Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Pakpattan

For one person, living is cheaper in Pakpattan: $448 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $14,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

Mexico City, Mexico
Pakpattan, Pakistan
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,674
/mo nomad
Pakpattan
🇵🇰 Pakistan
$448
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,674 in Mexico City versus $448 in Pakpattan.

  • Mexico City $1,674
  • Pakpattan $448

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,606 in Mexico City versus $646 in Pakpattan.

  • Mexico City $2,606
  • Pakpattan $646

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,537 in Mexico City versus $843 in Pakpattan.

  • Mexico City $3,537
  • Pakpattan $843

Living in Mexico City is roughly 274% more expensive than in Pakpattan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 24% above, Pakpattan is 67% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Mexico City
Pakpattan
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.59 MX$197
$1.24 PKR 342
754.03%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$52.0 MX$967
$10.78 PKR 2,981
382.00%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.73 MX$200
$5.28 PKR 1,460
103.22%
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)
-
$2.72 PKR 753
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$5.14 PKR 1,423
-
Cappuccino
$3.80 MX$70.7
$1.77 PKR 489
114.69%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.61 MX$30.01
$0.16 PKR 44.46
906.25%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.21 MX$22.55
$0.10 PKR 28.82
1110.00%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.18 MX$59.1
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.44 MX$101
-
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
Pakpattan
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.72 MX$31.96
$0.63 PKR 174
173.02%
White Bread (500g)
$2.97 MX$55.2
$0.55 PKR 154
440.00%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.93 MX$35.84
$0.88 PKR 245
119.32%
Eggs
$2.77 MX$51.6
$1.14 PKR 315
142.98%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.67 MX$217
$6.85 PKR 1,894
70.36%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.48 MX$176
$2.48 PKR 686
282.26%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.37 MX$286
$3.63 PKR 1,005
323.42%
Apples (1kg)
$3.10 MX$57.8
$0.95 PKR 264
226.32%
Banana (1kg)
$1.96 MX$36.49
$0.46 PKR 128
326.09%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.98 MX$36.88
$0.28 PKR 77.0
607.14%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.34 MX$43.46
$0.57 PKR 158
310.53%
Potato (1kg)
$2.02 MX$37.66
$0.39 PKR 109
417.95%
Onion (1kg)
$1.82 MX$33.95
$0.45 PKR 126
304.44%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.54 MX$28.74
$0.50 PKR 137
208.00%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.31 MX$24.42
$0.37 PKR 102
254.05%
Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)
-
$1.83 PKR 506
-
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
-
$1.11 PKR 306
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$2.43 PKR 674
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.35 MX$99.6
$2.14 PKR 593
150.00%
Wine (Bottle)
$16.19 MX$301
-
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.96 MX$36.46
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.35 MX$81.0
-
-
🚌 Getting Around
Mexico City
Pakpattan
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.30 MX$5.67
$0.18 PKR 50.1
66.67%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$19.49 MX$363
$9.75 PKR 2,696
99.90%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.92 MX$35.68
$1.42 PKR 394
35.21%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.47 MX$8.80
$0.37 PKR 104
27.03%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.41 MX$101
$0.92 PKR 255
488.04%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.48 MX$27.61
$0.98 PKR 272
51.02%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.4K MX$397.7K
$24.7K PKR 6.8M
-13.59%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.8K MX$442.1K
$23.4K PKR 6.5M
1.72%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
Pakpattan
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$62.0 MX$1,154
$142 PKR 39.3K
-56.34%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$28.47 MX$530
$4.93 PKR 1,363
477.48%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$34.11 MX$635
$18.98 PKR 5,251
79.72%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
Pakpattan
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$58.4 MX$1,087
$14.85 PKR 4,107
293.20%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$24.50 MX$456
$8.04 PKR 2,225
204.73%
Cinema Ticket
$6.59 MX$123
$4.41 PKR 1,220
49.43%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Mexico City
Pakpattan
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$434 MX$8,081
$12.43 PKR 3,438
3393.48%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$14.0K MX$261.2K
$995 PKR 275.2K
1310.92%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
Pakpattan
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$68.4 MX$1,272
$10.72 PKR 2,965
537.59%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$54.8 MX$1,020
$12.57 PKR 3,476
335.96%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$111 MX$2,063
$24.84 PKR 6,872
346.26%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$116 MX$2,159
$14.18 PKR 3,922
717.98%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
Pakpattan
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,179 MX$21.9K
$137 PKR 37.9K
759.82%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$771 MX$14.3K
$84.9 PKR 23.5K
807.94%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,570 MX$47.8K
$263 PKR 72.7K
877.54%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,420 MX$26.4K
$178 PKR 49.4K
695.34%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,586 MX$66.7K
$806 PKR 223.0K
344.83%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,064 MX$38.4K
$511 PKR 141.4K
303.85%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Mexico City
Pakpattan
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,003 MX$18.7K
$110 PKR 30.5K
810.02%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.35
13
-12.69%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Pakpattan: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
$771
Pakpattan
$85 89% $686
Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
$324
Pakpattan
$84 74.1% $240
Eating Out
Mexico City
$201
Pakpattan
$48 76.1% $153
Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
$158
Pakpattan
$28 82.2% $129
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
$125
Pakpattan
$166 33.2% $41
Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
$72
Pakpattan
$24 66.9% $48
Getting Around
Mexico City
$25
Pakpattan
$14 44.9% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,179 in Mexico City and $137 in Pakpattan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays about 9.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $52 in Mexico City vs $11 in Pakpattan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $324 vs $84 per month, with Pakpattan cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🇵🇰 Pakpattan
🕒 Local time
12:21 12:21 PM
23:21 11:21 PM
11 h ahead of Mexico City
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
9,209,944 Capital
176,693
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.86 MXN (100 MXN = 4.79 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 310 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Mexico City Pakpattan 14,420 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Mexico City
  • Pakpattan

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 Pakpattan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Mexico City and in Pakpattan?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,674 in Mexico City and $448 in Pakpattan, so Pakpattan is about 73% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city pays better: Mexico City or Pakpattan?
Average pay in Mexico City is about 9.1 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
How do apartment prices compare in Mexico City and in Pakpattan?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,179 in Mexico City versus $137 in Pakpattan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How do commuting costs compare in Mexico City and in Pakpattan?
A monthly transit pass in Pakpattan runs roughly 50% less than in Mexico City. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Mexico City and Pakpattan?
Childcare runs $434 in Mexico City versus $12.43 in Pakpattan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city is more doable on $800 per month?
At $448 in Pakpattan versus $1,674 in Mexico City, a $800 budget is realistic in Pakpattan but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Pakpattan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Mexico City and Pakpattan?
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.
Where should expats move: Mexico City or Pakpattan?
Expats usually find Pakpattan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 73% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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