Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Pilikwe

For one person, living is cheaper in Pilikwe: $570 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $12,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
27

Cost of Living Index in Pilikwe
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Pilikwe Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Pilikwe

🇧🇼 Botswana

$570

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $570 in Pilikwe.

Mexico City $1,608
Pilikwe $570

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $919 in Pilikwe.

Mexico City $2,549
Pilikwe $919

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $1,268 in Pilikwe.

Mexico City $3,490
Pilikwe $1,268

Living in Mexico City is roughly 182% more expensive than in Pilikwe, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Pilikwe is 58% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$198

$11.00 P 148

-3.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$901

$29.41 P 397

64.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$193

$5.77 P 77.9

79.38%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$68.8

$2.39 P 32.20

54.39%

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

$1.67 MX$31.07

$0.71 P 9.53

135.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.59

$0.44 P 5.90

188.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.5

$1.95 P 26.28

63.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$2.51 P 33.90

111.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.15

$1.47 P 19.82

17.01%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$56.7

$0.90 P 12.16

237.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.85 P 24.90

4.86%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$53.8

$2.53 P 34.10

14.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$205

$6.46 P 87.2

69.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$172

$4.50 P 60.7

105.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$282

$5.01 P 67.5

202.00%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$56.8

$1.64 P 22.16

85.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.46 P 19.72

32.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.75

$2.07 P 27.92

-1.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.15

$1.61 P 21.68

43.48%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.94

$1.29 P 17.36

58.14%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.55

$1.20 P 16.24

50.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.58

$1.30 P 17.47

13.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.63

$0.91 P 12.34

39.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$98.9

$3.71 P 49.98

42.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$300

$4.43 P 59.8

263.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.97

$1.44 P 19.36

37.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.3

$1.74 P 23.41

144.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.69

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$368

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.25

$0.61 P 8.22

201.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.94

$2.51 P 33.87

-78.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$98.7

$2.97 P 40.03

78.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.16

$1.32 P 17.82

14.39%

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

$21.8K MX$405.5K

$30.5K P 411.1K

-28.62%

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

$24.0K MX$447.1K

$20.5K P 276.1K

17.19%

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

$63.0 MX$1,174

$59.5 P 802

5.94%

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

$27.39 MX$511

$18.59 P 251

47.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$665

$43.94 P 593

-18.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,099

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$441

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$119

$6.17 P 83.3

3.73%

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

$432 MX$8,045

$127 P 1,707

241.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$212.9K

$2,553 P 34.4K

347.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,272

$47.29 P 638

44.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$990

$16.73 P 226

217.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,009

$71.2 P 960

51.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,186

$78.5 P 1,058

49.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.8K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.2K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$67.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$39.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

11.33

0.18%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Pilikwe: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Pilikwe

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Pilikwe

$173 30.4% 45.8% $146

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Pilikwe

$153 26.9% 22.8% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Pilikwe

$96 16.9% 38.3% $60

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Pilikwe

$122 21.4% 3.2% $4.1

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Pilikwe

$12 * 2.2% 82.8% $59

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Pilikwe

$13 * 2.3% 48.3% $12

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 $29 in Pilikwe for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $173 per month, with Pilikwe cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇧🇼 Pilikwe

🕒 Local time

17:47 5:47 PM

01:47 1:47 AM

8 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

1,375

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Botswana Pula BWP P

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 BWP = 7.41 USD

100 BWP = 6.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BWP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Botswana Pula exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 13.49 BWP (100 BWP = 7.41 USD). 1 EUR = 15.02 BWP (100 BWP = 6.66 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Pilikwe 14,460 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Pilikwe

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 Pilikwe: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $570 in Pilikwe, so Pilikwe is about 65% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,412 in Mexico City and $855 in Pilikwe 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.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $127 in Pilikwe. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Pilikwe – a meal for two runs $29 versus $48 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $570 in Pilikwe versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Pilikwe but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Pilikwe 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.