Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Sur

For one person, living is cheaper in Sur: $1,149 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Sur
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Sur Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Sur

🇴🇲 Oman

$1,149

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Sur

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $1,149 in Sur.

Mexico City $1,608
Sur $1,149

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,653 in Sur.

Mexico City $2,549
Sur $1,653

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $2,156 in Sur.

Mexico City $3,490
Sur $2,156

Living in Mexico City is roughly 40% more expensive than in Sur, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Sur is 16% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$198

$3.88 OMR 1.49

173.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$901

$25.96 OMR 9.99

86.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$193

$7.63 OMR 2.94

35.65%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$68.8

$5.05 OMR 1.94

-26.93%

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

$1.67 MX$31.07

$0.73 OMR 0.28

128.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.59

$0.27 OMR 0.10

370.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.5

$12.80 OMR 4.93

-75.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$12.79 OMR 4.92

-58.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.15

$1.59 OMR 0.61

8.18%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$56.7

$1.23 OMR 0.48

147.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.73 OMR 0.66

12.14%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$53.8

$1.95 OMR 0.75

48.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$205

$7.19 OMR 2.77

52.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$172

$6.81 OMR 2.62

35.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$282

$8.99 OMR 3.46

68.30%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$56.8

$2.35 OMR 0.91

29.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.19

$1.28 OMR 0.49

51.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.75

$1.06 OMR 0.41

91.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.15

$0.80 OMR 0.31

188.75%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.94

$0.76 OMR 0.29

168.42%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.55

$0.54 OMR 0.21

233.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.58

$1.55 OMR 0.60

-4.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.63

$0.53 OMR 0.21

139.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$98.9

$6.38 OMR 2.45

-16.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$300

$15.86 OMR 6.11

1.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.97

$6.10 OMR 2.35

-67.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.3

$10.30 OMR 3.96

-58.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.69

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$368

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.25

$3.32 OMR 1.28

-44.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.94

$2.61 OMR 1.01

-79.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$98.7

$7.74 OMR 2.98

-31.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.16

$0.53 OMR 0.20

184.91%

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

$21.8K MX$405.5K

$24.7K OMR 9,491

-11.76%

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

$24.0K MX$447.1K

$20.7K OMR 7,965

15.95%

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

$63.0 MX$1,174

$77.7 OMR 29.90

-18.91%

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

$27.39 MX$511

$23.09 OMR 8.89

18.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$665

$69.7 OMR 26.85

-48.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,099

$86.3 OMR 33.21

-31.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$441

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$119

$10.25 OMR 3.95

-37.56%

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

$432 MX$8,045

$502 OMR 193

-14.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$212.9K

$6,458 OMR 2,486

76.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,272

$56.9 OMR 21.89

19.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$990

$44.07 OMR 16.97

20.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,009

$88.9 OMR 34.23

21.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,186

$88.4 OMR 34.01

32.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.8K

$257 OMR 99.0

333.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.2K

$271 OMR 104

162.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.2K

$467 OMR 180

454.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.2K

$385 OMR 148

265.51%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$67.7K

$583 OMR 224

522.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$39.8K

$515 OMR 198

314.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

$2,660 OMR 1,024

-64.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

5.25

116.19%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Sur: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Sur

$271 23.5% 61.9% $440

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Sur

$252 21.9% 21.1% $68

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Sur

$208 18.1% 4.8% $9.5

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Sur

$125 10.9% 19.7% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Sur

$170 14.8% 35.3% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Sur

$107 9.3% 48.8% $35

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Sur

$16 * 1.4% 35.7% $9.1

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $257 in Sur. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sur pays about 2.8 times 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 $26 in Sur for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $252 per month, with Sur cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇴🇲 Sur

🕒 Local time

12:41 12:41 PM

22:41 10:41 PM

10 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

120,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Omani Rial OMR ر.ع.

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 OMR = 2.6 USD

1 OMR = 2.33 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

OMR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Omani Rial exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.385 OMR (1 OMR = 2.6 USD). 1 EUR = 0.429 OMR (1 OMR = 2.33 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Sur 14,800 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Sur

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 Sur: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City and Sur differ by about 40% in total monthly costs ($1,608 vs $1,149 including rent). Sur is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 64% 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $257 in Sur. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $502 in Sur. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Sur – a meal for two runs $26 versus $48 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,149 in Sur versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Sur but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Sur 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.