Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Stara Zagora

For one person, living is cheaper in Stara Zagora: $908 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Mexico City, Mexico
Stara Zagora, Bulgaria
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,608
/mo nomad
Stara Zagora
🇧🇬 Bulgaria
$908
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Stara Zagora

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $908 in Stara Zagora.

  • Mexico City $1,608
  • Stara Zagora $908

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,415 in Stara Zagora.

  • Mexico City $2,549
  • Stara Zagora $1,415

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $1,921 in Stara Zagora.

  • Mexico City $3,490
  • Stara Zagora $1,921

Living in Mexico City is roughly 77% more expensive than in Stara Zagora, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Stara Zagora is 33% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Mexico City
Stara Zagora
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.62 MX$200
$10.38 BGN 18.16
2.31%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$48.35 MX$909
$51.7 BGN 90.5
-6.53%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.35 MX$194
$9.15 BGN 16.02
13.11%
Cappuccino
$3.69 MX$69.4
$2.34 BGN 4.09
57.69%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.67 MX$31.32
$1.50 BGN 2.62
11.33%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.27 MX$23.78
$0.87 BGN 1.52
45.98%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.19 MX$60.0
$2.21 BGN 3.87
44.34%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.31 MX$99.7
$2.03 BGN 3.56
161.58%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
Stara Zagora
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.72 MX$32.41
$1.73 BGN 3.02
-0.58%
White Bread (500g)
$3.04 MX$57.1
$0.86 BGN 1.51
253.49%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.94 MX$36.48
$1.45 BGN 2.54
33.79%
Eggs
$2.89 MX$54.3
$2.36 BGN 4.12
22.46%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.97 MX$206
$9.38 BGN 16.42
16.95%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.25 MX$174
$6.39 BGN 11.18
44.76%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.13 MX$284
$8.59 BGN 15.03
76.14%
Apples (1kg)
$3.05 MX$57.3
$1.25 BGN 2.19
144.00%
Banana (1kg)
$1.94 MX$36.48
$1.70 BGN 2.98
14.12%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.03 MX$38.06
$1.76 BGN 3.08
15.34%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.31 MX$43.50
$1.93 BGN 3.38
19.69%
Potato (1kg)
$2.04 MX$38.25
$1.00 BGN 1.74
104.00%
Onion (1kg)
$1.80 MX$33.83
$0.72 BGN 1.26
150.00%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.48 MX$27.80
$0.55 BGN 0.97
169.09%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.27 MX$23.82
$0.63 BGN 1.10
101.59%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.30 MX$99.7
$3.64 BGN 6.38
45.60%
Wine (Bottle)
$16.10 MX$303
$5.25 BGN 9.18
206.67%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.98 MX$37.27
$1.09 BGN 1.91
81.65%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.25 MX$79.9
$1.73 BGN 3.03
145.66%
🚌 Getting Around
Mexico City
Stara Zagora
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.31 MX$5.73
$0.85 BGN 1.49
-63.53%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$19.73 MX$371
$20.45 BGN 35.79
-3.52%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.84 MX$34.53
$1.29 BGN 2.26
42.64%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.53 MX$10.03
$0.64 BGN 1.13
-17.19%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.30 MX$99.5
$11.40 BGN 19.95
-53.51%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.51 MX$28.39
$1.57 BGN 2.75
-3.82%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.8K MX$408.8K
$29.7K BGN 52.0K
-26.83%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.0K MX$450.8K
$23.5K BGN 41.1K
2.17%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
Stara Zagora
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$63.0 MX$1,184
$91.4 BGN 160
-31.06%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$27.39 MX$515
$14.59 BGN 25.53
87.73%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$35.67 MX$670
$12.26 BGN 21.46
190.95%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
Stara Zagora
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$58.9 MX$1,108
$33.21 BGN 58.1
77.48%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$23.64 MX$444
$21.06 BGN 36.86
12.25%
Cinema Ticket
$6.40 MX$120
$8.89 BGN 15.55
-28.01%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Mexico City
Stara Zagora
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$432 MX$8,111
$227 BGN 398
89.72%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.4K MX$214.7K
$2,270 BGN 3,972
403.27%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
Stara Zagora
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$68.2 MX$1,282
$30.35 BGN 53.1
124.78%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$53.1 MX$999
$19.39 BGN 33.93
174.01%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$108 MX$2,026
$64.0 BGN 112
68.38%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$117 MX$2,204
$51.9 BGN 90.8
126.13%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
Stara Zagora
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,113 MX$20.9K
$330 BGN 577
237.91%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$710 MX$13.4K
$279 BGN 489
154.45%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,588 MX$48.6K
$498 BGN 871
419.91%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,406 MX$26.4K
$399 BGN 699
252.24%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,631 MX$68.2K
$1,506 BGN 2,635
141.18%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,135 MX$40.1K
$1,109 BGN 1,941
92.51%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Mexico City
Stara Zagora
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$946 MX$17.8K
$1,067 BGN 1,867
-11.29%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.35
2.99
279.60%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Stara Zagora: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Mexico City
$710
Stara Zagora
$279 60.7% $431
Groceries & Markets
Mexico City
$320
Stara Zagora
$194 39.4% $126
Eating Out
Mexico City
$199
Stara Zagora
$163 17.9% $36
Clothing & Footwear
Mexico City
$156
Stara Zagora
$75 52.2% $81
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexico City
$126
Stara Zagora
$118 6.2% $7.8
Sport & Entertainment
Mexico City
$72
Stara Zagora
$51 28.9% $21
Getting Around
Mexico City
$25
Stara Zagora
$28 11.4% $2.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $330 in Stara Zagora. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Stara Zagora pays 13% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $52 in Stara Zagora. Groceries flip the comparison at $320 vs $194, with Stara Zagora cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🇧🇬 Stara Zagora
🕒 Local time
03:04 3:04 AM
11:04 11:04 AM
8 h ahead of Mexico City
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
9,209,944 Capital
149,266
💱 Currency
Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.
Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.97 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.75 BGN (1 BGN = 0.571 USD). 1 EUR = 1.95 BGN (1 BGN = 0.512 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Mexico City Stara Zagora 11,110 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Mexico City
  • Stara Zagora

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 Stara Zagora: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Mexico City and in Stara Zagora?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $908 in Stara Zagora, so Stara Zagora is about 44% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city has better-paying jobs?
On paper, salaries run 11% lower in Mexico City. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
How do apartment prices compare in Mexico City and in Stara Zagora?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $330 in Stara Zagora. 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 Stara Zagora?
A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 4% less than in Stara Zagora. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Mexico City and Stara Zagora?
Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $227 in Stara Zagora. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city is more doable on $1,200 per month?
At $908 in Stara Zagora versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Stara Zagora but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Stara Zagora the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Mexico City and Stara Zagora?
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.

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