Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Okinawa

For one person, living is cheaper in Okinawa: $1,399 a month against $1,561 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 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
67

Cost of Living Index in Okinawa
Learn more

Okinawa Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,561

/mo nomad

Okinawa

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,399

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,561 in Mexico City versus $1,399 in Okinawa.

Mexico City $1,561
Okinawa $1,399

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,440 in Mexico City versus $2,189 in Okinawa.

Mexico City $2,440
Okinawa $2,189

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,319 in Mexico City versus $2,979 in Okinawa.

Mexico City $3,319
Okinawa $2,979

Living in Mexico City is roughly 12% more expensive than in Okinawa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 16% above, Okinawa 4% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.12 MX$202

$10.13 ¥1,602

9.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.99 MX$891

$39.78 ¥6,288

23.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.23 MX$204

$7.04 ¥1,112

59.52%

Cappuccino

$3.76 MX$68.4

$4.26 ¥674

-11.74%

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

$1.65 MX$30.05

$1.47 ¥233

12.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.28 MX$23.27

$1.00 ¥158

28.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.26 MX$59.2

$2.01 ¥318

62.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.66 MX$103

$4.55 ¥719

24.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 MX$32.92

$1.64 ¥258

10.37%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 MX$53.5

$2.15 ¥340

36.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.05 MX$37.27

$3.84 ¥606

-46.61%

Eggs

$2.93 MX$53.2

$1.75 ¥277

67.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.95 MX$217

$17.94 ¥2,835

-33.39%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.51 MX$173

$4.87 ¥770

95.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.84 MX$270

$22.16 ¥3,503

-33.03%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 MX$57.2

$3.62 ¥572

-13.26%

Banana (1kg)

$2.01 MX$36.65

$2.63 ¥416

-23.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.08 MX$37.75

$2.14 ¥338

-2.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.22 MX$40.35

$5.18 ¥819

-57.14%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$37.47

$2.41 ¥380

-14.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.88 MX$34.14

$2.58 ¥407

-27.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$26.93

$1.31 ¥207

12.98%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 MX$24.47

$0.74 ¥117

82.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.41 MX$98.4

$3.99 ¥630

35.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.86 MX$307

$6.42 ¥1,015

162.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.09

$1.87 ¥295

5.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.32 MX$78.7

$3.19 ¥504

35.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 MX$6.27

$1.47 ¥232

-76.87%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.23 MX$368

$67.2 ¥10.6K

-69.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.10 MX$38.11

$3.97 ¥627

-47.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.65

$3.56 ¥563

-85.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$98.3

$11.44 ¥1,808

-52.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$27.65

$1.09 ¥173

39.45%

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

$21.7K MX$395.3K

$21.3K ¥3.4M

2.26%

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

$24.8K MX$451.4K

$15.4K ¥2.4M

61.06%

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

$63.0 MX$1,145

$162 ¥25.6K

-61.12%

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

$28.88 MX$525

$24.91 ¥3,938

15.94%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.93 MX$617

$53.8 ¥8,503

-36.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.8 MX$1,015

$71.3 ¥11.3K

-21.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.90 MX$453

$54.9 ¥8,679

-54.65%

Cinema Ticket

$6.77 MX$123

$12.17 ¥1,924

-44.37%

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

$428 MX$7,781

$329 ¥52.0K

30.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K MX$216.0K

$5,538 ¥875.3K

114.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.0 MX$1,274

$50.1 ¥7,913

39.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.7 MX$977

$23.29 ¥3,681

130.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 MX$1,997

$78.8 ¥12.5K

39.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 MX$2,096

$94.6 ¥14.9K

21.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,062 MX$19.3K

$404 ¥63.9K

162.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$671 MX$12.2K

$328 ¥51.9K

104.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,379 MX$43.3K

$826 ¥130.5K

188.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,260 MX$22.9K

$663 ¥104.8K

90.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,716 MX$67.6K

$8,594 ¥1.4M

-56.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,976 MX$35.9K

$1,206 ¥190.6K

63.88%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$997 MX$18.1K

$1,849 ¥292.3K

-46.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

2.23

406.73%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 6, 2026

Last update for Okinawa: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$671 42.4%

Okinawa

$328 23.8% 51.1% $342

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$327 20.7%

Okinawa

$328 23.8% 0.5% $1.5

Eating Out

Mexico City

$207 13.1%

Okinawa

$182 13.2% 11.9% $25

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$157 9.9%

Okinawa

$111 8% 29.3% $46

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 8%

Okinawa

$241 17.4% 91.3% $115

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$69 4.4%

Okinawa

$96 6.9% 38% $26

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.7%

Okinawa

$95 6.9% 260% $69

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,062 in Mexico City and $404 in Okinawa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Okinawa pays 86% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $49.00 in Mexico City vs $40.00 in Okinawa. Groceries flip the comparison at $327 vs $328, with Mexico City cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇯🇵 Okinawa

🕒 Local time

04:33 4:33 AM

19:33 7:33 PM

15 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

142,752

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.5 USD

100 MXN = 4.91 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, 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 = 20.38 MXN (100 MXN = 4.91 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 177 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.65 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Okinawa 12,820 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Okinawa

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 Okinawa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City and Okinawa differ by about 12% in total monthly costs ($1,561 vs $1,399 including rent). Okinawa is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 86% lower in Okinawa. 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 $404 in Okinawa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Okinawa runs roughly 232% less than in Mexico City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $428 in Mexico City versus $329 in Okinawa. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,399 in Okinawa versus $1,561 in Mexico City, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Okinawa but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Okinawa 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 Okinawa 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 Okinawa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 12% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.