Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and South Yarra

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,674 a month against $2,525 in South Yarra, rent and utilities included – about $10,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
121

Cost of Living Index in South Yarra
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South Yarra Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

South Yarra

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,525

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in South Yarra

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,674 in Mexico City versus $2,525 in South Yarra.

Mexico City $1,674
South Yarra $2,525

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,606 in Mexico City versus $3,604 in South Yarra.

Mexico City $2,606
South Yarra $3,604

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,537 in Mexico City versus $4,684 in South Yarra.

Mexico City $3,537
South Yarra $4,684

Living in Mexico City costs roughly 34% less than in South Yarra, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 24% above, South Yarra 87% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.59 MX$197

$17.46 A$24.89

-39.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.0 MX$967

$85.4 A$122

-39.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 MX$200

$8.44 A$12.04

27.13%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$70.7

$3.48 A$4.97

9.20%

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

$1.61 MX$30.01

$2.04 A$2.91

-21.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.55

$1.72 A$2.45

-29.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 MX$59.1

$9.74 A$13.88

-67.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 MX$101

$8.50 A$12.11

-36.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$31.96

$1.57 A$2.23

9.55%

White Bread (500g)

$2.97 MX$55.2

$2.86 A$4.08

3.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 MX$35.84

$1.38 A$1.96

39.86%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.6

$4.11 A$5.86

-32.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.67 MX$217

$9.80 A$13.96

19.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.48 MX$176

$7.04 A$10.03

34.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.37 MX$286

$15.37 A$21.91

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 MX$57.8

$2.79 A$3.97

11.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.49

$2.06 A$2.93

-4.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 MX$36.88

$1.41 A$2.01

40.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.34 MX$43.46

$2.73 A$3.89

-14.29%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.66

$1.37 A$1.96

47.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.95

$2.11 A$3.01

-13.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 MX$28.74

$2.38 A$3.39

-35.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$24.42

$1.40 A$2.00

-6.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.35 MX$99.6

$31.97 A$45.58

-83.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.19 MX$301

$12.82 A$18.27

26.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 MX$36.46

$5.59 A$7.97

-64.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$81.0

$5.33 A$7.60

-18.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.67

$2.76 A$3.94

-89.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$363

$88.0 A$125

-77.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 MX$35.68

$3.81 A$5.43

-49.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 MX$8.80

$1.44 A$2.05

-67.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$101

$29.73 A$42.38

-81.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.61

$1.29 A$1.84

14.73%

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

$21.4K MX$397.7K

$29.7K A$42.3K

-27.93%

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

$23.8K MX$442.1K

$25.8K A$36.8K

-7.97%

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

$62.0 MX$1,154

$237 A$338

-73.83%

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

$28.47 MX$530

$26.63 A$37.97

6.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.11 MX$635

$41.26 A$58.8

-17.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.4 MX$1,087

$58.2 A$82.9

0.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$456

$15.45 A$22.02

58.58%

Cinema Ticket

$6.59 MX$123

$16.75 A$23.87

-60.66%

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

$434 MX$8,081

$2,471 A$3,523

-82.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.0K MX$261.2K

$33.9K A$48.3K

-58.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.4 MX$1,272

$79.7 A$114

-14.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.8 MX$1,020

$50.3 A$71.8

8.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 MX$2,063

$122 A$174

-9.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 MX$2,159

$133 A$190

-12.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$21.9K

$1,404 A$2,002

-16.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$771 MX$14.3K

$1,236 A$1,762

-37.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,570 MX$47.8K

$2,308 A$3,290

11.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,420 MX$26.4K

$1,823 A$2,599

-22.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,586 MX$66.7K

$4,976 A$7,093

-27.94%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.4K

$4,912 A$7,003

-57.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

5.94

91.08%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for South Yarra: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$771 46.1%

South Yarra

$1.2K 49% 60.3% $465

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$324 19.3%

South Yarra

$321 12.7% 0.7% $2.1

Eating Out

Mexico City

$201 12%

South Yarra

$288 11.4% 43.4% $87

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$158 9.4%

South Yarra

$173 6.9% 10% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$125 7.4%

South Yarra

$305 12.1% 145% $180

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.3%

South Yarra

$92 3.6% 28.1% $20

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.5%

South Yarra

$110 4.4% 340% $85

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,179 in Mexico City and $1,404 in South Yarra. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $52 in Mexico City vs $85 in South Yarra. Groceries flip the comparison at $324 vs $321, with South Yarra cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇦🇺 South Yarra

🕒 Local time

08:35 8:35 AM

01:35 1:35 AM

17 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

25,147

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.79 EUR

1 AUD = 0.701 USD

1 AUD = 0.626 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.86 MXN (100 MXN = 4.79 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.701 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.626 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City South Yarra 13,560 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
South Yarra

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 South Yarra: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,674 in Mexico City and $2,525 in South Yarra, so Mexico City is about 34% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,510 in Mexico City and $3,787 in South Yarra to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,179 in Mexico City versus $1,404 in South Yarra. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $434 in Mexico City versus $2,471 in South Yarra. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Mexico City – a meal for two runs $52 versus $85 in South Yarra. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Mexico City gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.