Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Porto

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,548 a month against $1,917 in Porto, rent and utilities included – about $4,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Porto outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

75

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
93

Cost of Living Index in Porto
Learn more

Porto Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,548

/mo nomad

Porto

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,917

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,548 in Mexico City versus $1,917 in Porto.

Mexico City $1,548
Porto $1,917

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,436 in Mexico City versus $2,853 in Porto.

Mexico City $2,436
Porto $2,853

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,323 in Mexico City versus $3,789 in Porto.

Mexico City $3,323
Porto $3,789

Living in Mexico City costs roughly 19% less than in Porto, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 14% above, Porto 41% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.02 MX$204

$13.61 €12.11

-19.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.68 MX$900

$56.8 €50.5

-14.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.90 MX$201

$11.02 €9.80

-1.09%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.1

$2.61 €2.32

41.00%

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

$1.63 MX$30.18

$2.29 €2.04

-28.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.25 MX$23.07

$1.32 €1.18

-5.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.25 MX$60.1

$3.32 €2.95

-2.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.53 MX$102

$4.40 €3.91

25.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 MX$31.50

$1.09 €0.97

55.96%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 MX$55.8

$1.70 €1.51

77.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.92 MX$35.53

$1.50 €1.33

28.00%

Eggs

$2.73 MX$50.5

$4.16 €3.70

-34.38%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.77 MX$218

$11.78 €10.48

-0.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 MX$176

$7.07 €6.29

34.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.41 MX$266

$16.43 €14.61

-12.29%

Apples (1kg)

$3.02 MX$55.8

$2.16 €1.92

39.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.01

$1.61 €1.43

17.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.70

$1.84 €1.63

8.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.19 MX$40.38

$2.46 €2.19

-10.98%

Potato (1kg)

$1.92 MX$35.43

$1.71 €1.52

12.28%

Onion (1kg)

$1.87 MX$34.49

$1.80 €1.60

3.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 MX$26.62

$1.62 €1.44

-11.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.39

$0.78 €0.69

62.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.22 MX$96.4

$6.45 €5.74

-19.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.17 MX$299

$5.63 €5.01

187.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 MX$35.03

$1.35 €1.21

40.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.22 MX$78.0

$2.57 €2.29

64.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 MX$6.30

$1.70 €1.51

-80.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.65 MX$363

$45.60 €40.56

-56.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 MX$36.90

$4.02 €3.58

-50.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.52 MX$9.67

$0.87 €0.77

-40.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.34 MX$98.7

$16.94 €15.07

-68.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$28.13

$2.15 €1.92

-29.30%

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

$22.1K MX$408.0K

$33.8K €30.1K

-34.74%

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

$24.5K MX$452.9K

$37.4K €33.2K

-34.39%

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

$61.1 MX$1,129

$162 €144

-62.34%

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

$28.58 MX$528

$14.61 €12.99

95.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.47 MX$637

$36.91 €32.83

-6.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,042

$45.11 €40.13

24.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.88 MX$460

$15.27 €13.58

62.93%

Cinema Ticket

$6.66 MX$123

$9.05 €8.05

-26.41%

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

$427 MX$7,891

$581 €517

-26.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K MX$215.0K

$10.5K €9,343

10.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.8 MX$1,253

$103 €91.2

-33.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.0 MX$960

$32.78 €29.16

58.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 MX$1,959

$93.9 €83.5

12.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 MX$2,080

$106 €94.1

6.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,025 MX$18.9K

$1,279 €1,138

-19.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$654 MX$12.1K

$957 €852

-31.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,308 MX$42.7K

$2,223 €1,978

3.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,242 MX$22.9K

$1,633 €1,452

-23.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,613 MX$66.8K

$5,244 €4,665

-31.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,936 MX$35.8K

$3,860 €3,433

-49.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$964 MX$17.8K

$1,564 €1,391

-38.36%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

3.67

207.90%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 20, 2026

Last update for Porto: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$654 42.3%

Porto

$957 49.9% 46.3% $303

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$318 20.6%

Porto

$258 13.5% 18.8% $60

Eating Out

Mexico City

$204 13.2%

Porto

$213 11.1% 4.6% $9.3

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$152 9.8%

Porto

$151 7.9% 1% $1.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$124 8%

Porto

$214 11.1% 72.1% $90

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$70 4.5%

Porto

$63 3.3% 9.3% $6.5

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.7%

Porto

$61 3.2% 137% $35

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,025 in Mexico City and $1,279 in Porto. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Porto pays 62% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $49.00 in Mexico City vs $57.0 in Porto. Groceries flip the comparison at $318 vs $258, with Porto cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇵🇹 Porto

🕒 Local time

09:40 9:40 AM

16:40 4:40 PM

7 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

231,828

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Porto 8,640 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
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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 Porto: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City and Porto differ by about 24% in total monthly costs ($1,548 vs $1,917 including rent). Mexico City is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 62% lower in Porto. 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: $1,025 in Mexico City versus $1,279 in Porto. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 132% less than in Porto. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $427 in Mexico City versus $581 in Porto. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,548 in Mexico City versus $1,917 in Porto, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in Porto. The gap between the two cities makes Mexico 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.

Safety-wise, Mexico City and Porto are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Mexico City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 24% less than in Porto. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.