensive than in Oaxaca de Juarez, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Oaxaca de Juarez is 17% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$200

$6.41 MX$120

65.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$909

$32.43 MX$609

49.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$194

$7.88 MX$148

31.35%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$69.4

$2.72 MX$51.2

35.66%

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

$1.67 MX$31.32

$1.44 MX$26.99

15.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.78

$0.80 MX$14.99

58.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$60.0

$2.38 MX$44.73

34.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$99.7

$3.72 MX$69.9

42.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.41

$1.30 MX$24.46

32.31%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$57.1

$2.95 MX$55.5

3.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.48

$1.06 MX$19.83

83.02%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$54.3

$1.65 MX$31.07

75.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$206

$6.46 MX$121

69.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$174

$5.46 MX$103

69.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$284

$10.74 MX$202

40.88%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$57.3

$2.09 MX$39.32

45.93%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.48

$1.16 MX$21.82

67.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.06

$1.84 MX$34.67

10.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.50

$0.55 MX$10.42

320.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$38.25

$2.00 MX$37.64

2.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.83

$1.91 MX$35.89

-5.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.80

$1.07 MX$20.04

38.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.82

$0.91 MX$17.07

39.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$99.7

$4.13 MX$77.7

28.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$303

$9.29 MX$175

73.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$37.27

$1.44 MX$27.03

37.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.9

$2.63 MX$49.47

61.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.73

$0.52 MX$9.73

-40.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$371

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.53

$3.88 MX$72.9

-52.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.03

$1.93 MX$36.28

-72.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.5

$10.94 MX$206

-51.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.39

$1.36 MX$25.51

11.03%

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

$21.8K MX$408.8K

$23.8K MX$446.4K

-8.42%

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

$24.0K MX$450.8K

$23.9K MX$449.6K

0.27%

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

$63.0 MX$1,184

$59.8 MX$1,124

5.26%

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

$27.39 MX$515

$10.73 MX$202

155.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$670

$23.45 MX$441

52.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,108

$43.86 MX$824

34.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$120

$5.35 MX$101

19.63%

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

$432 MX$8,111

$419 MX$7,879

2.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.7K

$19.3K MX$363.3K

-40.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,282

$52.8 MX$991

29.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$999

$60.5 MX$1,137

-12.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,026

$100.0 MX$1,879

7.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,204

$93.7 MX$1,760

25.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.9K

$703 MX$13.2K

58.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.4K

$470 MX$8,825

51.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.6K

$1,168 MX$21.9K

121.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.4K

$871 MX$16.4K

61.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$68.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$40.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

10.96

3.56%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Oaxaca de Juarez: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Oaxaca de Juarez

$470 41.8% 33.9% $241

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Oaxaca de Juarez

$216 19.2% 32.5% $104

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Oaxaca de Juarez

$136 12.1% 31.6% $63

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Oaxaca de Juarez

$138 12.3% 11.4% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Oaxaca de Juarez

$94 8.4% 25.4% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Oaxaca de Juarez

$55 4.9% 23.9% $17

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Oaxaca de Juarez

$16 * 1.4% 38.7% $9.9

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 $1,113 in Mexico City and $703 in Oaxaca de Juarez. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $32 in Oaxaca de Juarez for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $216 per month, with Oaxaca de Juarez cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇲🇽 Oaxaca de Juarez

🕒 Local time

19:56 7:56 PM

Same time as Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

258,913

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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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 Oaxaca de Juarez: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $1,124 in Oaxaca de Juarez, so Oaxaca de Juarez is about 30% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,412 in Mexico City and $1,685 in Oaxaca de Juarez 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: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $703 in Oaxaca de Juarez. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $419 in Oaxaca de Juarez. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Oaxaca de Juarez – a meal for two runs $32 versus $48 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Oaxaca de Juarez is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.