Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Puerto Princesa

For one person, living is cheaper in Puerto Princesa: $842 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $10,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
40

Cost of Living Index in Puerto Princesa
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Puerto Princesa Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Puerto Princesa

🇵🇭 Philippines

$842

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Puerto Princesa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,674 in Mexico City versus $842 in Puerto Princesa.

Mexico City $1,674
Puerto Princesa $842

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,606 in Mexico City versus $1,245 in Puerto Princesa.

Mexico City $2,606
Puerto Princesa $1,245

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,537 in Mexico City versus $1,648 in Puerto Princesa.

Mexico City $3,537
Puerto Princesa $1,648

Living in Mexico City is roughly 99% more expensive than in Puerto Princesa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 24% above, Puerto Princesa is 38% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.59 MX$197

$3.57 ₱227

196.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.0 MX$965

$20.46 ₱1,297

153.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 MX$199

$3.27 ₱207

228.13%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$70.5

$2.18 ₱138

74.31%

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

$1.61 MX$29.95

$0.77 ₱48.99

109.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.51

$0.44 ₱28.15

175.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 MX$59.0

$1.20 ₱76.2

165.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 MX$101

$2.15 ₱136

153.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$31.90

$1.69 ₱107

1.78%

White Bread (500g)

$2.97 MX$55.1

$1.14 ₱72.6

160.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 MX$35.77

$0.77 ₱48.94

150.65%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.5

$1.89 ₱120

46.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.67 MX$217

$4.75 ₱301

145.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.48 MX$176

$4.16 ₱264

127.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.37 MX$286

$7.37 ₱467

108.55%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 MX$57.7

$2.48 ₱157

25.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.41

$1.81 ₱115

8.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 MX$36.81

$2.61 ₱165

-24.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.34 MX$43.37

$0.93 ₱58.9

151.61%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.58

$1.53 ₱97.0

32.03%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.88

$1.51 ₱95.5

20.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 MX$28.68

$0.90 ₱57.1

71.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$24.37

$0.51 ₱32.49

156.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.35 MX$99.4

$2.78 ₱176

92.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.19 MX$301

$7.01 ₱444

130.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 MX$36.38

$1.08 ₱68.5

81.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$80.8

$1.84 ₱117

136.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.66

$0.25 ₱15.90

20.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$362

$13.38 ₱848

45.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 MX$35.61

$0.80 ₱50.8

140.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 MX$8.78

$0.22 ₱14.07

113.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$100

$1.84 ₱117

194.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.55

$1.02 ₱64.6

45.10%

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

$21.4K MX$396.9K

$16.3K ₱1.0M

31.13%

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

$23.8K MX$441.2K

$18.8K ₱1.2M

26.26%

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

$62.0 MX$1,151

$110 ₱6,979

-43.70%

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

$28.47 MX$529

$16.01 ₱1,015

77.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.11 MX$634

$26.74 ₱1,695

27.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.4 MX$1,084

$32.08 ₱2,033

82.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$455

Cinema Ticket

$6.59 MX$122

$4.95 ₱314

33.13%

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

$434 MX$8,064

$269 ₱17.1K

61.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.0K MX$260.7K

$7,369 ₱467.1K

90.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.4 MX$1,269

$49.23 ₱3,120

38.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.8 MX$1,018

$27.64 ₱1,752

98.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 MX$2,059

$71.0 ₱4,501

56.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 MX$2,154

$59.7 ₱3,786

94.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$21.9K

$414 ₱26.2K

184.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$771 MX$14.3K

$283 ₱17.9K

172.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,570 MX$47.7K

$797 ₱50.5K

222.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,420 MX$26.4K

$484 ₱30.7K

193.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,586 MX$66.6K

$3,936 ₱249.5K

-8.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.3K

$2,410 ₱152.8K

-14.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.6K

$287 ₱18.2K

249.18%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

62.14%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Puerto Princesa: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$771 46.1%

Puerto Princesa

$283 33.6% 63.3% $488

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$324 19.3%

Puerto Princesa

$175 20.8% 45.9% $149

Eating Out

Mexico City

$201 12%

Puerto Princesa

$80 9.5% 60.2% $121

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$158 9.4%

Puerto Princesa

$93 11.1% 40.7% $64

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$125 7.4%

Puerto Princesa

$153 18.2% 22.7% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.3%

Puerto Princesa

$42 5% 41.3% $30

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.5%

Puerto Princesa

$16 1.9% 34.8% $8.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,179 in Mexico City and $414 in Puerto Princesa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays about 3.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $52 in Mexico City vs $20 in Puerto Princesa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $324 vs $175 per month, with Puerto Princesa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇵🇭 Puerto Princesa

🕒 Local time

14:42 2:42 PM

04:42 4:42 AM

14 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

307,079

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 PHP = 1.58 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 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 November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.57 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 63.38 PHP (100 PHP = 1.58 USD). 1 EUR = 70.88 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Puerto Princesa 14,750 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Puerto Princesa

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 Puerto Princesa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,674 in Mexico City and $842 in Puerto Princesa, so Puerto Princesa is about 50% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Mexico City is about 3.5 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: $1,179 in Mexico City versus $414 in Puerto Princesa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Puerto Princesa runs roughly 31% less than in Mexico City. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $434 in Mexico City versus $269 in Puerto Princesa. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $842 in Puerto Princesa versus $1,674 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Puerto Princesa but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Puerto Princesa 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 Puerto Princesa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 50% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.