Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and San José Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and San José

🙂 Solo nomad: Mexico City is 7.6% cheaper than San José without rent, and 45.8% more expensive with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Mexico City is 3.5% cheaper than San José without rent, and 47.1% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.12 MX$233

$16.42 UYU 640

-20.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$53.8 MX$957

$54.9 UYU 2,142

-2.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.40 MX$167

$10.81 UYU 422

-13.04%

Cappuccino

$3.56 MX$63.4

$4.26 UYU 166

-16.43%

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

$1.60 MX$28.52

$2.22 UYU 86.6

-27.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.15 MX$20.54

$1.71 UYU 66.9

-32.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.16 MX$56.2

$4.27 UYU 167

-26.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.85 MX$86.2

$3.70 UYU 144

31.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 MX$29.07

$1.01 UYU 39.47

61.39%

White Bread (500g)

$2.73 MX$48.64

$1.97 UYU 76.9

38.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.88 MX$33.42

$1.49 UYU 57.9

26.17%

Eggs

$2.63 MX$46.81

$2.56 UYU 99.7

2.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.89 MX$176

$12.33 UYU 481

-19.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.40 MX$149

$7.55 UYU 294

11.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.63 MX$207

$10.91 UYU 425

6.60%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 MX$52.9

$1.25 UYU 48.67

137.60%

Banana (1kg)

$1.78 MX$31.75

$1.46 UYU 56.8

21.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.06 MX$36.57

$1.24 UYU 48.29

66.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.97 MX$35.13

$1.43 UYU 55.8

37.76%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 MX$37.11

$1.02 UYU 39.66

104.90%

Onion (1kg)

$2.26 MX$40.19

$1.26 UYU 48.98

79.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 MX$25.94

$1.35 UYU 52.7

8.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 MX$19.39

$1.66 UYU 64.8

-34.34%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.34 MX$77.2

$5.12 UYU 200

-15.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.62 MX$242

$10.43 UYU 407

30.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.67 MX$29.78

$2.37 UYU 92.6

-29.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.54 MX$63.0

$3.01 UYU 117

17.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.36 MX$6.40

$1.25 UYU 48.61

-71.20%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.96 MX$337

$43.66 UYU 1,703

-56.57%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 MX$23.54

$1.51 UYU 58.9

-12.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.30 MX$5.36

$1.51 UYU 59.0

-80.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.49 MX$97.6

$10.91 UYU 426

-49.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 MX$23.78

$1.83 UYU 71.3

-26.78%

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

$19.1K MX$340.1K

$34.8K UYU 1.4M

-45.01%

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

$23.8K MX$422.8K

$36.9K UYU 1.4M

-35.53%

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

$41.11 MX$731

$174 UYU 6,805

-76.44%

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

$27.78 MX$494

$16.56 UYU 646

67.75%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.00 MX$534

$49.55 UYU 1,932

-39.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.5 MX$952

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.13 MX$465

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 MX$112

$10.59 UYU 413

-40.70%

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

$439 MX$7,817

$480 UYU 18.7K

-8.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.7K MX$191.1K

$8,930 UYU 348.3K

20.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.1 MX$1,016

$93.3 UYU 3,640

-38.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.30 MX$806

$47.53 UYU 1,854

-4.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 MX$1,854

$115 UYU 4,490

-9.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 MX$1,926

$124 UYU 4,829

-12.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$996 MX$17.7K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$624 MX$11.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,106 MX$37.5K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,218 MX$21.7K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,799 MX$67.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,230 MX$39.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,096 MX$19.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.34

5.68

99.65%

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

Last update for Mexico City: March 1, 2026

Last update for San José: March 2, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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