Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Perez Zeledon

For one person, living is cheaper in Perez Zeledon: $1,317 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $3,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Mexico City outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
64

Cost of Living Index in Perez Zeledon
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Perez Zeledon Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Perez Zeledon

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,317

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Perez Zeledon

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $1,317 in Perez Zeledon.

Mexico City $1,608
Perez Zeledon $1,317

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $2,364 in Perez Zeledon.

Mexico City $2,549
Perez Zeledon $2,364

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $3,410 in Perez Zeledon.

Mexico City $3,490
Perez Zeledon $3,410

Living in Mexico City is roughly 22% more expensive than in Perez Zeledon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Perez Zeledon is 3% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$199

$9.09 ₡4,102

16.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$908

$37.24 ₡16.8K

29.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$194

$8.19 ₡3,699

26.37%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$69.3

$2.70 ₡1,217

36.67%

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

$1.67 MX$31.29

$1.97 ₡887

-15.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.76

$1.78 ₡805

-28.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.9

$1.73 ₡780

84.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$99.6

$3.21 ₡1,447

65.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.38

$1.60 ₡724

7.50%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$57.1

$3.13 ₡1,413

-2.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.44

$2.49 ₡1,122

-22.09%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$54.2

$2.49 ₡1,126

16.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$206

$10.73 ₡4,846

2.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$174

$10.28 ₡4,639

-10.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$284

$14.14 ₡6,384

7.00%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$57.2

$5.24 ₡2,365

-41.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.45

$1.08 ₡488

79.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.02

$4.89 ₡2,206

-58.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.46

$3.85 ₡1,737

-40.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$38.21

$3.72 ₡1,680

-45.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.79

$3.59 ₡1,622

-49.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.77

$0.45 ₡205

228.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.80

$3.09 ₡1,394

-58.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$99.6

$5.57 ₡2,516

-4.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$302

$19.80 ₡8,937

-18.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$37.23

$2.87 ₡1,297

-31.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.8

$3.63 ₡1,638

17.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.73

$0.81 ₡364

-61.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$371

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.50

$2.49 ₡1,126

-26.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.02

$1.63 ₡737

-67.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.4

$8.76 ₡3,955

-39.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.36

$1.52 ₡688

-0.66%

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

$21.8K MX$408.4K

$33.8K ₡15.2M

-35.55%

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

$24.0K MX$450.3K

$42.1K ₡19.0M

-43.04%

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

$63.0 MX$1,182

$93.6 ₡42.2K

-32.69%

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

$27.39 MX$514

$23.99 ₡10.8K

14.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$670

$59.2 ₡26.7K

-39.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,107

$67.9 ₡30.7K

-13.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$120

$7.67 ₡3,464

-16.56%

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

$432 MX$8,103

$498 ₡224.8K

-13.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.5K

$17.3K ₡7.8M

-34.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,281

$71.8 ₡32.4K

-5.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$997

$55.0 ₡24.8K

-3.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,023

$128 ₡57.7K

-15.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,202

$133 ₡60.0K

-11.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.9K

$402 ₡181.3K

177.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.3K

$326 ₡147.1K

118.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.6K

$2,133 ₡963.0K

21.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.4K

$1,260 ₡568.7K

11.61%

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

8.62

31.67%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Perez Zeledon: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Perez Zeledon

$326 24.8% 54.1% $385

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Perez Zeledon

$383 29.1% 19.9% $64

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Perez Zeledon

$160 12.1% 19.6% $39

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Perez Zeledon

$174 13.2% 11.9% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Perez Zeledon

$177 13.4% 40.2% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Perez Zeledon

$83 6.3% 16.1% $12

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Perez Zeledon

$14 * 1.1% 45.4% $12

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 $402 in Perez Zeledon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $37 in Perez Zeledon. Groceries flip the comparison at $320 vs $383, with Mexico City cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇨🇷 Perez Zeledon

🕒 Local time

20:05 8:05 PM

Same time as Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

135,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Perez Zeledon 2,020 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Perez Zeledon

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 Perez Zeledon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $1,317 in Perez Zeledon, so Perez Zeledon is about 18% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,412 in Mexico City and $1,975 in Perez Zeledon 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 $402 in Perez Zeledon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $498 in Perez Zeledon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Perez Zeledon – a meal for two runs $37 versus $48 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,317 in Perez Zeledon versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Perez Zeledon but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Perez Zeledon 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.