Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Taipa

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,674 a month against $2,040 in Taipa, rent and utilities included – about $4,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

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

Cost of Living Index in Taipa
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Taipa Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Taipa

🇲🇴 Macao (China)

$2,040

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,674 in Mexico City versus $2,040 in Taipa.

Mexico City $1,674
Taipa $2,040

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,606 in Mexico City versus $3,183 in Taipa.

Mexico City $2,606
Taipa $3,183

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,537 in Mexico City versus $4,326 in Taipa.

Mexico City $3,537
Taipa $4,326

Living in Mexico City costs roughly 18% less than in Taipa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 24% above, Taipa 51% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.59 MX$199

$6.17 MOP 49.81

71.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.0 MX$976

$55.6 MOP 449

-6.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 MX$201

$5.89 MOP 47.52

82.17%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$71.3

$5.08 MOP 41.04

-25.20%

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

$1.61 MX$30.28

$0.72 MOP 5.79

123.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.76

$0.36 MOP 2.89

236.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 MX$59.7

$5.60 MOP 45.22

-43.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 MX$102

$7.09 MOP 57.3

-23.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.26

$3.15 MOP 25.47

-45.40%

White Bread (500g)

$2.97 MX$55.7

$1.68 MOP 13.59

76.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 MX$36.17

$1.64 MOP 13.27

17.68%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$52.1

$3.38 MOP 27.26

-18.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.67 MX$219

$16.09 MOP 130

-27.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.48 MX$178

$19.34 MOP 156

-50.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.37 MX$289

$29.00 MOP 234

-47.00%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 MX$58.3

$2.62 MOP 21.17

18.32%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.82

$2.93 MOP 23.63

-33.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 MX$37.22

$1.87 MOP 15.07

5.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.34 MX$43.86

$2.45 MOP 19.78

-4.49%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$38.00

$4.00 MOP 32.28

-49.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$34.26

$2.97 MOP 23.94

-38.72%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 MX$29.00

$0.67 MOP 5.37

129.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$24.64

$1.14 MOP 9.20

14.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.35 MX$100

$6.59 MOP 53.2

-18.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.19 MX$304

$12.13 MOP 98.0

33.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 MX$36.79

$1.71 MOP 13.80

14.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$81.7

$2.20 MOP 17.79

97.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.72

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$366

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 MX$36.01

$2.54 MOP 20.51

-24.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 MX$8.88

$1.28 MOP 10.33

-63.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$102

$15.13 MOP 122

-64.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.86

$1.79 MOP 14.42

-17.32%

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

$21.4K MX$401.4K

$31.3K MOP 253.1K

-31.83%

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

$23.8K MX$446.1K

$31.2K MOP 251.6K

-23.78%

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

$62.0 MX$1,164

$123 MOP 990

-49.45%

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

$28.47 MX$535

$23.77 MOP 192

19.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.11 MX$641

$37.07 MOP 299

-7.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.4 MX$1,097

$73.1 MOP 590

-20.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$460

$3.65 MOP 29.46

571.23%

Cinema Ticket

$6.59 MX$124

$12.52 MOP 101

-47.36%

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

$434 MX$8,155

$1,207 MOP 9,748

-64.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.0K MX$263.6K

$19.0K MOP 153.0K

-25.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.4 MX$1,284

$70.4 MOP 568

-2.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.8 MX$1,029

$32.83 MOP 265

66.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 MX$2,082

$91.1 MOP 736

21.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 MX$2,178

$137 MOP 1,110

-15.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$22.1K

$1,071 MOP 8,645

10.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$771 MX$14.5K

$1,004 MOP 8,105

-23.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,570 MX$48.3K

$2,072 MOP 16.7K

24.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,420 MX$26.7K

$1,941 MOP 15.7K

-26.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,586 MX$67.3K

$16.3K MOP 131.2K

-77.94%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.8K

$13.2K MOP 106.5K

-84.35%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

278.33%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Taipa: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$771 46.1%

Taipa

$1K 49.2% 30.2% $233

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$324 19.3%

Taipa

$422 20.7% 30.5% $99

Eating Out

Mexico City

$201 12%

Taipa

$174 8.6% 13% $26

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$158 9.4%

Taipa

$149 7.3% 5.2% $8.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$125 7.4%

Taipa

$183 9% 47.3% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.3%

Taipa

$98 4.8% 37.2% $27

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.5%

Taipa

$8.9 * 0.4% 64.2% $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 $1,179 in Mexico City and $1,071 in Taipa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $52 in Mexico City vs $56 in Taipa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $324 vs $422 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇲🇴 Taipa

🕒 Local time

07:22 7:22 AM

21:22 9:22 PM

14 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

78,497

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Macanese Pataca MOP P

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

1 MOP = 0.124 USD

1 MOP = 0.11 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MOP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.78 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 21.09 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

Macanese Pataca exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 8.07 MOP (1 MOP = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 9.07 MOP (1 MOP = 0.11 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Taipa 14,180 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Taipa

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 Taipa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,674 in Mexico City and $2,040 in Taipa, so Mexico City is about 18% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,510 in Mexico City and $3,061 in Taipa 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: $1,179 in Mexico City versus $1,071 in Taipa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $434 in Mexico City versus $1,207 in Taipa. 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 $52 versus $56 in Taipa. 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.