Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Santa Isabel

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Isabel: $1,298 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Mexico City outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

80

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Santa Isabel
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Santa Isabel Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Santa Isabel

🇵🇷 Puerto Rico

$1,298

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Santa Isabel

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,674 in Mexico City versus $1,298 in Santa Isabel.

Mexico City $1,674
Santa Isabel $1,298

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,606 in Mexico City versus $2,045 in Santa Isabel.

Mexico City $2,606
Santa Isabel $2,045

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,537 in Mexico City versus $2,791 in Santa Isabel.

Mexico City $3,537
Santa Isabel $2,791

Living in Mexico City is roughly 29% more expensive than in Santa Isabel, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 24% above, Santa Isabel is 4% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.59 MX$197

$19.18 $19.18

-44.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.0 MX$967

$82.6 $82.6

-37.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 MX$200

$9.06 $9.06

18.43%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$70.7

$3.61 $3.61

5.26%

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

$1.61 MX$30.01

$1.89 $1.89

-14.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.55

$1.51 $1.51

-19.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 MX$59.1

$3.02 $3.02

5.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 MX$101

$5.07 $5.07

7.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$31.96

$1.31 $1.31

31.30%

White Bread (500g)

$2.97 MX$55.2

$3.40 $3.40

-12.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 MX$35.84

$2.42 $2.42

-20.25%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.6

$6.21 $6.21

-55.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.67 MX$217

$12.41 $12.41

-5.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.48 MX$176

$9.82 $9.82

-3.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.37 MX$286

$13.10 $13.10

17.33%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 MX$57.8

$5.01 $5.01

-38.12%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.49

$2.54 $2.54

-22.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 MX$36.88

$4.94 $4.94

-59.92%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.34 MX$43.46

$4.67 $4.67

-49.89%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.66

$3.85 $3.85

-47.53%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.95

$3.88 $3.88

-53.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 MX$28.74

$3.37 $3.37

-54.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$24.42

$1.65 $1.65

-20.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.35 MX$99.6

$12.04 $12.04

-55.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.19 MX$301

$15.50 $15.50

4.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 MX$36.46

$3.14 $3.14

-37.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$81.0

$3.94 $3.94

10.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.67

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$363

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 MX$35.68

$2.44 $2.44

-21.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 MX$8.80

$0.66 $0.66

-28.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$101

$39.69 $39.69

-86.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.61

$1.09 $1.09

35.78%

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

$21.4K MX$397.7K

$35.1K $35.1K

-39.07%

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

$23.8K MX$442.1K

$27.9K $27.9K

-14.94%

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

$62.0 MX$1,154

$318 $318

-80.48%

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

$28.47 MX$530

$68.5 $68.5

-58.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.11 MX$635

$71.1 $71.1

-52.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.4 MX$1,087

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$456

Cinema Ticket

$6.59 MX$123

$10.62 $10.62

-37.95%

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

$434 MX$8,081

$826 $826

-47.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.0K MX$261.2K

$12.0K $12.0K

17.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.4 MX$1,272

$56.7 $56.7

20.48%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.8 MX$1,020

$62.2 $62.2

-11.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 MX$2,063

$107 $107

3.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 MX$2,159

$115 $115

0.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$21.9K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$771 MX$14.3K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,570 MX$47.8K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,420 MX$26.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,586 MX$66.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

6.55

73.28%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Santa Isabel: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$771 46.1%

Santa Isabel

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$324 19.3%

Santa Isabel

$398 30.6% 23% $74

Eating Out

Mexico City

$201 12%

Santa Isabel

$263 20.2% 31.1% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$158 9.4%

Santa Isabel

$153 11.8% 2.6% $4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$125 7.4%

Santa Isabel

$457 35.2% 267% $333

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.3%

Santa Isabel

$21 * 1.6% 70.3% $50

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.5%

Santa Isabel

$5.8 * 0.4% 77% $19

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $52 in Mexico City vs $83 in Santa Isabel for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $324 vs $398 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇵🇷 Santa Isabel

🕒 Local time

20:46 8:46 PM

22:46 10:46 PM

2 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

23,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 USD = 0.888 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.95 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.13 USD (1 USD = 0.888 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Santa Isabel 3,450 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Santa Isabel

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 Santa Isabel: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,674 in Mexico City and $1,298 in Santa Isabel, so Santa Isabel is about 22% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,510 in Mexico City and $1,948 in Santa Isabel 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.

Childcare runs $434 in Mexico City versus $826 in Santa Isabel. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Mexico City – a meal for two runs $52 versus $83 in Santa Isabel. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Santa Isabel gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.