Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Souk Ahras

For one person, living is cheaper in Souk Ahras: $500 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $13,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Mexico City, Mexico
Souk Ahras, Algeria
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,608
/mo nomad
Souk Ahras
🇩🇿 Algeria
$500
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Souk Ahras

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $500 in Souk Ahras.

  • Mexico City $1,608
  • Souk Ahras $500

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $782 in Souk Ahras.

  • Mexico City $2,549
  • Souk Ahras $782

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $1,065 in Souk Ahras.

  • Mexico City $3,490
  • Souk Ahras $1,065

Living in Mexico City is roughly 222% more expensive than in Souk Ahras, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Souk Ahras is 63% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Mexico City
Souk Ahras
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.62 MX$198
$2.24 DZD 302
374.11%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$48.35 MX$901
$10.47 DZD 1,409
361.80%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.35 MX$193
$4.10 DZD 551
152.44%
Cappuccino
$3.69 MX$68.7
$0.67 DZD 90.0
450.75%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.67 MX$31.05
$0.48 DZD 64.8
247.92%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.27 MX$23.58
$0.23 DZD 30.72
452.17%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.19 MX$59.5
$1.70 DZD 228
87.65%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.31 MX$98.9
$2.45 DZD 329
116.73%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
Souk Ahras
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.72 MX$32.13
$0.83 DZD 112
107.23%
White Bread (500g)
$3.04 MX$56.6
$0.17 DZD 22.22
1688.24%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.94 MX$36.17
$1.26 DZD 169
53.97%
Eggs
$2.89 MX$53.8
$1.19 DZD 160
142.86%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.97 MX$204
$3.32 DZD 446
230.42%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.25 MX$172
$2.82 DZD 380
228.01%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.13 MX$282
$16.44 DZD 2,212
-7.97%
Apples (1kg)
$3.05 MX$56.8
$1.45 DZD 195
110.34%
Banana (1kg)
$1.94 MX$36.17
$2.88 DZD 388
-32.64%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.03 MX$37.73
$1.10 DZD 149
84.55%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.31 MX$43.12
$0.97 DZD 130
138.14%
Potato (1kg)
$2.04 MX$37.91
$0.40 DZD 53.3
410.00%
Onion (1kg)
$1.80 MX$33.53
$0.38 DZD 50.9
373.68%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.48 MX$27.56
$0.22 DZD 29.41
572.73%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.27 MX$23.62
$0.28 DZD 37.89
353.57%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.30 MX$98.8
$2.17 DZD 292
144.24%
Wine (Bottle)
$16.10 MX$300
$6.68 DZD 899
141.02%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.98 MX$36.95
$1.08 DZD 145
83.33%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.25 MX$79.2
$2.18 DZD 294
94.95%
🚌 Getting Around
Mexico City
Souk Ahras
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.31 MX$5.68
$0.18 DZD 23.69
72.22%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$19.73 MX$368
$6.28 DZD 845
214.17%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.84 MX$34.23
$0.57 DZD 76.4
222.81%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.53 MX$9.94
$0.52 DZD 70.6
1.92%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.30 MX$98.7
$4.60 DZD 619
15.22%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.51 MX$28.14
$0.33 DZD 43.78
357.58%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.8K MX$405.3K
$32.0K DZD 4.3M
-32.01%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.0K MX$446.9K
$34.1K DZD 4.6M
-29.60%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
Souk Ahras
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$63.0 MX$1,173
$36.36 DZD 4,892
73.21%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$27.39 MX$510
$9.31 DZD 1,252
194.20%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$35.67 MX$664
$19.12 DZD 2,573
86.56%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
Souk Ahras
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$58.9 MX$1,098
$11.80 DZD 1,587
399.49%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$23.64 MX$441
$3.79 DZD 511
523.75%
Cinema Ticket
$6.40 MX$119
$4.59 DZD 618
39.43%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Mexico City
Souk Ahras
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$432 MX$8,041
$88.1 DZD 11.9K
389.66%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.4K MX$212.8K
$4,890 DZD 657.9K
133.62%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
Souk Ahras
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$68.2 MX$1,271
$30.07 DZD 4,046
126.87%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$53.1 MX$990
$36.06 DZD 4,852
47.34%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$108 MX$2,008
$76.6 DZD 10.3K
40.74%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$117 MX$2,185
$78.1 DZD 10.5K
50.13%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
Souk Ahras
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,113 MX$20.7K
$144 DZD 19.3K
674.78%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$710 MX$13.2K
$93.6 DZD 12.6K
659.12%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,588 MX$48.2K
$292 DZD 39.3K
785.27%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,406 MX$26.2K
$175 DZD 23.5K
704.22%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,631 MX$67.6K
$966 DZD 129.9K
276.02%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,135 MX$39.8K
$1,030 DZD 138.6K
107.33%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Mexico City
Souk Ahras
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$946 MX$17.6K
$288 DZD 38.8K
228.24%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.35
5.3
114.15%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Souk Ahras: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
$710
Souk Ahras
$94 86.8% $617
Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
$320
Souk Ahras
$156 51.1% $163
Eating Out
Mexico City
$199
Souk Ahras
$54 72.6% $144
Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
$156
Souk Ahras
$99 36.3% $57
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
$126
Souk Ahras
$65 48.6% $61
Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
$72
Souk Ahras
$21 70.8% $51
Getting Around
Mexico City
$25
Souk Ahras
$10 60% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $144 in Souk Ahras. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays about 3.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $10 in Souk Ahras for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $156 per month, with Souk Ahras cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🇩🇿 Souk Ahras
🕒 Local time
19:23 7:23 PM
02:23 2:23 AM
7 h ahead of Mexico City
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
9,209,944 Capital
155,259
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

DZD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.63 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.74 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Algerian Dinar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 135 DZD (1,000 DZD = 7.43 USD). 1 EUR = 150 DZD (1,000 DZD = 6.68 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Mexico City Souk Ahras 10,180 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Mexico City
  • Souk Ahras

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 Souk Ahras: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Mexico City and in Souk Ahras?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $500 in Souk Ahras, so Souk Ahras is about 69% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city pays better: Mexico City or Souk Ahras?
Average pay in Mexico City is about 3.3 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
How do apartment prices compare in Mexico City and in Souk Ahras?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $144 in Souk Ahras. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How do commuting costs compare in Mexico City and in Souk Ahras?
A monthly transit pass in Souk Ahras runs roughly 68% less than in Mexico City. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Mexico City and Souk Ahras?
Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $88 in Souk Ahras. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city is more doable on $1,000 per month?
At $500 in Souk Ahras versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Souk Ahras but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Souk Ahras the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Mexico City and Souk Ahras?
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.
Where should expats move: Mexico City or Souk Ahras?
Expats usually find Souk Ahras gentler on the wallet – expenses run 69% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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