Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Skopje

For one person, living is cheaper in Skopje: $1,131 a month against $1,561 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
54

Cost of Living Index in Skopje
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Skopje Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,561

/mo nomad

Skopje

🇲🇰 North Macedonia

$1,131

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,561 in Mexico City versus $1,131 in Skopje.

Mexico City $1,561
Skopje $1,131

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,440 in Mexico City versus $1,675 in Skopje.

Mexico City $2,440
Skopje $1,675

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,319 in Mexico City versus $2,220 in Skopje.

Mexico City $3,319
Skopje $2,220

Living in Mexico City is roughly 38% more expensive than in Skopje, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 16% above, Skopje is 16% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.12 MX$204

$9.58 MKD 525

16.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.99 MX$900

$34.25 MKD 1,877

43.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.23 MX$206

$6.45 MKD 353

74.11%

Cappuccino

$3.76 MX$69.0

$2.14 MKD 117

75.70%

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

$1.65 MX$30.34

$1.81 MKD 98.9

-8.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.28 MX$23.48

$1.31 MKD 71.9

-2.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.26 MX$59.8

$2.71 MKD 149

20.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.66 MX$104

$3.11 MKD 171

81.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 MX$33.23

$1.29 MKD 70.4

40.31%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 MX$54.0

$0.74 MKD 40.67

297.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.05 MX$37.62

$1.84 MKD 101

11.41%

Eggs

$2.93 MX$53.7

$2.52 MKD 138

16.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.95 MX$219

$7.89 MKD 433

51.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.51 MX$175

$7.57 MKD 415

25.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.84 MX$273

$15.00 MKD 822

-1.07%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 MX$57.7

$1.48 MKD 81.0

112.16%

Banana (1kg)

$2.01 MX$36.99

$1.45 MKD 79.6

38.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.08 MX$38.10

$1.34 MKD 73.4

55.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.22 MX$40.72

$1.95 MKD 107

13.85%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$37.82

$0.90 MKD 49.33

128.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.88 MX$34.46

$0.85 MKD 46.40

121.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.18

$0.64 MKD 34.81

131.25%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 MX$24.70

$0.55 MKD 30.01

145.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.41 MX$99.3

$3.52 MKD 193

53.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.86 MX$310

$7.06 MKD 387

138.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.43

$1.06 MKD 58.1

86.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.32 MX$79.4

$1.44 MKD 79.2

200.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 MX$6.33

$0.75 MKD 41.26

-54.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.23 MX$371

$27.74 MKD 1,520

-27.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.10 MX$38.47

$1.11 MKD 60.8

89.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.74

$0.62 MKD 33.87

-14.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$99.3

$7.71 MKD 422

-29.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$27.91

$1.62 MKD 88.5

-6.17%

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

$21.7K MX$399.0K

$34.9K MKD 1.9M

-37.80%

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

$24.8K MX$455.6K

$27.7K MKD 1.5M

-10.44%

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

$63.0 MX$1,156

$153 MKD 8,410

-58.97%

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

$28.88 MX$530

$18.75 MKD 1,027

54.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.93 MX$623

$19.33 MKD 1,059

75.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.8 MX$1,024

$38.53 MKD 2,111

44.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.90 MX$457

$17.65 MKD 967

41.08%

Cinema Ticket

$6.77 MX$124

$7.15 MKD 392

-5.31%

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

$428 MX$7,854

$358 MKD 19.6K

19.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K MX$218.0K

$5,690 MKD 311.8K

108.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.0 MX$1,286

$84.1 MKD 4,610

-16.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.7 MX$986

$37.22 MKD 2,040

44.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 MX$2,016

$103 MKD 5,620

7.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 MX$2,115

$112 MKD 6,136

2.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,062 MX$19.5K

$416 MKD 22.8K

155.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$671 MX$12.3K

$327 MKD 17.9K

105.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,379 MX$43.7K

$731 MKD 40.1K

225.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,260 MX$23.1K

$497 MKD 27.2K

153.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,716 MX$68.2K

$2,702 MKD 148.1K

37.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,976 MX$36.3K

$1,807 MKD 99.0K

9.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$997 MX$18.3K

$877 MKD 48.1K

13.67%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

4.23

167.14%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 6, 2026

Last update for Skopje: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$671 42.4%

Skopje

$327 29.1% 51.3% $344

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$327 20.7%

Skopje

$211 18.8% 35.4% $116

Eating Out

Mexico City

$207 13.1%

Skopje

$154 13.7% 25.7% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$157 9.9%

Skopje

$151 13.5% 3.7% $5.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 8%

Skopje

$192 17.1% 52.3% $66

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$69 4.4%

Skopje

$53 4.7% 23.8% $17

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.7%

Skopje

$35 3.1% 32.6% $8.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,062 in Mexico City and $416 in Skopje. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 14% 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: $49.00 in Mexico City vs $34.00 in Skopje for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $327 vs $211 per month, with Skopje cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇲🇰 Skopje

🕒 Local time

03:50 3:50 AM

11:50 11:50 AM

8 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

422,540 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

North Macedonian Denar MKD ден

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

100 MKD = 1.82 USD

100 MKD = 1.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MKD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.57 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

North Macedonian Denar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 54.8 MKD (100 MKD = 1.82 USD). 1 EUR = 61.41 MKD (100 MKD = 1.63 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Skopje 10,860 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Skopje

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 Skopje: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City and Skopje differ by about 38% in total monthly costs ($1,561 vs $1,131 including rent). Skopje is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 14% 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: $1,062 in Mexico City versus $416 in Skopje. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Skopje runs roughly 37% less than in Mexico City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $428 in Mexico City versus $358 in Skopje. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,131 in Skopje versus $1,561 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Skopje but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Skopje 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.

Expats usually find Skopje gentler on the wallet – expenses run 38% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.