Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Polomolok

For one person, living is cheaper in Polomolok: $612 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $12,000 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
29

Cost of Living Index in Polomolok
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Polomolok Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Polomolok

🇵🇭 Philippines

$612

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $612 in Polomolok.

Mexico City $1,608
Polomolok $612

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $966 in Polomolok.

Mexico City $2,549
Polomolok $966

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $1,321 in Polomolok.

Mexico City $3,490
Polomolok $1,321

Living in Mexico City is roughly 163% more expensive than in Polomolok, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Polomolok is 55% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$198

$1.53 ₱97.8

594.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$901

$16.22 ₱1,038

198.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$193

$2.06 ₱132

402.43%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$68.7

$2.12 ₱135

74.06%

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

$1.67 MX$31.05

$0.37 ₱23.77

351.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.58

$0.66 ₱42.40

92.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.5

$1.14 ₱72.7

179.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$2.12 ₱136

150.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.13

$1.58 ₱101

8.86%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$56.6

$0.89 ₱56.9

241.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.17

$0.64 ₱41.00

203.12%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$53.8

$1.92 ₱123

50.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$204

$6.35 ₱406

72.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$172

$2.72 ₱174

240.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$282

$5.61 ₱359

169.70%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$56.8

$2.52 ₱161

21.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.17

$0.57 ₱36.18

240.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.73

$2.42 ₱155

-16.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.12

$0.76 ₱48.53

203.95%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.91

$1.15 ₱73.6

77.39%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.53

$2.78 ₱178

-35.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.56

$0.81 ₱51.6

82.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.62

$0.66 ₱42.12

92.42%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$98.8

$2.45 ₱157

116.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$300

$7.06 ₱452

128.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.95

$0.92 ₱58.6

115.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.2

$1.52 ₱97.3

179.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.68

$0.22 ₱14.33

40.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$368

$12.59 ₱806

56.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.23

$0.82 ₱52.4

124.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.94

$0.22 ₱14.07

140.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$98.7

$1.92 ₱123

176.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.14

$0.85 ₱54.3

77.65%

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

$21.8K MX$405.3K

$15.4K ₱987.3K

41.00%

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

$24.0K MX$446.9K

$17.1K ₱1.1M

40.18%

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

$63.0 MX$1,173

$50.4 ₱3,224

25.01%

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

$27.39 MX$510

$18.88 ₱1,208

45.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$664

$26.19 ₱1,676

36.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,098

$31.17 ₱1,995

89.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$441

$5.26 ₱337

349.43%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$119

$3.93 ₱252

62.85%

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

$432 MX$8,041

$106 ₱6,754

308.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$212.8K

$1,346 ₱86.1K

748.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,271

$32.46 ₱2,077

110.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$990

$18.92 ₱1,211

180.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,008

$62.7 ₱4,012

71.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,185

$61.6 ₱3,942

90.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.7K

$254 ₱16.3K

338.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.2K

$169 ₱10.8K

319.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.2K

$558 ₱35.7K

363.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.2K

$359 ₱23.0K

291.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$67.6K

$2,598 ₱166.3K

39.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$39.8K

$1,128 ₱72.2K

89.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

$233 ₱14.9K

305.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

89.17%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Polomolok: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Polomolok

$169 27.7% 76.2% $541

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Polomolok

$156 25.5% 51.3% $164

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Polomolok

$58 9.5% 70.9% $141

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Polomolok

$79 12.9% 49.3% $77

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Polomolok

$95 15.6% 24.3% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Polomolok

$39 6.4% 45.6% $33

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Polomolok

$15 2.5% 39.5% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $254 in Polomolok. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays about 4.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $16 in Polomolok for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $156 per month, with Polomolok cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇵🇭 Polomolok

🕒 Local time

19:03 7:03 PM

09:03 9:03 AM

14 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

172,605

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 PHP = 1.56 USD

100 PHP = 1.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.63 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.74 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 63.99 PHP (100 PHP = 1.56 USD). 1 EUR = 71.24 PHP (100 PHP = 1.4 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Polomolok 14,400 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Polomolok

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 Polomolok: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $612 in Polomolok, so Polomolok is about 62% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Mexico City is about 4.1 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $254 in Polomolok. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Polomolok runs roughly 36% less than in Mexico City. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $106 in Polomolok. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $612 in Polomolok versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $800 budget is realistic in Polomolok but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Polomolok 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.

Expats usually find Polomolok gentler on the wallet – expenses run 62% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.