Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Swords

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,608 a month against $2,598 in Swords, rent and utilities included – about $11,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index
125

Cost of Living Index in Swords
Learn more

Swords Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Swords

🇮🇪 Ireland

$2,598

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $2,598 in Swords.

Mexico City $1,608
Swords $2,598

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $3,804 in Swords.

Mexico City $2,549
Swords $3,804

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $5,010 in Swords.

Mexico City $3,490
Swords $5,010

Living in Mexico City costs roughly 38% less than in Swords, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 18% above, Swords 91% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$198

$22.16 €19.86

-52.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$901

$98.6 €88.4

-50.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$193

$13.20 €11.83

-21.59%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$68.7

$4.93 €4.42

-25.15%

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

$1.67 MX$31.05

$2.98 €2.67

-43.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.58

$2.16 €1.94

-41.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.5

$8.03 €7.20

-60.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$6.74 €6.04

-21.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.13

$1.58 €1.42

8.86%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$56.6

$2.35 €2.10

29.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.17

$2.03 €1.82

-4.43%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$53.8

$4.24 €3.80

-31.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$204

$9.89 €8.87

10.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$172

$10.86 €9.73

-14.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$282

$13.29 €11.91

13.84%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$56.8

$2.75 €2.47

10.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.17

$2.27 €2.03

-14.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.73

$2.79 €2.50

-27.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.12

$4.17 €3.74

-44.60%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.91

$1.87 €1.67

9.09%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.53

$1.47 €1.32

22.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.56

$1.30 €1.16

13.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.62

$1.90 €1.70

-33.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$98.8

$20.52 €18.39

-74.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$300

$13.39 €12.00

20.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.95

$3.35 €3.00

-40.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.2

$3.45 €3.09

23.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.68

$2.26 €2.02

-86.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$368

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.23

$5.00 €4.48

-63.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.94

$1.47 €1.31

-63.95%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$98.7

$37.35 €33.46

-85.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.14

$2.16 €1.94

-30.09%

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

$21.8K MX$405.3K

$38.6K €34.6K

-43.61%

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

$24.0K MX$446.9K

$38.0K €34.0K

-36.87%

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

$63.0 MX$1,173

$246 €221

-74.43%

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

$27.39 MX$510

$18.68 €16.74

46.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$664

$51.2 €45.85

-30.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,098

$40.58 €36.36

45.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$441

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$119

$13.43 €12.03

-52.35%

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

$432 MX$8,041

$1,010 €905

-57.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$212.8K

$5,183 €4,644

120.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,271

$100 €89.8

-31.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$990

$48.06 €43.06

10.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,008

$108 €96.9

-0.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,185

$113 €101

4.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.7K

$1,556 €1,394

-28.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.2K

$1,342 €1,202

-47.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.2K

$2,584 €2,316

0.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.2K

$2,165 €1,940

-35.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$67.6K

$4,721 €4,231

-23.09%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$39.8K

$3,447 €3,089

-38.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

3.68

208.42%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Swords: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Swords

$1.3K 51.7% 88.9% $631

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Swords

$335 12.9% 4.7% $15

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Swords

$350 13.5% 76.3% $152

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Swords

$166 6.4% 6.5% $10

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Swords

$316 12.2% 151% $190

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Swords

$67 2.6% 6% $4.3

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Swords

$21 * 0.8% 16.1% $4.1

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 $1,556 in Swords. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $99 in Swords for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $335 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇮🇪 Swords

🕒 Local time

23:52 11:52 PM

05:52 5:52 AM

6 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

40,776

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.63 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.74 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mexico City Swords 8,470 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Swords

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 Swords: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $2,598 in Swords, so Mexico City is about 38% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,412 in Mexico City and $3,897 in Swords 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: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $1,556 in Swords. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $1,010 in Swords. 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 $48 versus $99 in Swords. 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.