Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Tres Cantos

For one person, living is cheaper in Tres Cantos: $1,528 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 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
78

Cost of Living Index in Tres Cantos
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Tres Cantos Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Tres Cantos

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,528

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Tres Cantos

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,674 in Mexico City versus $1,528 in Tres Cantos.

Mexico City $1,674
Tres Cantos $1,528

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,606 in Mexico City versus $2,352 in Tres Cantos.

Mexico City $2,606
Tres Cantos $2,352

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,537 in Mexico City versus $3,176 in Tres Cantos.

Mexico City $3,537
Tres Cantos $3,176

Living in Mexico City is roughly 10% more expensive than in Tres Cantos, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Mexico City 24% above, Tres Cantos 13% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.59 MX$199

$15.95 €14.22

-33.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.0 MX$978

$49.24 €43.92

5.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 MX$202

$11.00 €9.81

-2.45%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$71.4

$2.30 €2.05

65.22%

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

$1.61 MX$30.35

$2.49 €2.22

-35.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.81

$1.61 €1.44

-24.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 MX$59.8

$2.97 €2.65

7.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 MX$102

$3.49 €3.11

55.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.32

$1.21 €1.08

42.15%

White Bread (500g)

$2.97 MX$55.8

$1.60 €1.42

85.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 MX$36.24

$1.37 €1.22

40.88%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$52.2

$3.15 €2.81

-12.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.67 MX$220

$14.47 €12.91

-19.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.48 MX$178

$8.23 €7.34

15.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.37 MX$289

$17.19 €15.34

-10.59%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 MX$58.4

$2.31 €2.06

34.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.90

$1.76 €1.57

11.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 MX$37.30

$2.23 €1.99

-11.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.34 MX$43.95

$2.92 €2.61

-19.86%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$38.08

$2.00 €1.78

1.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$34.34

$1.87 €1.67

-2.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 MX$29.06

$1.29 €1.15

19.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$24.70

$0.67 €0.60

95.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.35 MX$101

$5.88 €5.25

-9.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.19 MX$305

$5.57 €4.97

190.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 MX$36.87

$1.26 €1.12

55.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$81.9

$2.06 €1.84

111.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.74

$1.76 €1.57

-82.95%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$367

$33.87 €30.22

-42.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 MX$36.08

$3.89 €3.47

-50.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 MX$8.90

$1.22 €1.09

-61.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$102

$24.09 €21.49

-77.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.92

$1.81 €1.62

-18.23%

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

$21.4K MX$402.2K

$38.4K €34.2K

-44.30%

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

$23.8K MX$447.1K

$32.8K €29.2K

-27.51%

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

$62.0 MX$1,167

$137 €123

-54.91%

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

$28.47 MX$536

$16.48 €14.70

72.75%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.11 MX$642

$26.50 €23.64

28.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.4 MX$1,099

$43.91 €39.17

32.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$461

$15.47 €13.80

58.37%

Cinema Ticket

$6.59 MX$124

$8.58 €7.65

-23.19%

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

$434 MX$8,172

$508 €453

-14.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.0K MX$264.1K

$9,119 €8,134

53.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.4 MX$1,286

$78.1 €69.7

-12.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.8 MX$1,031

$34.22 €30.53

60.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 MX$2,086

$81.7 €72.9

35.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 MX$2,183

$120 €107

-3.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$22.2K

$1,026 €915

14.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$771 MX$14.5K

$595 €531

29.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,570 MX$48.4K

$1,356 €1,210

89.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,420 MX$26.7K

$1,068 €953

32.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,586 MX$67.5K

$3,498 €3,120

2.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.8K

$1,913 €1,707

7.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.9K

$3,191 €2,846

-68.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

3.3

243.94%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Tres Cantos: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$771 46.1%

Tres Cantos

$595 39% 22.8% $176

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$324 19.3%

Tres Cantos

$272 17.8% 15.8% $51

Eating Out

Mexico City

$201 12%

Tres Cantos

$226 14.8% 12.9% $26

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$158 9.4%

Tres Cantos

$141 9.2% 10.4% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$125 7.4%

Tres Cantos

$180 11.8% 44.9% $56

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.3%

Tres Cantos

$61 4% 14.7% $10

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.5%

Tres Cantos

$51 3.3% 104% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,179 in Mexico City and $1,026 in Tres Cantos. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Tres Cantos pays about 3.2 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $52 in Mexico City vs $49 in Tres Cantos for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $324 vs $272 per month, with Tres Cantos cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇪🇸 Tres Cantos

🕒 Local time

00:16 12:16 AM

07:16 7:16 AM

7 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

51,453

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.31 USD

100 MXN = 4.75 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 November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.82 MXN (100 MXN = 5.31 USD). 1 EUR = 21.05 MXN (100 MXN = 4.75 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Mexico City Tres Cantos 9,060 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Tres Cantos

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 Tres Cantos: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,674 in Mexico City and $1,528 in Tres Cantos, so Tres Cantos is about 9% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 69% lower in Mexico City. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,179 in Mexico City versus $1,026 in Tres Cantos. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 42% less than in Tres Cantos. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $434 in Mexico City versus $508 in Tres Cantos. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Tres Cantos 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.