Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Sao Jose dos Campos

For one person, living is cheaper in Sao Jose dos Campos: $1,037 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 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
50

Cost of Living Index in Sao Jose dos Campos
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Sao Jose dos Campos Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Sao Jose dos Campos

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,037

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Sao Jose dos Campos

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 Sao Jose dos Campos actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $1,037 in Sao Jose dos Campos.

Mexico City $1,608
Sao Jose dos Campos $1,037

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,613 in Sao Jose dos Campos.

Mexico City $2,549
Sao Jose dos Campos $1,613

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $2,189 in Sao Jose dos Campos.

Mexico City $3,490
Sao Jose dos Campos $2,189

Living in Mexico City is roughly 55% more expensive than in Sao Jose dos Campos, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Sao Jose dos Campos is 24% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$199

$6.55 R$35.63

62.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$906

$37.92 R$206

27.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$194

$8.27 R$44.97

25.15%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$69.2

$2.06 R$11.19

79.13%

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

$1.67 MX$31.23

$1.58 R$8.60

5.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.71

$1.12 R$6.11

13.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.8

$2.54 R$13.81

25.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$99.5

$4.12 R$22.42

28.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.32

$1.16 R$6.30

48.28%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$57.0

$1.90 R$10.36

60.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.38

$1.10 R$6.00

76.36%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$54.1

$2.58 R$14.01

12.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$206

$8.51 R$46.25

28.91%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$173

$4.23 R$23.02

118.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$283

$10.17 R$55.3

48.77%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$57.1

$2.55 R$13.88

19.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.38

$1.75 R$9.49

10.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.95

$1.72 R$9.37

18.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.38

$1.74 R$9.48

32.76%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$38.14

$1.31 R$7.15

55.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.73

$1.28 R$6.97

40.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.72

$0.90 R$4.90

64.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.75

$0.76 R$4.11

67.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$99.4

$2.63 R$14.28

101.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$302

$8.41 R$45.72

91.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$37.16

$1.55 R$8.44

27.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.7

$4.13 R$22.44

2.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.72

$1.10 R$6.00

-71.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$370

$36.63 R$199

-46.14%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.44

$1.19 R$6.45

54.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.00

$1.33 R$7.21

-60.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.2

$8.66 R$47.10

-38.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.31

$1.23 R$6.68

22.76%

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

$21.8K MX$407.7K

$22.4K R$121.6K

-2.69%

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

$24.0K MX$449.5K

$32.0K R$174.2K

-25.16%

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

$63.0 MX$1,180

$40.81 R$222

54.32%

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

$27.39 MX$513

$13.39 R$72.8

104.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$668

$17.24 R$93.7

106.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,105

$27.28 R$148

116.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$443

$32.55 R$177

-27.37%

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$120

$7.56 R$41.12

-15.34%

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

$432 MX$8,088

$404 R$2,196

6.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.1K

$7,234 R$39.3K

57.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,278

$51.8 R$282

31.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$996

$55.6 R$302

-4.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,020

$90.2 R$491

19.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,198

$79.9 R$434

46.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.9K

$476 R$2,586

134.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.3K

$403 R$2,188

76.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.5K

$845 R$4,594

206.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.3K

$666 R$3,620

111.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$68.0K

$1,986 R$10.8K

82.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$40.0K

$1,434 R$7,799

48.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.7K

$765 R$4,159

23.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

11.12

2.07%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Sao Jose dos Campos: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Sao Jose dos Campos

$403 38.8% 43.3% $308

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Sao Jose dos Campos

$213 20.6% 33.2% $106

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Sao Jose dos Campos

$134 12.9% 32.7% $65

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Sao Jose dos Campos

$125 12% 19.9% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Sao Jose dos Campos

$71 6.9% 43.3% $55

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Sao Jose dos Campos

$42 4.1% 40.9% $29

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Sao Jose dos Campos

$49 4.7% 91.9% $23

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $476 in Sao Jose dos Campos. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 24% 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: $48 in Mexico City vs $38 in Sao Jose dos Campos for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $213 per month, with Sao Jose dos Campos cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇧🇷 Sao Jose dos Campos

🕒 Local time

20:36 8:36 PM

23:36 11:36 PM

3 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

697,054

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 EUR

1 BRL = 0.184 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.74 MXN (100 MXN = 5.34 USD). 1 EUR = 21 MXN (100 MXN = 4.76 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 5.44 BRL (1 BRL = 0.184 USD). 1 EUR = 6.09 BRL (1 BRL = 0.164 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Sao Jose dos Campos 7,470 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
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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 Sao Jose dos Campos: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $1,037 in Sao Jose dos Campos, so Sao Jose dos Campos is about 35% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 24% 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 $476 in Sao Jose dos Campos. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 46% less than in Sao Jose dos Campos. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $404 in Sao Jose dos Campos. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Sao Jose dos Campos is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

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