Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Tripoli

For one person, living is cheaper in Tripoli: $538 a month against $1,548 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $12,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

75

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index
26

Cost of Living Index in Tripoli
Learn more

Tripoli Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,548

/mo nomad

Tripoli

🇱🇾 Libya

$538

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,548 in Mexico City versus $538 in Tripoli.

Mexico City $1,548
Tripoli $538

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,436 in Mexico City versus $812 in Tripoli.

Mexico City $2,436
Tripoli $812

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,323 in Mexico City versus $1,087 in Tripoli.

Mexico City $3,323
Tripoli $1,087

Living in Mexico City is roughly 188% more expensive than in Tripoli, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 14% above, Tripoli is 60% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.02 MX$204

$3.82 LYD 24.48

188.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.68 MX$900

$15.79 LYD 101

208.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.90 MX$201

$2.60 LYD 16.69

319.23%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.63 LYD 4.04

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.69 LYD 4.41

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.1

$0.44 LYD 2.83

736.36%

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

$1.63 MX$30.18

$0.42 LYD 2.68

288.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.25 MX$23.07

$0.10 LYD 0.63

1150.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.25 MX$60.1

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.53 MX$102

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 MX$31.50

$0.97 LYD 6.25

75.26%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 MX$55.8

$0.20 LYD 1.28

1410.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.92 MX$35.53

$1.19 LYD 7.62

61.34%

Eggs

$2.73 MX$50.5

$1.38 LYD 8.83

97.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.77 MX$218

$5.33 LYD 34.13

120.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 MX$176

$3.61 LYD 23.16

163.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.41 MX$266

$9.17 LYD 58.7

57.14%

Apples (1kg)

$3.02 MX$55.8

$2.23 LYD 14.29

35.43%

Banana (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.01

$1.49 LYD 9.57

26.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.70

$0.71 LYD 4.54

180.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.19 MX$40.38

$0.55 LYD 3.55

298.18%

Potato (1kg)

$1.92 MX$35.43

$0.77 LYD 4.94

149.35%

Onion (1kg)

$1.87 MX$34.49

$0.49 LYD 3.14

281.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 MX$26.62

$0.39 LYD 2.51

269.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MX$23.39

$0.20 LYD 1.31

535.00%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.77 LYD 11.32

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 LYD 6.34

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.77 LYD 4.95

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.22 MX$96.4

$1.91 LYD 12.24

173.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.17 MX$299

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 MX$35.03

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.22 MX$78.0

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 MX$6.30

$0.30 LYD 1.91

13.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.65 MX$363

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 MX$36.90

$0.80 LYD 5.10

150.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.52 MX$9.67

$0.48 LYD 3.09

8.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.34 MX$98.7

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$28.13

$0.02 LYD 0.13

7500.00%

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

$22.1K MX$408.0K

$23.6K LYD 151.3K

-6.53%

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

$24.5K MX$452.9K

$21.0K LYD 134.7K

16.60%

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

$61.1 MX$1,129

$93.1 LYD 597

-34.40%

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

$28.58 MX$528

$6.05 LYD 38.75

372.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.47 MX$637

$27.35 LYD 175

26.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,042

$24.58 LYD 158

129.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.88 MX$460

$2.36 LYD 15.14

954.24%

Cinema Ticket

$6.66 MX$123

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

$427 MX$7,891

$53.1 LYD 340

704.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K MX$215.0K

$1,534 LYD 9,830

658.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.8 MX$1,253

$22.65 LYD 145

199.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.0 MX$960

$17.61 LYD 113

195.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 MX$1,959

$63.3 LYD 406

67.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 MX$2,080

$67.1 LYD 430

67.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,025 MX$18.9K

$351 LYD 2,251

191.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$654 MX$12.1K

$143 LYD 917

357.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,308 MX$42.7K

$619 LYD 3,968

272.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,242 MX$22.9K

$258 LYD 1,655

380.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,613 MX$66.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,936 MX$35.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$964 MX$17.8K

$257 LYD 1,646

275.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

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

Last update for Mexico City: October 20, 2026

Last update for Tripoli: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$654 42.3%

Tripoli

$143 26.6% 78.1% $511

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$318 20.6%

Tripoli

$117 21.7% 63.4% $202

Eating Out

Mexico City

$204 13.2%

Tripoli

$46 8.5% 77.6% $158

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$152 9.8%

Tripoli

$77 14.3% 49.5% $75

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$124 8%

Tripoli

$126 23.5% 1.9% $2.4

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$70 4.5%

Tripoli

$25 * 4.6% 64.7% $45

Getting Around

Mexico City

$26 1.7%

Tripoli

$4.4 * 0.8% 82.8% $21

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 $1,025 in Mexico City and $351 in Tripoli. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 275% 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: $49.00 in Mexico City vs $16.00 in Tripoli for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $318 vs $117 per month, with Tripoli cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇱🇾 Tripoli

🕒 Local time

05:38 5:38 AM

13:38 1:38 PM

8 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

2,127,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Libyan Dinar LYD ل.د

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 LYD = 0.156 USD

1 LYD = 0.139 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LYD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Libyan Dinar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.41 LYD (1 LYD = 0.156 USD). 1 EUR = 7.2 LYD (1 LYD = 0.139 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mexico City Tripoli 10,770 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Tripoli

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 Tripoli: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mexico City and Tripoli differ by about 188% in total monthly costs ($1,548 vs $538 including rent). Tripoli is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 275% 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: $1,025 in Mexico City versus $351 in Tripoli. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $427 in Mexico City versus $53.1 in Tripoli. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Tripoli – a meal for two runs $16.00 versus $49.00 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $538 in Tripoli versus $1,548 in Mexico City, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Tripoli but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Tripoli 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.

Expats usually find Tripoli gentler on the wallet – expenses run 188% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.