Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Surin

For one person, living is cheaper in Surin: $869 a month against $1,548 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

75

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Surin
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Surin Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,548

/mo nomad

Surin

🇹🇭 Thailand

$869

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,548 in Mexico City versus $869 in Surin.

Mexico City $1,548
Surin $869

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,436 in Mexico City versus $1,444 in Surin.

Mexico City $2,436
Surin $1,444

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,323 in Mexico City versus $2,018 in Surin.

Mexico City $3,323
Surin $2,018

Living in Mexico City is roughly 78% more expensive than in Surin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 14% above, Surin is 36% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.02 MX$204

$3.03 ฿101

263.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.68 MX$900

$24.70 ฿826

97.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.90 MX$201

$7.23 ฿242

50.76%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.1

$1.74 ฿58.3

111.49%

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

$1.63 MX$30.18

$0.61 ฿20.30

167.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.25 MX$23.07

$0.33 ฿10.89

278.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.25 MX$60.1

$2.20 ฿73.5

47.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.53 MX$102

$3.42 ฿114

61.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 MX$31.50

$1.57 ฿52.4

8.28%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 MX$55.8

$1.31 ฿43.79

130.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.92 MX$35.53

$1.47 ฿48.98

30.61%

Eggs

$2.73 MX$50.5

$1.90 ฿63.5

43.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.77 MX$218

$17.41 ฿582

-32.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 MX$176

$2.48 ฿83.0

284.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.41 MX$266

$8.89 ฿297

62.09%

Apples (1kg)

$3.02 MX$55.8

$2.57 ฿86.0

17.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.01

$1.02 ฿34.23

85.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.70

$2.48 ฿82.9

-19.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.19 MX$40.38

$2.05 ฿68.5

6.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.92 MX$35.43

$1.44 ฿48.20

33.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.87 MX$34.49

$0.95 ฿31.77

96.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 MX$26.62

$0.94 ฿31.37

53.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.39

$0.44 ฿14.59

188.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.22 MX$96.4

$4.27 ฿143

22.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.17 MX$299

$16.36 ฿547

-1.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 MX$35.03

$1.57 ฿52.4

21.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.22 MX$78.0

$3.01 ฿100

40.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 MX$6.30

$0.92 ฿30.79

-63.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.65 MX$363

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 MX$36.90

$1.37 ฿45.65

45.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.52 MX$9.67

$1.01 ฿33.73

-48.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.34 MX$98.7

$6.04 ฿202

-11.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$28.13

$1.35 ฿45.06

12.59%

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

$22.1K MX$408.0K

$22.7K ฿758.4K

-2.72%

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

$24.5K MX$452.9K

$27.1K ฿904.4K

-9.43%

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

$61.1 MX$1,129

$77.8 ฿2,601

-21.52%

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

$28.58 MX$528

$11.53 ฿385

147.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.47 MX$637

$18.68 ฿624

84.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,042

$41.58 ฿1,390

35.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.88 MX$460

$11.45 ฿383

117.29%

Cinema Ticket

$6.66 MX$123

$6.51 ฿218

2.30%

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

$427 MX$7,891

$628 ฿21.0K

-31.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K MX$215.0K

$12.1K ฿405.0K

-3.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.8 MX$1,253

$53.1 ฿1,773

27.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.0 MX$960

$27.95 ฿934

85.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 MX$1,959

$73.3 ฿2,451

44.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 MX$2,080

$68.0 ฿2,274

65.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,025 MX$18.9K

$440 ฿14.7K

132.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$654 MX$12.1K

$273 ฿9,126

139.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,308 MX$42.7K

$1,185 ฿39.6K

94.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,242 MX$22.9K

$714 ฿23.9K

73.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,613 MX$66.8K

$1,730 ฿57.8K

108.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,936 MX$35.8K

$1,518 ฿50.7K

27.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$964 MX$17.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

5.57

102.87%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 20, 2026

Last update for Surin: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$654 42.3%

Surin

$273 31.4% 58.3% $381

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$318 20.6%

Surin

$235 27% 26.3% $84

Eating Out

Mexico City

$204 13.2%

Surin

$88 10.2% 56.6% $115

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$152 9.8%

Surin

$100 11.5% 34.3% $52

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$124 8%

Surin

$108 12.4% 13% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$70 4.5%

Surin

$55 6.3% 21.7% $15

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.7%

Surin

$10 * 1.2% 60.6% $16

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 $1,025 in Mexico City and $440 in Surin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $49.00 in Mexico City vs $25.00 in Surin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $318 vs $235 per month, with Surin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇹🇭 Surin

🕒 Local time

23:42 11:42 PM

12:42 12:42 PM

13 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

40,104

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Surin 15,470 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Surin

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 Surin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City and Surin differ by about 78% in total monthly costs ($1,548 vs $869 including rent). Surin is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,322 in Mexico City and $1,303 in Surin 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: $1,025 in Mexico City versus $440 in Surin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $427 in Mexico City versus $628 in Surin. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Surin – a meal for two runs $25.00 versus $49.00 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $869 in Surin versus $1,548 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Surin but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Surin 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.

Safety-wise, Mexico City and Surin are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Surin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 78% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.