Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Salto

For one person, living is cheaper in Salto: $1,327 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
64

Cost of Living Index in Salto
Learn more

Salto Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Salto

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,327

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,567 in Mexico City versus $1,327 in Salto.

Mexico City $1,567
Salto $1,327

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,450 in Mexico City versus $1,946 in Salto.

Mexico City $2,450
Salto $1,946

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,333 in Mexico City versus $2,565 in Salto.

Mexico City $3,333
Salto $2,565

Living in Mexico City is roughly 18% more expensive than in Salto, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 16% above, Salto is 2% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.75 MX$199

$16.15 UYU 648

-33.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.3 MX$929

$36.91 UYU 1,481

36.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.10 MX$205

$11.70 UYU 470

-5.13%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.1

$3.34 UYU 134

10.18%

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

$1.65 MX$30.42

$2.16 UYU 86.7

-23.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 MX$24.08

$1.60 UYU 64.2

-18.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.32 MX$61.3

$4.43 UYU 178

-25.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.54 MX$102

$3.03 UYU 122

82.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.77 MX$32.68

$1.40 UYU 56.1

26.43%

White Bread (500g)

$3.05 MX$56.4

$2.15 UYU 86.5

41.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.20

$1.51 UYU 60.6

33.11%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.1

$5.15 UYU 207

-46.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.91 MX$220

$14.85 UYU 596

-19.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.33 MX$172

$8.59 UYU 345

8.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.02 MX$278

$10.20 UYU 410

47.25%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 MX$56.8

$1.22 UYU 49.03

152.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.97

$2.26 UYU 90.6

-13.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.54

$1.20 UYU 48.25

69.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.21 MX$40.92

$1.87 UYU 75.0

18.18%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.41

$0.84 UYU 33.76

140.48%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.67

$1.70 UYU 68.4

7.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$0.95 UYU 38.05

60.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 MX$23.65

$1.52 UYU 61.1

-15.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.27 MX$97.4

$5.13 UYU 206

2.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.12 MX$298

$7.43 UYU 298

116.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 MX$36.05

$1.87 UYU 75.1

4.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$78.6

$2.68 UYU 108

58.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.82

$0.64 UYU 25.63

-51.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.85 MX$367

$30.03 UYU 1,205

-33.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 MX$36.93

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.86

$3.80 UYU 152

-86.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.62 MX$104

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$1.89 UYU 76.0

-19.58%

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

$21.0K MX$388.7K

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

$25.2K MX$465.3K

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

$62.5 MX$1,155

$200 UYU 8,024

-68.74%

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

$28.77 MX$532

$21.57 UYU 866

33.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.45 MX$637

$30.06 UYU 1,207

14.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,055

$35.99 UYU 1,445

58.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 MX$458

$12.49 UYU 501

98.64%

Cinema Ticket

$6.67 MX$123

$10.07 UYU 404

-33.76%

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

$431 MX$7,964

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.7K MX$216.9K

$4,494 UYU 180.4K

161.23%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.8 MX$1,308

$88.6 UYU 3,557

-20.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.8 MX$958

$56.0 UYU 2,246

-7.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 MX$2,011

$113 UYU 4,525

-3.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 MX$2,076

$66.1 UYU 2,652

70.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,051 MX$19.4K

$444 UYU 17.8K

136.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$665 MX$12.3K

$303 UYU 12.2K

119.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,346 MX$43.3K

$738 UYU 29.6K

217.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,227 MX$22.7K

$423 UYU 17.0K

189.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,554 MX$65.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,977 MX$36.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$975 MX$18.0K

$612 UYU 24.6K

59.19%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Last update for Salto: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$665 42.4%

Salto

$303 22.8% 54.5% $362

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$323 20.6%

Salto

$272 20.5% 15.8% $51

Eating Out

Mexico City

$203 13%

Salto

$248 18.7% 22% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$155 9.9%

Salto

$146 11% 5.9% $9.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 8%

Salto

$252 19% 100% $126

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$70 4.5%

Salto

$56 4.2% 20.3% $14

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.6%

Salto

$52 * 3.9% 100% $26

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 $1,051 in Mexico City and $444 in Salto. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 59% 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: $50.0 in Mexico City vs $37.00 in Salto for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $323 vs $272 per month, with Salto cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇺🇾 Salto

🕒 Local time

05:36 5:36 AM

08:36 8:36 AM

3 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

104,028

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UYU, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 40.14 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.12 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Salto 7,160 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Salto

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 Salto: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City and Salto differ by about 18% in total monthly costs ($1,567 vs $1,327 including rent). Salto is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 59% higher in Mexico City, 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: $1,051 in Mexico City versus $444 in Salto. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Salto – a meal for two runs $37.00 versus $50.0 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

A monthly transit pass in Salto runs roughly 51% less than in Mexico City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,327 in Salto versus $1,567 in Mexico City, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Salto but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Salto 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.

Safety-wise, Mexico City and Salto are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Salto gentler on the wallet – expenses run 18% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.