Medellin
🇨🇴 Colombia
77
Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more Last update: Oct 2026
Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and South Africa
For one person, living is cheaper in South Africa: $1,182 a month against $1,561 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.
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😐 Solo nomad: Mexico City is 25.1% more expensive than South Africa without rent, and 32% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Mexico City is 27.4% more expensive than South Africa without rent, and 31.6% more expensive with rent.
🍽 Eating Out
Mexico City
South Africa
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.12 MX$204
$10.64 R 176
4.51%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$48.99 MX$900
$41.40 R 683
18.33%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.23 MX$206
$5.60 R 92.4
100.54%
Cappuccino
$3.76 MX$69.0
$2.28 R 37.63
64.91%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.65 MX$30.34
$1.16 R 19.17
42.24%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.28 MX$23.48
$0.92 R 15.22
39.13%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.26 MX$59.8
$2.45 R 40.40
33.06%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.66 MX$104
$2.95 R 48.69
91.86%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
South Africa
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.81 MX$33.23
$1.19 R 19.63
52.10%
White Bread (500g)
$2.94 MX$54.0
$1.12 R 18.42
162.50%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.05 MX$37.62
$1.79 R 29.58
14.53%
Eggs
$2.93 MX$53.7
$2.48 R 40.88
18.15%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.95 MX$219
$8.08 R 133
47.90%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.51 MX$175
$5.13 R 84.7
85.38%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$14.84 MX$273
$7.81 R 129
90.01%
Apples (1kg)
$3.14 MX$57.7
$1.87 R 30.78
67.91%
Banana (1kg)
$2.01 MX$36.99
$1.66 R 27.42
21.08%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.08 MX$38.10
$1.77 R 29.15
17.51%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.22 MX$40.72
$1.80 R 29.67
23.33%
Potato (1kg)
$2.06 MX$37.82
$1.49 R 24.53
38.26%
Onion (1kg)
$1.88 MX$34.46
$1.50 R 24.71
25.33%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.48 MX$27.18
$1.28 R 21.16
15.62%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.35 MX$24.70
$1.09 R 17.97
23.85%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.41 MX$99.3
$3.22 R 53.2
68.01%
Wine (Bottle)
$16.86 MX$310
$4.93 R 81.3
241.99%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.98 MX$36.43
$1.48 R 24.47
33.78%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.32 MX$79.4
$2.01 R 33.09
114.93%
🚌 Getting Around
Mexico City
South Africa
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.34 MX$6.33
$1.60 R 26.39
-78.75%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$20.23 MX$371
$60.7 R 1,001
-66.66%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.10 MX$38.47
$1.09 R 17.98
92.66%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.53 MX$9.74
$0.98 R 16.23
-45.92%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.41 MX$99.3
$7.42 R 122
-27.09%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.52 MX$27.91
$1.49 R 24.63
2.01%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.7K MX$399.0K
$35.0K R 578.2K
-38.00%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.8K MX$455.6K
$31.6K R 521.1K
-21.44%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
South Africa
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$63.0 MX$1,156
$131 R 2,168
-52.08%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$28.88 MX$530
$34.71 R 573
-16.80%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$33.93 MX$623
$39.94 R 659
-15.05%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
South Africa
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$55.8 MX$1,024
$33.88 R 559
64.64%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$24.90 MX$457
$11.39 R 188
118.61%
Cinema Ticket
$6.77 MX$124
$7.31 R 121
-7.39%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Mexico City
South Africa
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$428 MX$7,854
$225 R 3,715
89.96%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.9K MX$218.0K
$5,485 R 90.5K
116.44%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
South Africa
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$70.0 MX$1,286
$52.0 R 858
34.72%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$53.7 MX$986
$33.30 R 549
61.35%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$110 MX$2,016
$99.4 R 1,640
10.43%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$115 MX$2,115
$87.4 R 1,441
31.88%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
South Africa
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,062 MX$19.5K
$480 R 7,918
121.40%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$671 MX$12.3K
$406 R 6,692
65.35%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,379 MX$43.7K
$935 R 15.4K
154.44%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,260 MX$23.1K
$796 R 13.1K
58.25%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,716 MX$68.2K
$1,111 R 18.3K
234.56%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,976 MX$36.3K
$777 R 12.8K
154.31%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Mexico City
South Africa
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$997 MX$18.3K
$1,476 R 24.4K
-32.46%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.3
11.23
0.62%
CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.
Last update for Mexico City: October 6, 2026
Last update for South Africa: October 3, 2026
Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Share of the monthly basket for a family of three, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Mexico City $671 42.4%
South Africa $406 33.6% 39.5% $265
Groceries & Markets
Mexico City $327 20.7%
South Africa $196 16.2% 40.1% $131
Eating Out
Mexico City $207 13.1%
South Africa $156 12.9% 24.8% $51
Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City $157 9.9%
South Africa $122 10.1% 22% $35
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City $126 8%
South Africa $206 17.1% 63.8% $80
Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City $69 4.4%
South Africa $49 4% 30% $21
Getting Around
Mexico City $26 1.7%
South Africa $73 6.1% 177% $47
Accommodation & Living
Mexico City $1.3K 37.3%
South Africa $796 31.3% 36.8% $464
Groceries & Markets
Mexico City $744 22%
South Africa $453 17.8% 39.1% $291
Eating Out
Mexico City $658 19.5%
South Africa $525 20.6% 20.2% $133
Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City $349 10.3%
South Africa $272 10.7% 22% $77
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City $155 4.6%
South Africa $241 9.5% 55.7% $86
Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City $164 4.8%
South Africa $108 4.3% 33.7% $55
Getting Around
Mexico City $53 1.6%
South Africa $149 5.9% 180% $96
Good to know
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🇿🇦 South Africa
Weather
Population
9,209,944 Capital
62,027,503
Exchange rates and currency converter
On the map
Lowest
Highest
Between locations
- Mexico City South Africa 14,420 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight
From you
- Mexico City
- South Africa
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 other spots: cost of living compared
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,561
/mo nomad
Manila
🇵🇭 Philippines
$931
/mo nomad
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,561
/mo nomad
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,215
/mo nomad
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,561
/mo nomad
Medellin
🇨🇴 Colombia
$1,589
/mo nomad
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,561
/mo nomad
Buenos Aires
🇦🇷 Argentina
$1,685
/mo nomad
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