Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Timaru

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,608 a month against $1,992 in Timaru, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 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
96

Cost of Living Index in Timaru
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Timaru Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Timaru

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,992

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Mexico City versus $1,992 in Timaru.

Mexico City $1,608
Timaru $1,992

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,549 in Mexico City versus $3,048 in Timaru.

Mexico City $2,549
Timaru $3,048

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,490 in Mexico City versus $4,104 in Timaru.

Mexico City $3,490
Timaru $4,104

Living in Mexico City costs roughly 19% less than in Timaru, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 18% above, Timaru 46% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 MX$200

$14.41 NZ$25.62

-26.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.35 MX$909

$61.3 NZ$109

-21.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MX$194

$10.87 NZ$19.32

-4.78%

Cappuccino

$3.69 MX$69.4

$3.29 NZ$5.85

12.16%

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

$1.67 MX$31.32

$2.13 NZ$3.78

-21.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.78

$1.78 NZ$3.16

-28.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 MX$60.0

$5.70 NZ$10.12

-44.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 MX$99.7

$6.12 NZ$10.87

-13.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.41

$1.15 NZ$2.05

49.57%

White Bread (500g)

$3.04 MX$57.1

$1.79 NZ$3.18

69.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.48

$1.12 NZ$1.99

73.21%

Eggs

$2.89 MX$54.3

$5.98 NZ$10.62

-51.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 MX$206

$8.28 NZ$14.72

32.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 MX$174

$9.21 NZ$16.37

0.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 MX$284

$16.69 NZ$29.66

-9.35%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 MX$57.3

$2.93 NZ$5.21

4.10%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.48

$2.42 NZ$4.29

-19.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.06

$3.17 NZ$5.64

-35.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$43.50

$5.25 NZ$9.33

-56.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 MX$38.25

$1.86 NZ$3.30

9.68%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.83

$1.85 NZ$3.29

-2.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.80

$2.32 NZ$4.13

-36.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.82

$0.55 NZ$0.98

130.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.30 MX$99.7

$21.06 NZ$37.44

-74.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 MX$303

$5.57 NZ$9.91

189.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 MX$37.27

$3.17 NZ$5.64

-37.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.9

$1.26 NZ$2.23

237.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 MX$5.73

$1.94 NZ$3.45

-84.02%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 MX$371

$110 NZ$196

-82.09%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.53

$2.23 NZ$3.97

-17.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.03

$1.79 NZ$3.18

-70.39%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.5

$28.93 NZ$51.4

-81.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.39

$1.56 NZ$2.76

-3.21%

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

$21.8K MX$408.8K

$28.5K NZ$50.6K

-23.62%

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

$24.0K MX$450.8K

$22.9K NZ$40.8K

4.53%

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

$63.0 MX$1,184

$113 NZ$201

-44.33%

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

$27.39 MX$515

$22.85 NZ$40.63

19.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.67 MX$670

$52.5 NZ$93.3

-32.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.9 MX$1,108

$39.92 NZ$71.0

47.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

Cinema Ticket

$6.40 MX$120

$11.39 NZ$20.25

-43.81%

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

$432 MX$8,111

$590 NZ$1,048

-26.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.7K

$16.1K NZ$28.6K

-28.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 MX$1,282

$59.4 NZ$106

14.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 MX$999

$35.10 NZ$62.4

51.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$2,026

$91.0 NZ$162

18.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,204

$137 NZ$244

-14.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 MX$20.9K

$1,108 NZ$1,970

0.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MX$13.4K

$921 NZ$1,637

-22.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,588 MX$48.6K

$1,790 NZ$3,182

44.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 MX$26.4K

$1,674 NZ$2,975

-16.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,631 MX$68.2K

$4,547 NZ$8,083

-20.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,135 MX$40.1K

$2,866 NZ$5,094

-25.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

7.07

60.54%

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Timaru: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$710 44.2%

Timaru

$921 46.2% 29.6% $210

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$320 19.9%

Timaru

$302 15.1% 5.6% $18

Eating Out

Mexico City

$199 12.4%

Timaru

$244 12.2% 22.7% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$156 9.7%

Timaru

$145 7.3% 6.8% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$126 7.8%

Timaru

$188 9.5% 49.5% $62

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.5%

Timaru

$63 3.2% 12.6% $9

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.6%

Timaru

$129 6.5% 407% $104

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,113 in Mexico City and $1,108 in Timaru. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $48 in Mexico City vs $61 in Timaru. Groceries flip the comparison at $320 vs $302, with Timaru cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇳🇿 Timaru

🕒 Local time

04:07 4:07 AM

23:07 11:07 PM

19 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

28,600

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.504 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, 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 = 20.97 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.563 USD). 1 EUR = 1.98 NZD (1 NZD = 0.504 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Timaru 11,470 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Timaru

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 Timaru: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,608 in Mexico City and $1,992 in Timaru, so Mexico City is about 19% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,412 in Mexico City and $2,987 in Timaru 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 $1,108 in Timaru. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 82% less than in Timaru. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $432 in Mexico City versus $590 in Timaru. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

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.