Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Santo Domingo

For one person, living is cheaper in Santo Domingo: $1,094 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index
52

Cost of Living Index in Santo Domingo
Learn more

Santo Domingo Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Santo Domingo

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

$1,094

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Santo Domingo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $1,094 in Santo Domingo.

Mexico City $1,608
Santo Domingo $1,094

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,713 in Santo Domingo.

Mexico City $2,549
Santo Domingo $1,713

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $2,333 in Santo Domingo.

Mexico City $3,490
Santo Domingo $2,333

Living in Mexico City is roughly 47% more expensive than in Santo Domingo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Santo Domingo is 20% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$198

$9.87 DOP 605

7.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$901

$48.28 DOP 2,957

0.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$193

$7.47 DOP 457

38.55%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$68.8

$2.30 DOP 141

60.43%

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

$1.67 MX$31.07

$1.05 DOP 64.3

59.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.59

$0.58 DOP 35.48

118.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.5

$2.52 DOP 154

26.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$3.16 DOP 193

68.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.15

$1.42 DOP 86.8

21.13%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$56.7

$1.52 DOP 93.3

100.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.61 DOP 98.3

20.50%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$53.8

$2.32 DOP 142

24.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$205

$6.98 DOP 428

57.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$172

$5.47 DOP 335

69.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$282

$6.72 DOP 412

125.15%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$56.8

$3.21 DOP 197

-4.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$0.77 DOP 47.04

151.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.75

$2.65 DOP 163

-23.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.15

$1.79 DOP 110

29.05%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.94

$1.93 DOP 118

5.70%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.55

$2.23 DOP 137

-19.28%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.58

$0.99 DOP 60.4

49.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.63

$0.98 DOP 60.0

29.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$98.9

$5.24 DOP 321

1.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$300

$10.18 DOP 623

58.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.97

$2.61 DOP 160

-24.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.3

$2.83 DOP 173

50.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.69

$0.60 DOP 36.46

-48.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$368

$16.31 DOP 999

20.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.25

$3.20 DOP 196

-42.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.94

$2.23 DOP 137

-76.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$98.7

$5.63 DOP 345

-5.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.16

$1.38 DOP 84.3

9.42%

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

$21.8K MX$405.5K

$28.4K DOP 1.7M

-23.34%

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

$24.0K MX$447.1K

$34.1K DOP 2.1M

-29.59%

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

$63.0 MX$1,174

$93.0 DOP 5,694

-32.26%

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

$27.39 MX$511

$31.34 DOP 1,920

-12.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$665

$36.15 DOP 2,214

-1.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,099

$29.12 DOP 1,783

102.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$441

$23.71 DOP 1,452

-0.30%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$119

$7.28 DOP 446

-12.09%

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

$432 MX$8,045

$245 DOP 15.0K

76.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$212.9K

$7,282 DOP 446.0K

56.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,272

$45.14 DOP 2,765

51.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$990

$46.00 DOP 2,817

15.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,009

$87.4 DOP 5,354

23.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,186

$122 DOP 7,441

-3.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.8K

$709 DOP 43.4K

57.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.2K

$349 DOP 21.3K

103.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.2K

$1,408 DOP 86.2K

83.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.2K

$615 DOP 37.6K

128.72%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$67.7K

$2,462 DOP 150.8K

47.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$39.8K

$1,351 DOP 82.7K

58.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

$587 DOP 35.9K

61.23%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

13.56

-16.30%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Santo Domingo: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Santo Domingo

$349 31.9% 50.9% $362

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Santo Domingo

$219 20% 31.5% $101

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Santo Domingo

$154 14.1% 22.3% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Santo Domingo

$135 12.3% 13.4% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Santo Domingo

$160 14.7% 27.3% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Santo Domingo

$44 4% 39.1% $28

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Santo Domingo

$33 3% 29.8% $7.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $709 in Santo Domingo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 61% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $48 in Santo Domingo. Groceries flip the comparison at $320 vs $219, with Santo Domingo cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇩🇴 Santo Domingo

🕒 Local time

17:13 5:13 PM

19:13 7:13 PM

2 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

965,040 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Dominican Peso DOP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 DOP = 1.63 USD

100 DOP = 1.47 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

DOP, 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).

Dominican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 61.24 DOP (100 DOP = 1.63 USD). 1 EUR = 68.17 DOP (100 DOP = 1.47 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mexico City Santo Domingo 3,070 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Santo Domingo

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 Santo Domingo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $1,094 in Santo Domingo, so Santo Domingo is about 32% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 61% 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: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $709 in Santo Domingo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $245 in Santo Domingo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

A monthly transit pass in Santo Domingo runs roughly 17% less than in Mexico City. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

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

For families, Santo Domingo is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Mexico City, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

It comes down to priorities – Santo Domingo wins on affordability, Mexico City on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.