Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Safi

For one person, living is cheaper in Safi: $588 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $12,200 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
28

Cost of Living Index in Safi
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Safi Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Safi

🇲🇦 Morocco

$588

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $588 in Safi.

Mexico City $1,608
Safi $588

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $904 in Safi.

Mexico City $2,549
Safi $904

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $1,221 in Safi.

Mexico City $3,490
Safi $1,221

Living in Mexico City is roughly 174% more expensive than in Safi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Safi is 57% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$198

$3.13 MAD 30.82

239.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$901

$18.10 MAD 178

167.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$193

$6.06 MAD 59.7

70.79%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$68.8

$1.49 MAD 14.70

147.65%

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

$1.67 MX$31.07

$0.46 MAD 4.51

263.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.59

$0.34 MAD 3.31

273.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.5

$1.58 MAD 15.52

101.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$1.50 MAD 14.80

254.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.15

$0.82 MAD 8.09

109.76%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$56.7

$0.49 MAD 4.85

520.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.58 MAD 15.57

22.78%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$53.8

$1.66 MAD 16.35

74.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$205

$6.63 MAD 65.3

65.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$172

$6.71 MAD 66.1

37.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$282

$8.50 MAD 83.8

78.00%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$56.8

$1.16 MAD 11.45

162.93%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.14 MAD 11.27

70.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.75

$0.76 MAD 7.46

167.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.15

$0.71 MAD 6.98

225.35%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.94

$0.60 MAD 5.87

240.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.55

$0.77 MAD 7.62

133.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.58

$0.39 MAD 3.86

279.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.63

$0.61 MAD 5.99

108.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$98.9

$3.68 MAD 36.21

44.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$300

$7.57 MAD 74.6

112.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.97

$1.90 MAD 18.71

4.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.3

$1.80 MAD 17.74

136.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.69

$0.45 MAD 4.42

-31.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$368

$10.21 MAD 101

93.24%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.25

$0.68 MAD 6.65

170.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.94

$0.49 MAD 4.80

8.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$98.7

$5.95 MAD 58.6

-10.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.16

$1.49 MAD 14.66

1.34%

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

$21.8K MX$405.5K

$30.8K MAD 303.0K

-29.29%

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

$24.0K MX$447.1K

$32.5K MAD 320.0K

-26.18%

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

$63.0 MX$1,174

$35.26 MAD 347

78.62%

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

$27.39 MX$511

$10.00 MAD 98.5

173.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$665

$34.24 MAD 337

4.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,099

$18.60 MAD 183

216.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$441

$5.14 MAD 50.7

359.92%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$119

$3.58 MAD 35.31

78.77%

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

$432 MX$8,045

$96.0 MAD 945

349.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$212.9K

$3,608 MAD 35.5K

216.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,272

$38.78 MAD 382

75.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$990

$32.65 MAD 322

62.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,009

$92.6 MAD 912

16.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,186

$35.25 MAD 347

232.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.8K

$278 MAD 2,739

300.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.2K

$138 MAD 1,357

415.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.2K

$464 MAD 4,565

458.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.2K

$234 MAD 2,305

500.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$67.7K

$884 MAD 8,704

310.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$39.8K

$551 MAD 5,423

287.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

$445 MAD 4,382

112.64%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

4.55

149.45%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Safi: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Safi

$138 23.5% 80.6% $573

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Safi

$165 28% 48.4% $155

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Safi

$75 12.8% 62.1% $123

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Safi

$90 15.3% 42.5% $66

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Safi

$80 13.5% 36.9% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Safi

$26 4.4% 64.1% $46

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Safi

$15 2.6% 40.7% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $278 in Safi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays about 2.1 times 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: $48 in Mexico City vs $18 in Safi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $165 per month, with Safi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇲🇦 Safi

🕒 Local time

16:55 4:55 PM

22:55 10:55 PM

6 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

323,888

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Moroccan Dirham MAD د.م.

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 MAD = 10.15 USD

100 MAD = 9.12 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MAD, 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).

Moroccan Dirham exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 9.85 MAD (1 MAD = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 MAD (100 MAD = 9.12 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Safi 8,860 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Safi

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 Safi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $588 in Safi, so Safi is about 63% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Mexico City is about 2.1 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: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $278 in Safi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Safi runs roughly 48% less than in Mexico City. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $96 in Safi. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $588 in Safi versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Safi but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Safi 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 Safi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 63% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.