Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Old Harbour

For one person, living is cheaper in Old Harbour: $1,005 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Mexico City outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

Mexico City, Mexico
Old Harbour, Jamaica
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,608
/mo nomad
Old Harbour
🇯🇲 Jamaica
$1,005
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Old Harbour

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $1,005 in Old Harbour.

  • Mexico City $1,608
  • Old Harbour $1,005

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,664 in Old Harbour.

  • Mexico City $2,549
  • Old Harbour $1,664

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $2,322 in Old Harbour.

  • Mexico City $3,490
  • Old Harbour $2,322

Living in Mexico City is roughly 60% more expensive than in Old Harbour, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Old Harbour is 26% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Mexico City
Old Harbour
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.62 MX$200
$13.35 JMD 2,109
-20.45%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$48.35 MX$909
$75.0 JMD 11.9K
-35.54%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.35 MX$194
$8.40 JMD 1,326
23.21%
Cappuccino
$3.69 MX$69.4
$5.23 JMD 826
-29.45%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.67 MX$31.32
$1.14 JMD 180
46.49%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.27 MX$23.78
$0.73 JMD 115
73.97%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.19 MX$60.0
$2.19 JMD 345
45.66%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.31 MX$99.7
$3.22 JMD 509
64.91%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
Old Harbour
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.72 MX$32.41
$4.24 JMD 670
-59.43%
White Bread (500g)
$3.04 MX$57.1
$3.83 JMD 605
-20.63%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.94 MX$36.48
$1.56 JMD 246
24.36%
Eggs
$2.89 MX$54.3
$3.47 JMD 549
-16.71%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.97 MX$206
$11.44 JMD 1,807
-4.11%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.25 MX$174
$6.34 JMD 1,002
45.90%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.13 MX$284
$10.13 JMD 1,601
49.36%
Apples (1kg)
$3.05 MX$57.3
$6.06 JMD 958
-49.67%
Banana (1kg)
$1.94 MX$36.48
$4.00 JMD 632
-51.50%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.03 MX$38.06
$7.38 JMD 1,165
-72.49%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.31 MX$43.50
$3.01 JMD 475
-23.26%
Potato (1kg)
$2.04 MX$38.25
$3.23 JMD 510
-36.84%
Onion (1kg)
$1.80 MX$33.83
$2.60 JMD 411
-30.77%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.48 MX$27.80
$3.02 JMD 478
-50.99%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.27 MX$23.82
$1.50 JMD 236
-15.33%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.30 MX$99.7
$9.31 JMD 1,470
-43.07%
Wine (Bottle)
$16.10 MX$303
$11.26 JMD 1,779
42.98%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.98 MX$37.27
$2.85 JMD 450
-30.53%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.25 MX$79.9
$3.93 JMD 621
8.14%
🚌 Getting Around
Mexico City
Old Harbour
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.31 MX$5.73
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$19.73 MX$371
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.84 MX$34.53
$1.28 JMD 202
43.75%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.53 MX$10.03
$3.23 JMD 510
-83.59%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.30 MX$99.5
$6.45 JMD 1,020
-17.83%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.51 MX$28.39
$1.46 JMD 231
3.42%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.8K MX$408.8K
$43.9K JMD 6.9M
-50.46%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.0K MX$450.8K
$32.4K JMD 5.1M
-25.88%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
Old Harbour
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$63.0 MX$1,184
$165 JMD 26.1K
-61.86%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$27.39 MX$515
$29.91 JMD 4,725
-8.43%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$35.67 MX$670
$53.8 JMD 8,501
-33.71%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
Old Harbour
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$58.9 MX$1,108
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$23.64 MX$444
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$6.40 MX$120
$13.48 JMD 2,130
-52.52%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Mexico City
Old Harbour
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$432 MX$8,111
$358 JMD 56.6K
20.49%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.4K MX$214.7K
$8,285 JMD 1.3M
37.88%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
Old Harbour
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$68.2 MX$1,282
$23.81 JMD 3,762
186.52%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$53.1 MX$999
$31.92 JMD 5,044
66.45%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$108 MX$2,026
$78.5 JMD 12.4K
37.23%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$117 MX$2,204
$102 JMD 16.1K
14.97%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
Old Harbour
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,113 MX$20.9K
-
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$710 MX$13.4K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,588 MX$48.6K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,406 MX$26.4K
-
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,631 MX$68.2K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,135 MX$40.1K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Mexico City
Old Harbour
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$946 MX$17.8K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.35
9.45
20.11%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Old Harbour: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
$710
Old Harbour
- * 100%
Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
$320
Old Harbour
$386 20.7% $66
Eating Out
Mexico City
$199
Old Harbour
$220 10.5% $21
Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
$156
Old Harbour
$106 31.8% $50
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
$126
Old Harbour
$249 97.4% $123
Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
$72
Old Harbour
$27 * 62.4% $45
Getting Around
Mexico City
$25
Old Harbour
$17 * 31.6% $8

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $75 in Old Harbour for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $386 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🇯🇲 Old Harbour
🕒 Local time
09:12 9:12 AM
10:12 10:12 AM
1 h ahead of Mexico City
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
9,209,944 Capital
26,024
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

JMD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.97 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.67 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Mexico City Old Harbour 2,320 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Mexico City
  • Old Harbour

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 Old Harbour: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Mexico City and in Old Harbour?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $1,005 in Old Harbour, so Old Harbour is about 38% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
What salary covers living expenses in Mexico City compared to Old Harbour?
You’d need roughly $2,412 in Mexico City and $1,507 in Old Harbour 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.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Mexico City and Old Harbour?
Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $358 in Old Harbour. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city has cheaper restaurants?
Dining out is cheaper in Mexico City – a meal for two runs $48 versus $75 in Old Harbour. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
How far does $2,000 go in Mexico City compared to Old Harbour?
Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Old Harbour gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.
How does quality of life compare between Mexico City and Old Harbour?
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.

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