Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and San Jose del Monte

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose del Monte: $731 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $10,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
34

Cost of Living Index in San Jose del Monte
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San Jose del Monte Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

San Jose del Monte

🇵🇭 Philippines

$731

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in San Jose del Monte

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 San Jose del Monte actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $731 in San Jose del Monte.

Mexico City $1,608
San Jose del Monte $731

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,096 in San Jose del Monte.

Mexico City $2,549
San Jose del Monte $1,096

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $1,461 in San Jose del Monte.

Mexico City $3,490
San Jose del Monte $1,461

Living in Mexico City is roughly 120% more expensive than in San Jose del Monte, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, San Jose del Monte is 46% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$198

$3.94 ₱252

169.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$901

$16.34 ₱1,044

195.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$193

$2.73 ₱174

279.12%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$68.8

$1.74 ₱111

112.07%

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

$1.67 MX$31.07

$0.56 ₱35.61

198.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.59

$0.31 ₱19.71

309.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.5

$0.94 ₱59.8

239.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$1.60 ₱102

231.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.15

$1.64 ₱105

4.88%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$56.7

$1.14 ₱72.8

166.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$0.94 ₱59.9

106.38%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$53.8

$2.02 ₱129

43.07%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$205

$5.07 ₱324

116.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$172

$3.28 ₱210

182.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$282

$6.92 ₱442

118.64%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$56.8

$2.27 ₱145

34.36%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.57 ₱100

23.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.75

$2.37 ₱152

-14.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.15

$1.02 ₱64.9

126.47%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.94

$1.70 ₱109

20.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.55

$1.69 ₱108

6.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.58

$0.65 ₱41.24

127.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.63

$0.48 ₱30.52

164.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$98.9

$2.86 ₱183

85.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$300

$8.81 ₱563

82.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.97

$0.94 ₱60.1

110.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.3

$1.96 ₱126

116.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.69

$0.21 ₱13.69

47.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$368

$12.48 ₱797

58.09%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.25

$0.75 ₱48.17

145.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.94

$0.23 ₱14.73

130.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$98.7

$1.91 ₱122

177.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.16

$1.22 ₱78.2

23.77%

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

$21.8K MX$405.5K

$20.9K ₱1.3M

4.30%

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

$24.0K MX$447.1K

$18.7K ₱1.2M

28.32%

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

$63.0 MX$1,174

$122 ₱7,788

-48.33%

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

$27.39 MX$511

$15.32 ₱979

78.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$665

$23.05 ₱1,472

54.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,099

$35.72 ₱2,282

65.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$441

$5.50 ₱351

329.82%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$119

$5.22 ₱334

22.61%

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

$432 MX$8,045

$129 ₱8,244

234.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$212.9K

$8,762 ₱559.8K

30.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,272

$28.74 ₱1,836

137.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$990

$18.98 ₱1,213

179.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,009

$70.5 ₱4,502

52.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,186

$53.7 ₱3,428

118.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.8K

$230 ₱14.7K

383.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.2K

$189 ₱12.1K

275.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.2K

$437 ₱27.9K

492.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.2K

$361 ₱23.1K

288.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$67.7K

$2,325 ₱148.6K

56.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$39.8K

$1,217 ₱77.8K

75.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

6.75

68.15%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for San Jose del Monte: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

San Jose del Monte

$189 25.9% 73.4% $521

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

San Jose del Monte

$170 23.3% 46.7% $149

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

San Jose del Monte

$72 9.9% 63.8% $127

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

San Jose del Monte

$77 10.6% 50.4% $79

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

San Jose del Monte

$160 21.9% 27.2% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

San Jose del Monte

$46 6.3% 35.6% $26

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

San Jose del Monte

$15 2.1% 40.1% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $230 in San Jose del Monte. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $16 in San Jose del Monte for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $170 per month, with San Jose del Monte cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇵🇭 San Jose del Monte

🕒 Local time

17:03 5:03 PM

07:03 7:03 AM

14 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

651,813

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 PHP = 1.57 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 October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 63.89 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.13 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City San Jose del Monte 14,200 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
San Jose del Monte

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 San Jose del Monte: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $731 in San Jose del Monte, so San Jose del Monte is about 55% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,412 in Mexico City and $1,096 in San Jose del Monte 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 $230 in San Jose del Monte. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in San Jose del Monte runs roughly 37% less than in Mexico City. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $129 in San Jose del Monte. 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 San Jose del Monte gentler on the wallet – expenses run 55% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.