Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and St Helens

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,567 a month against $1,993 in St Helens, rent and utilities included – about $5,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
97

Cost of Living Index in St Helens
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St Helens Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

St Helens

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,993

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in St Helens

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,567 in Mexico City versus $1,993 in St Helens.

Mexico City $1,567
St Helens $1,993

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,450 in Mexico City versus $3,045 in St Helens.

Mexico City $2,450
St Helens $3,045

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,333 in Mexico City versus $4,098 in St Helens.

Mexico City $3,333
St Helens $4,098

Living in Mexico City costs roughly 21% less than in St Helens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 16% above, St Helens 48% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.75 MX$199

$26.90 £20.18

-60.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.3 MX$929

$78.6 £59.0

-36.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.10 MX$205

$10.48 £7.86

5.92%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.1

$4.08 £3.06

-9.80%

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

$1.65 MX$30.42

$2.37 £1.78

-30.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 MX$24.08

$1.99 £1.50

-34.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.32 MX$61.3

$5.36 £4.02

-38.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.54 MX$102

$4.54 £3.41

22.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.77 MX$32.68

$1.34 £1.01

32.09%

White Bread (500g)

$3.05 MX$56.4

$1.77 £1.33

72.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.20

$1.94 £1.46

3.61%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.1

$4.01 £3.01

-30.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.91 MX$220

$9.00 £6.75

32.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.33 MX$172

$8.28 £6.21

12.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.02 MX$278

$10.66 £7.99

40.90%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 MX$56.8

$3.25 £2.44

-5.23%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.97

$1.30 £0.97

50.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.54

$3.03 £2.27

-33.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.21 MX$40.92

$3.45 £2.59

-35.94%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.41

$1.15 £0.86

75.65%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.67

$1.83 £1.37

-0.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$1.30 £0.98

16.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 MX$23.65

$1.30 £0.98

-1.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.27 MX$97.4

$19.59 £14.70

-73.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.12 MX$298

$9.96 £7.47

61.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 MX$36.05

$2.86 £2.14

-31.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$78.6

$2.61 £1.95

62.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.82

$2.65 £1.99

-88.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.85 MX$367

$100 £75.1

-80.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 MX$36.93

$3.37 £2.53

-40.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.86

$2.07 £1.56

-74.40%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.62 MX$104

$15.82 £11.87

-64.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$28.07

$1.94 £1.46

-21.65%

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

$21.0K MX$388.7K

$26.4K £19.8K

-20.37%

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

$25.2K MX$465.3K

$33.6K £25.2K

-25.15%

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

$62.5 MX$1,155

$365 £274

-82.86%

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

$28.77 MX$532

$17.20 £12.91

67.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.45 MX$637

$43.87 £32.91

-21.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,055

$26.94 £20.21

111.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 MX$458

$3.85 £2.89

544.42%

Cinema Ticket

$6.67 MX$123

$13.42 £10.07

-50.30%

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

$431 MX$7,964

$805 £604

-46.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.7K MX$216.9K

$6,625 £4,971

77.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.8 MX$1,308

$65.0 £48.78

8.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.8 MX$958

$39.08 £29.32

32.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 MX$2,011

$72.3 £54.3

50.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 MX$2,076

$109 £81.7

3.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,051 MX$19.4K

$797 £598

31.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$665 MX$12.3K

$636 £477

4.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,346 MX$43.3K

$1,503 £1,128

56.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,227 MX$22.7K

$1,257 £943

-2.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,554 MX$65.7K

$3,315 £2,487

7.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,977 MX$36.5K

$2,308 £1,731

-14.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$975 MX$18.0K

$1,863 £1,398

-47.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

5.21

116.89%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Last update for St Helens: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$665 42.4%

St Helens

$636 31.9% 4.4% $29

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$323 20.6%

St Helens

$276 13.9% 14.4% $47

Eating Out

Mexico City

$203 13%

St Helens

$349 17.5% 71.9% $146

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$155 9.9%

St Helens

$128 6.4% 17% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 8%

St Helens

$426 21.4% 239% $300

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$70 4.5%

St Helens

$54 2.7% 23.7% $17

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.6%

St Helens

$124 6.2% 383% $99

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,051 in Mexico City and $797 in St Helens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

St Helens pays 91% 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 $79.0 in St Helens. Groceries flip the comparison at $323 vs $276, with St Helens cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇬🇧 St Helens

🕒 Local time

18:32 6:32 PM

01:32 1:32 AM

7 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

183,200

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mexico City St Helens 8,690 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
St Helens

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 St Helens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City and St Helens differ by about 27% in total monthly costs ($1,567 vs $1,993 including rent). Mexico City is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 91% lower in St Helens. 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 $797 in St Helens. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 404% less than in St Helens. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $431 in Mexico City versus $805 in St Helens. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,567 in Mexico City versus $1,993 in St Helens, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in St Helens. 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.

Expats usually find Mexico City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 27% less than in St Helens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.