Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Protaras

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,608 a month against $2,021 in Protaras, rent and utilities included – about $5,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
94

Cost of Living Index in Protaras
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Protaras Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Protaras

🇨🇾 Cyprus

$2,021

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $2,021 in Protaras.

Mexico City $1,608
Protaras $2,021

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $3,018 in Protaras.

Mexico City $2,549
Protaras $3,018

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $4,015 in Protaras.

Mexico City $3,490
Protaras $4,015

Living in Mexico City costs roughly 20% less than in Protaras, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 18% above, Protaras 49% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$199

$22.36 €20.03

-52.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$908

$77.9 €69.7

-37.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$194

$9.13 €8.18

13.36%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$69.3

$3.85 €3.45

-4.16%

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

$1.67 MX$31.29

$1.92 €1.72

-13.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.76

$1.26 €1.13

0.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.9

$5.17 €4.63

-38.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$99.6

$5.48 €4.90

-3.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.38

$1.99 €1.78

-13.57%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$57.1

$2.47 €2.22

23.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.44

$3.01 €2.70

-35.55%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$54.2

$4.63 €4.15

-37.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$206

$13.37 €11.98

-17.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$174

$9.72 €8.71

-4.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$284

$13.71 €12.28

10.36%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$57.2

$3.50 €3.14

-12.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.45

$2.36 €2.11

-17.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.02

$2.93 €2.63

-30.72%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.46

$3.79 €3.39

-39.05%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$38.21

$2.01 €1.80

1.49%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.79

$1.61 €1.44

11.80%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.77

$1.28 €1.15

15.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.80

$1.07 €0.96

18.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$99.6

$6.59 €5.90

-19.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$302

$8.76 €7.85

83.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$37.23

$1.87 €1.68

5.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.8

$2.86 €2.56

48.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.73

$2.23 €2.00

-86.10%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$371

$54.4 €48.73

-63.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.50

$9.98 €8.94

-81.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.02

$2.30 €2.06

-76.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.4

$22.09 €19.78

-76.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.36

$1.71 €1.53

-11.70%

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

$21.8K MX$408.4K

$30.9K €27.7K

-29.68%

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

$24.0K MX$450.3K

$31.2K €27.9K

-23.05%

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

$63.0 MX$1,182

$241 €215

-73.82%

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

$27.39 MX$514

$20.38 €18.25

34.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$670

$32.60 €29.20

9.42%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,107

$77.3 €69.2

-23.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

$21.75 €19.48

8.69%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$120

$13.33 €11.94

-51.99%

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

$432 MX$8,103

$687 €616

-37.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.5K

$10.5K €9,432

8.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,281

$97.0 €86.9

-29.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$997

$51.2 €45.84

3.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,023

$110 €98.7

-2.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,202

$117 €105

0.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.9K

$720 €645

54.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.3K

$741 €664

-4.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.6K

$1,648 €1,476

57.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.4K

$1,144 €1,025

22.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$68.2K

$3,454 €3,093

5.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$40.1K

$2,202 €1,972

-3.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

3.93

188.80%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Protaras: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Protaras

$741 36.7% 4.3% $31

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Protaras

$327 16.2% 2.4% $7.8

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Protaras

$302 14.9% 52% $103

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Protaras

$169 8.4% 8.3% $13

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Protaras

$294 14.5% 133% $168

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Protaras

$104 5.1% 44.9% $32

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Protaras

$85 4.2% 233% $59

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $720 in Protaras. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $78 in Protaras for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $327 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇨🇾 Protaras

🕒 Local time

19:23 7:23 PM

03:23 3:23 AM

8 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

20,230

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 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 November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Between locations

Mexico City Protaras 12,200 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

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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 Protaras: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $2,021 in Protaras, so Mexico City is about 20% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,412 in Mexico City and $3,032 in Protaras 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $720 in Protaras. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $687 in Protaras. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Mexico City – a meal for two runs $48 versus $78 in Protaras. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Mexico City gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.