Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Quetzaltenango

For one person, living is cheaper in Quetzaltenango: $1,138 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 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
55

Cost of Living Index in Quetzaltenango
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Quetzaltenango Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Quetzaltenango

🇬🇹 Guatemala

$1,138

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $1,138 in Quetzaltenango.

Mexico City $1,608
Quetzaltenango $1,138

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,443 in Quetzaltenango.

Mexico City $2,549
Quetzaltenango $1,443

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $1,747 in Quetzaltenango.

Mexico City $3,490
Quetzaltenango $1,747

Living in Mexico City is roughly 41% more expensive than in Quetzaltenango, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Quetzaltenango is 16% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$199

$6.77 Q 51.7

56.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$908

$50.9 Q 389

-5.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$194

$7.68 Q 58.7

34.77%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$69.3

$3.36 Q 25.69

9.82%

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

$1.67 MX$31.29

$1.10 Q 8.40

51.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.76

$0.97 Q 7.44

30.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.9

$3.33 Q 25.45

-4.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$99.6

$4.62 Q 35.27

14.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.38

$2.10 Q 16.01

-18.10%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$57.1

$2.57 Q 19.64

18.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.44

$2.05 Q 15.69

-5.37%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$54.2

$2.36 Q 18.05

22.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$206

$6.37 Q 48.69

72.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$174

$7.92 Q 60.5

16.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$284

$13.09 Q 100

15.58%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$57.2

$2.96 Q 22.58

3.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.45

$1.72 Q 13.14

12.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.02

$2.92 Q 22.34

-30.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.46

$1.60 Q 12.20

44.38%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$38.21

$1.54 Q 11.73

32.47%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.79

$2.20 Q 16.79

-18.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.77

$0.74 Q 5.65

100.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.80

$1.16 Q 8.90

9.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$99.6

$3.35 Q 25.61

58.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$302

$8.04 Q 61.5

100.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$37.23

$1.78 Q 13.57

11.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.8

$2.60 Q 19.84

63.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.73

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$371

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.50

$5.12 Q 39.12

-64.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.02

$1.72 Q 13.16

-69.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.4

$10.34 Q 79.0

-48.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.36

$1.33 Q 10.14

13.53%

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

$21.8K MX$408.4K

$27.6K Q 210.6K

-21.08%

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

$24.0K MX$450.3K

$25.8K Q 197.5K

-7.20%

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

$63.0 MX$1,182

$72.2 Q 551

-12.72%

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

$27.39 MX$514

$12.97 Q 99.1

111.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$670

$46.36 Q 354

-23.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,107

$33.27 Q 254

77.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$120

$6.34 Q 48.46

0.95%

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

$432 MX$8,103

$342 Q 2,613

26.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.5K

$6,808 Q 52.0K

67.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,281

$48.78 Q 373

39.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$997

$47.81 Q 365

11.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,023

$110 Q 839

-1.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,202

$112 Q 853

5.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.9K

$399 Q 3,052

178.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.3K

$389 Q 2,971

82.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.6K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$68.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$40.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

11.62

-2.32%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Quetzaltenango: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Quetzaltenango

$389 34.2% 45.3% $322

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Quetzaltenango

$263 23.1% 17.6% $56

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Quetzaltenango

$152 13.3% 23.6% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Quetzaltenango

$143 12.6% 8.2% $13

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Quetzaltenango

$131 11.6% 4.3% $5.4

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Quetzaltenango

$46 4% 35.9% $26

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Quetzaltenango

$14 * 1.2% 46.1% $12

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $399 in Quetzaltenango. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $51 in Quetzaltenango. Groceries flip the comparison at $320 vs $263, with Quetzaltenango cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇬🇹 Quetzaltenango

🕒 Local time

18:12 6:12 PM

Same time as Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

500,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Guatemalan Quetzal GTQ Q

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 GTQ = 0.131 USD

1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GTQ, USD, EUR 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).

Guatemalan Quetzal exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 7.64 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.131 USD). 1 EUR = 8.53 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Quetzaltenango 960 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Quetzaltenango

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 Quetzaltenango: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $1,138 in Quetzaltenango, so Quetzaltenango is about 29% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,412 in Mexico City and $1,707 in Quetzaltenango 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 $399 in Quetzaltenango. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $342 in Quetzaltenango. 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 $51 in Quetzaltenango. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Quetzaltenango is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.