Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Tamarin

For one person, living is cheaper in Tamarin: $1,033 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Tamarin
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Tamarin Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Tamarin

🇲🇺 Mauritius

$1,033

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $1,033 in Tamarin.

Mexico City $1,608
Tamarin $1,033

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,648 in Tamarin.

Mexico City $2,549
Tamarin $1,648

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $2,263 in Tamarin.

Mexico City $3,490
Tamarin $2,263

Living in Mexico City is roughly 56% more expensive than in Tamarin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Tamarin is 24% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$200

$6.00 MUR 283

77.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$909

$32.24 MUR 1,519

49.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$194

$7.12 MUR 335

45.37%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$69.4

$2.69 MUR 127

37.17%

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

$1.67 MX$31.32

$1.15 MUR 54.1

45.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.78

$0.64 MUR 30.12

98.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$60.0

$2.59 MUR 122

23.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$99.7

$4.81 MUR 227

10.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.41

$1.49 MUR 70.1

15.44%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$57.1

$0.20 MUR 9.42

1420.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.48

$1.14 MUR 53.8

70.18%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$54.3

$2.55 MUR 120

13.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$206

$3.75 MUR 177

192.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$174

$6.26 MUR 295

47.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$284

$11.29 MUR 532

34.01%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$57.3

$2.11 MUR 99.3

44.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.48

$2.14 MUR 101

-9.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.06

$1.40 MUR 66.2

45.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.50

$3.01 MUR 142

-23.26%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$38.25

$0.96 MUR 45.23

112.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.83

$1.02 MUR 47.89

76.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.80

$0.70 MUR 32.75

111.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.82

$0.88 MUR 41.50

44.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$99.7

$6.18 MUR 291

-14.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$303

$8.69 MUR 410

85.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$37.27

$1.69 MUR 79.5

17.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.9

$1.94 MUR 91.2

119.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.73

$0.87 MUR 40.88

-64.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$371

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.53

$4.24 MUR 200

-56.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.03

$3.24 MUR 153

-83.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.5

$6.42 MUR 303

-17.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.39

$1.37 MUR 64.5

10.22%

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

$21.8K MX$408.8K

$29.8K MUR 1.4M

-26.92%

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

$24.0K MX$450.8K

$30.7K MUR 1.4M

-21.87%

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

$63.0 MX$1,184

$44.27 MUR 2,086

42.26%

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

$27.39 MX$515

$10.47 MUR 494

161.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$670

$29.63 MUR 1,396

20.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,108

$41.34 MUR 1,948

42.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$120

$6.46 MUR 304

-0.93%

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

$432 MX$8,111

$125 MUR 5,900

244.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.7K

$3,083 MUR 145.3K

270.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,282

$63.5 MUR 2,994

7.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$999

$53.8 MUR 2,536

-1.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,026

$85.9 MUR 4,048

25.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,204

$58.9 MUR 2,777

99.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.9K

$957 MUR 45.1K

16.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.4K

$420 MUR 19.8K

68.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.6K

$1,608 MUR 75.8K

60.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.4K

$862 MUR 40.6K

63.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$68.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$40.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.8K

$835 MUR 39.4K

13.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

6.67

70.16%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Tamarin: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Tamarin

$420 40.7% 40.8% $290

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Tamarin

$200 19.4% 37.4% $119

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Tamarin

$131 12.7% 33.8% $67

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Tamarin

$118 11.4% 24.3% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Tamarin

$84 8.2% 33.1% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Tamarin

$54 5.3% 24.4% $17

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Tamarin

$24 * 2.3% 6.1% $1.6

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 $957 in Tamarin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 13% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $32 in Tamarin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $200 per month, with Tamarin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇲🇺 Tamarin

🕒 Local time

16:57 4:57 PM

02:57 2:57 AM

10 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

4,371

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Mauritian Rupee MUR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.75 EUR

100 MUR = 2.12 USD

100 MUR = 1.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MUR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 21.06 MXN (100 MXN = 4.75 EUR).

Mauritian Rupee exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 47.12 MUR (100 MUR = 2.12 USD). 1 EUR = 52.81 MUR (100 MUR = 1.89 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Tamarin 17,560 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Tamarin

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 Tamarin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $1,033 in Tamarin, so Tamarin is about 36% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 13% higher in Mexico City, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,113 in Mexico City versus $957 in Tamarin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $125 in Tamarin. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Tamarin – a meal for two runs $32 versus $48 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Tamarin is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Tamarin wins on affordability, Mexico City on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.