Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Taraz

For one person, living is cheaper in Taraz: $626 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 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
30

Cost of Living Index in Taraz
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Taraz Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Taraz

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$626

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $626 in Taraz.

Mexico City $1,608
Taraz $626

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $1,001 in Taraz.

Mexico City $2,549
Taraz $1,001

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $1,375 in Taraz.

Mexico City $3,490
Taraz $1,375

Living in Mexico City is roughly 157% more expensive than in Taraz, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 18% above, Taraz is 54% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$198

$8.83 ₸4,023

20.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$901

$22.00 ₸10.0K

119.77%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$193

$6.68 ₸3,043

54.94%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$68.7

$1.56 ₸713

136.54%

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

$1.67 MX$31.05

$0.92 ₸420

81.52%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.58

$0.42 ₸192

202.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$59.5

$1.13 ₸516

182.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$1.80 ₸820

195.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.13

$1.08 ₸493

59.26%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$56.6

$0.44 ₸199

590.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.17

$1.35 ₸615

43.70%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$53.8

$1.69 ₸772

71.01%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$204

$10.17 ₸4,634

7.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$172

$5.16 ₸2,350

79.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$282

$8.26 ₸3,761

83.17%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$56.8

$1.21 ₸549

152.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.17

$2.17 ₸989

-10.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.73

$2.59 ₸1,179

-21.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.12

$1.37 ₸624

68.61%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.91

$0.51 ₸233

300.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.53

$0.44 ₸199

309.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.56

$0.88 ₸403

68.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.62

$0.80 ₸365

58.75%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$98.8

$2.39 ₸1,090

121.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$300

$4.38 ₸1,993

267.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$36.95

$1.08 ₸490

83.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.2

$1.53 ₸696

177.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.68

$0.21 ₸96.4

47.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$368

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.23

$0.88 ₸399

109.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$9.94

$0.37 ₸170

43.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$98.7

$4.07 ₸1,852

30.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.14

$0.65 ₸298

132.31%

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

$21.8K MX$405.3K

$27.6K ₸12.6M

-21.27%

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

$24.0K MX$446.9K

$27.5K ₸12.5M

-12.81%

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

$63.0 MX$1,173

$47.53 ₸21.7K

32.51%

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

$27.39 MX$510

$8.64 ₸3,936

217.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$664

$8.98 ₸4,089

297.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,098

$36.00 ₸16.4K

63.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$441

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$119

$4.54 ₸2,069

40.97%

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

$432 MX$8,041

$58.8 ₸26.8K

634.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$212.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,271

$26.93 ₸12.3K

153.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$990

$34.47 ₸15.7K

54.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,008

$111 ₸50.4K

-2.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,185

$53.0 ₸24.2K

121.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.7K

$263 ₸120.0K

322.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.2K

$109 ₸49.8K

550.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.2K

$435 ₸198.0K

495.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.2K

$200 ₸91.1K

603.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$67.6K

$858 ₸391.0K

323.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$39.8K

$600 ₸273.3K

255.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

$282 ₸128.2K

236.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

17.83

-36.34%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Taraz: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Taraz

$109 17.5% 84.6% $601

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Taraz

$177 28.4% 44.5% $142

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Taraz

$124 19.8% 37.5% $75

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Taraz

$101 16.2% 35% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Taraz

$65 10.4% 48.3% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Taraz

$45 7.2% 37.1% $27

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Taraz

$3.6 * 0.6% 85.9% $22

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 $263 in Taraz. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays about 3.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $22 in Taraz for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $177 per month, with Taraz cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇰🇿 Taraz

🕒 Local time

22:03 10:03 PM

09:03 9:03 AM

11 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

431,160

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Kazakhstani Tenge KZT ₸

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1,000 KZT = 2.2 USD

1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KZT, USD, EUR 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).

Kazakhstani Tenge exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 456 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.2 USD). 1 EUR = 507 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Taraz 13,020 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Taraz

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 Taraz: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $626 in Taraz, so Taraz is about 61% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Mexico City is about 3.4 times higher, 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 $263 in Taraz. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $59 in Taraz. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Taraz – a meal for two runs $22 versus $48 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $626 in Taraz versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $800 budget is realistic in Taraz but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Taraz 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.

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