Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Plovdiv

For one person, living is cheaper in Plovdiv: $1,227 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 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
59

Cost of Living Index in Plovdiv
Learn more

Plovdiv Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Plovdiv

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,227

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $1,227 in Plovdiv.

Mexico City $1,608
Plovdiv $1,227

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,874 in Plovdiv.

Mexico City $2,549
Plovdiv $1,874

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $2,522 in Plovdiv.

Mexico City $3,490
Plovdiv $2,522

Living in Mexico City is roughly 31% more expensive than in Plovdiv, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Plovdiv is 10% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$199

$9.16 BGN 16.03

15.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$908

$45.67 BGN 79.9

5.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$194

$9.43 BGN 16.51

9.76%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$69.3

$2.86 BGN 5.01

29.02%

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

$1.67 MX$31.29

$1.76 BGN 3.08

-5.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.76

$1.58 BGN 2.77

-19.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.9

$2.54 BGN 4.44

25.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$99.6

$4.35 BGN 7.61

22.07%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.38

$1.81 BGN 3.17

-4.97%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$57.1

$1.22 BGN 2.13

149.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.44

$2.23 BGN 3.91

-13.00%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$54.2

$3.77 BGN 6.59

-23.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$206

$11.62 BGN 20.33

-5.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$174

$8.55 BGN 14.96

8.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$284

$14.32 BGN 25.06

5.66%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$57.2

$1.62 BGN 2.84

88.27%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.45

$1.84 BGN 3.23

5.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.02

$1.93 BGN 3.37

5.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.46

$2.63 BGN 4.61

-12.17%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$38.21

$1.09 BGN 1.91

87.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.79

$1.04 BGN 1.82

73.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.77

$1.16 BGN 2.03

27.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.80

$0.71 BGN 1.24

78.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$99.6

$3.90 BGN 6.82

35.90%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$302

$6.03 BGN 10.55

167.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$37.23

$1.16 BGN 2.03

70.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.8

$1.98 BGN 3.47

114.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.73

$0.60 BGN 1.05

-48.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$371

$29.11 BGN 51.0

-32.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.50

$1.29 BGN 2.26

42.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.02

$0.61 BGN 1.07

-13.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.4

$10.46 BGN 18.30

-49.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.36

$1.70 BGN 2.98

-11.18%

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

$21.8K MX$408.4K

$30.3K BGN 53.1K

-28.30%

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

$24.0K MX$450.3K

$24.6K BGN 43.1K

-2.57%

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

$63.0 MX$1,182

$113 BGN 197

-44.15%

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

$27.39 MX$514

$18.40 BGN 32.20

48.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$670

$15.41 BGN 26.96

131.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,107

$41.91 BGN 73.4

40.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

$20.61 BGN 36.07

14.70%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$120

$9.31 BGN 16.29

-31.26%

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

$432 MX$8,103

$599 BGN 1,047

-27.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.5K

$5,404 BGN 9,456

111.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,281

$67.3 BGN 118

1.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$997

$41.80 BGN 73.1

27.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,023

$96.9 BGN 170

11.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,202

$102 BGN 178

15.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.9K

$553 BGN 968

101.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.3K

$420 BGN 734

69.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.6K

$880 BGN 1,539

194.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.4K

$663 BGN 1,160

112.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$68.2K

$2,228 BGN 3,899

62.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$40.1K

$1,512 BGN 2,646

41.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.8K

$1,162 BGN 2,033

-18.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

3.1

266.13%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Plovdiv: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Plovdiv

$420 34.2% 40.9% $291

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Plovdiv

$255 20.8% 20.1% $64

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Plovdiv

$171 13.9% 14% $28

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Plovdiv

$139 11.3% 11.1% $17

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Plovdiv

$147 12% 16.3% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Plovdiv

$61 4.9% 15.6% $11

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Plovdiv

$36 2.9% 40.8% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $553 in Plovdiv. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Plovdiv pays 23% 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 $46 in Plovdiv for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $255 per month, with Plovdiv cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇧🇬 Plovdiv

🕒 Local time

08:04 8:04 AM

16:04 4:04 PM

8 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

368,983

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 BGN = 0.571 USD

1 BGN = 0.512 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

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

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1.75 BGN (1 BGN = 0.571 USD). 1 EUR = 1.95 BGN (1 BGN = 0.512 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mexico City Plovdiv 11,070 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Plovdiv

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 Plovdiv: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $1,227 in Plovdiv, so Plovdiv is about 24% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 19% 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 $553 in Plovdiv. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 32% less than in Plovdiv. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $599 in Plovdiv. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Plovdiv gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both work as nomad bases, but Plovdiv delivers better value at $1,227 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Plovdiv hard to pass up.