Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Pingtung city

For one person, living is cheaper in Pingtung city: $890 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 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
43

Cost of Living Index in Pingtung city
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Pingtung city Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Pingtung city

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$890

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Pingtung city

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $890 in Pingtung city.

Mexico City $1,608
Pingtung city $890

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,441 in Pingtung city.

Mexico City $2,549
Pingtung city $1,441

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $1,993 in Pingtung city.

Mexico City $3,490
Pingtung city $1,993

Living in Mexico City is roughly 81% more expensive than in Pingtung city, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Pingtung city is 35% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$200

$4.51 NT$147

135.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$909

$30.78 NT$1,003

57.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$194

$4.74 NT$154

118.35%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$69.4

$2.95 NT$96.3

25.08%

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

$1.67 MX$31.32

$1.02 NT$33.23

63.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.78

$0.64 NT$20.76

98.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$60.0

$1.46 NT$47.49

118.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$99.7

$2.43 NT$79.3

118.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.41

$3.22 NT$105

-46.58%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$57.1

$1.87 NT$60.8

62.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.48

$2.54 NT$82.9

-23.62%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$54.3

$2.55 NT$83.3

13.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$206

$15.44 NT$504

-28.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$174

$7.67 NT$250

20.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$284

$14.97 NT$488

1.07%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$57.3

$4.32 NT$141

-29.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.48

$1.92 NT$62.7

1.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.06

$2.53 NT$82.5

-19.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.50

$3.02 NT$98.6

-23.51%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$38.25

$1.22 NT$39.81

67.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.83

$1.86 NT$60.8

-3.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.80

$2.26 NT$73.8

-34.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.82

$0.84 NT$27.39

51.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$99.7

$3.72 NT$121

42.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$303

$15.66 NT$511

2.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$37.27

$1.54 NT$50.2

28.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.9

$2.16 NT$70.6

96.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.73

$0.48 NT$15.66

-35.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$371

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.53

$2.63 NT$85.7

-30.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.03

$0.80 NT$26.00

-33.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.5

$6.25 NT$204

-15.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.39

$0.99 NT$32.36

52.53%

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

$21.8K MX$408.8K

$34.7K NT$1.1M

-37.39%

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

$24.0K MX$450.8K

$22.2K NT$722.4K

8.26%

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

$63.0 MX$1,184

$108 NT$3,527

-41.77%

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

$27.39 MX$515

$14.35 NT$468

90.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$670

$25.28 NT$824

41.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,108

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$120

$9.96 NT$325

-35.74%

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

$432 MX$8,111

$328 NT$10.7K

31.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.7K

$13.6K NT$443.2K

-15.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,282

$69.5 NT$2,267

-1.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$999

$30.29 NT$988

75.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,026

$80.8 NT$2,635

33.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,204

$100 NT$3,268

16.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.9K

$243 NT$7,923

358.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.4K

$153 NT$5,000

363.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.6K

$713 NT$23.2K

263.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.4K

$372 NT$12.1K

277.66%

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

$1,946 NT$63.4K

-51.38%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

2.27

400.00%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Pingtung city: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Pingtung city

$153 17.2% 78.4% $557

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Pingtung city

$329 37% 3% $9.5

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Pingtung city

$105 11.8% 47.4% $94

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Pingtung city

$126 14.2% 18.9% $30

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Pingtung city

$148 16.6% 17.3% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Pingtung city

$20 * 2.2% 72.2% $52

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Pingtung city

$8.5 * 1% 66.5% $17

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 $243 in Pingtung city. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Pingtung city pays about 2.1 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $31 in Pingtung city. Groceries flip the comparison at $320 vs $329, with Mexico City cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇹🇼 Pingtung city

🕒 Local time

02:33 2:33 AM

16:33 4:33 PM

14 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

201,644

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100 TWD = 3.07 USD

100 TWD = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TWD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

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).

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 32.61 TWD (100 TWD = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 36.39 TWD (100 TWD = 2.75 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Mexico City Pingtung city 13,660 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Pingtung city

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 Pingtung city: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $890 in Pingtung city, so Pingtung city is about 45% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 51% lower in Mexico City. 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: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $243 in Pingtung city. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $328 in Pingtung city. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Pingtung city – a meal for two runs $31 versus $48 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $890 in Pingtung city versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Pingtung city but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Pingtung city 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.