Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Skien

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,567 a month against $2,336 in Skien, rent and utilities included – about $9,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
113

Cost of Living Index in Skien
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Skien Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Skien

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,336

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Skien

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,567 in Mexico City versus $2,336 in Skien.

Mexico City $1,567
Skien $2,336

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,450 in Mexico City versus $3,267 in Skien.

Mexico City $2,450
Skien $3,267

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,333 in Mexico City versus $4,197 in Skien.

Mexico City $3,333
Skien $4,197

Living in Mexico City costs roughly 33% less than in Skien, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 16% above, Skien 73% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.75 MX$199

$21.21 NOK 200

-49.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.3 MX$929

$103 NOK 971

-51.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.10 MX$205

$15.47 NOK 146

-28.25%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.1

$5.11 NOK 48.11

-27.98%

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

$1.65 MX$30.42

$4.36 NOK 41.01

-62.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 MX$24.08

$2.97 NOK 27.96

-56.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.32 MX$61.3

$11.89 NOK 112

-72.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.54 MX$102

$12.33 NOK 116

-55.07%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.77 MX$32.68

$2.11 NOK 19.84

-16.11%

White Bread (500g)

$3.05 MX$56.4

$3.92 NOK 36.90

-22.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.20

$4.57 NOK 42.98

-56.02%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.1

$5.66 NOK 53.3

-51.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.91 MX$220

$13.16 NOK 124

-9.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.33 MX$172

$15.17 NOK 143

-38.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.02 MX$278

$21.79 NOK 205

-31.07%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 MX$56.8

$3.35 NOK 31.49

-8.06%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.97

$2.70 NOK 25.42

-27.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.54

$3.49 NOK 32.86

-41.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.21 MX$40.92

$5.95 NOK 56.0

-62.86%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.41

$2.24 NOK 21.04

-9.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.67

$2.78 NOK 26.12

-34.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$3.04 NOK 28.63

-50.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 MX$23.65

$2.48 NOK 23.33

-48.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.27 MX$97.4

$19.02 NOK 179

-72.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.12 MX$298

$15.76 NOK 148

2.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 MX$36.05

$3.35 NOK 31.58

-41.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$78.6

$4.33 NOK 40.76

-1.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.82

$3.26 NOK 30.64

-90.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.85 MX$367

$47.91 NOK 451

-58.57%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 MX$36.93

$11.13 NOK 105

-82.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.86

$1.81 NOK 17.02

-70.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.62 MX$104

$70.8 NOK 667

-92.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$2.27 NOK 21.39

-33.04%

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

$21.0K MX$388.7K

$47.5K NOK 447.3K

-55.73%

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

$25.2K MX$465.3K

$43.4K NOK 408.1K

-41.92%

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

$62.5 MX$1,155

$93.9 NOK 884

-33.42%

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

$28.77 MX$532

$33.89 NOK 319

-15.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.45 MX$637

$53.6 NOK 504

-35.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,055

$43.10 NOK 406

32.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 MX$458

Cinema Ticket

$6.67 MX$123

$15.29 NOK 144

-56.38%

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

$431 MX$7,964

$239 NOK 2,247

80.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.7K MX$216.9K

$15.7K NOK 148.1K

-25.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.8 MX$1,308

$63.7 NOK 600

11.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.8 MX$958

$60.4 NOK 568

-14.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 MX$2,011

$87.9 NOK 827

23.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 MX$2,076

$153 NOK 1,442

-26.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,051 MX$19.4K

$1,042 NOK 9,811

0.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$665 MX$12.3K

$975 NOK 9,183

-31.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,346 MX$43.3K

$1,035 NOK 9,746

126.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,227 MX$22.7K

$939 NOK 8,841

30.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,554 MX$65.7K

$3,395 NOK 32.0K

4.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,977 MX$36.5K

$3,149 NOK 29.6K

-37.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$975 MX$18.0K

$4,236 NOK 39.9K

-76.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

4.37

158.58%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Last update for Skien: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$665 42.4%

Skien

$975 41.8% 46.7% $310

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$323 20.6%

Skien

$470 20.1% 45.5% $147

Eating Out

Mexico City

$203 13%

Skien

$391 16.7% 92.5% $188

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$155 9.9%

Skien

$164 7% 6.2% $9.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 8%

Skien

$181 7.8% 44.2% $56

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$70 4.5%

Skien

$74 3.2% 4.6% $3.3

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.6%

Skien

$81 3.5% 215% $55

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,051 in Mexico City and $1,042 in Skien. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Skien pays 335% 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: $50.0 in Mexico City vs $103 in Skien for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $323 vs $470 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇳🇴 Skien

🕒 Local time

09:42 9:42 AM

17:42 5:42 PM

8 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

56,769

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Mexico City Skien 9,170 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Skien

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 Skien: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City and Skien differ by about 49% in total monthly costs ($1,567 vs $2,336 including rent). Mexico City is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 335% lower in Skien. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,051 in Mexico City versus $1,042 in Skien. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 141% less than in Skien. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $431 in Mexico City versus $239 in Skien. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,567 in Mexico City versus $2,336 in Skien, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in Skien. The gap between the two cities makes Mexico City the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Mexico City and Skien are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Mexico City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 49% less than in Skien. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.