Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Rawang

For one person, living is cheaper in Rawang: $735 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $10,500 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
35

Cost of Living Index in Rawang
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Rawang Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Rawang

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$735

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $735 in Rawang.

Mexico City $1,608
Rawang $735

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,173 in Rawang.

Mexico City $2,549
Rawang $1,173

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $1,611 in Rawang.

Mexico City $3,490
Rawang $1,611

Living in Mexico City is roughly 119% more expensive than in Rawang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Rawang is 46% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$198

$3.72 MYR 15.15

185.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$901

$19.66 MYR 80.1

145.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$193

$4.97 MYR 20.25

108.25%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$68.8

$3.00 MYR 12.22

23.00%

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

$1.67 MX$31.07

$0.82 MYR 3.35

103.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.59

$0.40 MYR 1.61

217.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.5

$4.23 MYR 17.23

-24.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$4.42 MYR 18.01

20.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.15

$1.79 MYR 7.30

-3.91%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$56.7

$1.04 MYR 4.23

192.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.69 MYR 6.88

14.79%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$53.8

$2.14 MYR 8.72

35.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$205

$14.18 MYR 57.8

-22.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$172

$4.43 MYR 18.04

108.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$282

$10.17 MYR 41.42

48.77%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$56.8

$2.92 MYR 11.88

4.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.82 MYR 7.44

6.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.75

$2.64 MYR 10.77

-23.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.15

$1.43 MYR 5.82

61.54%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.94

$1.22 MYR 4.98

67.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.55

$1.31 MYR 5.34

37.40%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.58

$1.12 MYR 4.58

32.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.63

$0.57 MYR 2.33

122.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$98.9

$4.49 MYR 18.31

18.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$300

$19.06 MYR 77.7

-15.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.97

$2.85 MYR 11.62

-30.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.3

$4.94 MYR 20.13

-13.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.69

$0.77 MYR 3.12

-59.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$368

$12.26 MYR 49.97

60.93%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.25

$1.74 MYR 7.09

5.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.94

$0.37 MYR 1.52

43.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$98.7

$6.83 MYR 27.82

-22.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.16

$0.83 MYR 3.37

81.93%

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

$21.8K MX$405.5K

$43.5K MYR 177.1K

-49.94%

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

$24.0K MX$447.1K

$35.0K MYR 142.7K

-31.49%

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

$63.0 MX$1,174

$36.97 MYR 151

70.35%

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

$27.39 MX$511

$9.75 MYR 39.71

180.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$665

$28.46 MYR 116

25.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,099

$37.63 MYR 153

56.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$441

$6.70 MYR 27.31

252.84%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$119

$4.87 MYR 19.85

31.42%

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

$432 MX$8,045

$401 MYR 1,634

7.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$212.9K

$10.9K MYR 44.6K

4.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,272

$60.1 MYR 245

13.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$990

$34.90 MYR 142

52.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,009

$82.4 MYR 336

30.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,186

$71.1 MYR 290

64.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.8K

$143 MYR 581

681.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.2K

$104 MYR 425

580.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.2K

$576 MYR 2,347

349.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.2K

$234 MYR 955

499.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$67.7K

$1,963 MYR 7,998

84.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$39.8K

$1,197 MYR 4,877

78.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

$1,012 MYR 4,122

-6.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

4.17

172.18%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Rawang: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Rawang

$104 14.2% 85.3% $606

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Rawang

$262 35.6% 18% $58

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Rawang

$115 15.7% 41.9% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Rawang

$112 15.2% 28.3% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Rawang

$75 10.2% 40.4% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Rawang

$47 6.4% 34% $24

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Rawang

$19 2.6% 25.6% $6.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $143 in Rawang. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Rawang pays 7% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $20 in Rawang for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $262 per month, with Rawang cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇲🇾 Rawang

🕒 Local time

16:08 4:08 PM

06:08 6:08 AM

14 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

50,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.07 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.54 MYR (1 MYR = 0.22 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Rawang 16,620 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Rawang

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 Rawang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $735 in Rawang, so Rawang is about 54% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 6% lower in Mexico City. 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: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $143 in Rawang. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Rawang runs roughly 38% less than in Mexico City. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $401 in Rawang. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

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 Rawang gentler on the wallet – expenses run 54% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.