Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Tulcán

For one person, living is cheaper in Tulcán: $890 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $9,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Tulcán
Learn more

Tulcán Living Index

Jump to prices

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Tulcán

🇪🇨 Ecuador

$890

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,674 in Mexico City versus $890 in Tulcán.

Mexico City $1,674
Tulcán $890

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,606 in Mexico City versus $1,479 in Tulcán.

Mexico City $2,606
Tulcán $1,479

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,537 in Mexico City versus $2,067 in Tulcán.

Mexico City $3,537
Tulcán $2,067

Living in Mexico City is roughly 88% more expensive than in Tulcán, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mexico City is 24% above, Tulcán is 34% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.59 MX$197

$5.46 $5.46

93.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.0 MX$967

$55.5 $55.5

-6.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 MX$200

$7.77 $7.77

38.10%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$70.6

$3.41 $3.41

11.44%

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

$1.61 MX$30.01

$1.43 $1.43

12.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.55

$1.05 $1.05

15.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 MX$59.1

$3.59 $3.59

-11.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 MX$101

$6.09 $6.09

-10.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$31.96

$1.09 $1.09

57.80%

White Bread (500g)

$2.97 MX$55.2

$1.60 $1.60

85.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 MX$35.84

$1.57 $1.57

22.93%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.6

$2.18 $2.18

27.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.67 MX$217

$6.34 $6.34

84.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.48 MX$176

$5.24 $5.24

80.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.37 MX$286

$7.67 $7.67

100.39%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 MX$57.8

$2.31 $2.31

34.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.49

$1.24 $1.24

58.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 MX$36.88

$1.33 $1.33

48.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.34 MX$43.46

$1.08 $1.08

116.67%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.66

$1.20 $1.20

68.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.95

$1.07 $1.07

70.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 MX$28.74

$0.87 $0.87

77.01%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$24.42

$1.03 $1.03

27.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.35 MX$99.6

$6.02 $6.02

-11.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.19 MX$301

$8.59 $8.59

88.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 MX$36.46

$1.52 $1.52

28.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$81.0

$3.10 $3.10

40.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.67

$0.34 $0.34

-11.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$363

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 MX$35.68

$1.51 $1.51

27.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 MX$8.80

$1.47 $1.47

-68.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$101

$10.09 $10.09

-46.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.61

$0.87 $0.87

70.11%

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

$21.4K MX$397.7K

$23.5K $23.5K

-8.88%

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

$23.8K MX$442.1K

$30.2K $30.2K

-21.44%

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

$62.0 MX$1,154

$28.34 $28.34

118.74%

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

$28.47 MX$530

$18.09 $18.09

57.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.11 MX$635

$28.93 $28.93

17.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.4 MX$1,087

$29.41 $29.41

98.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$456

$16.25 $16.25

50.77%

Cinema Ticket

$6.59 MX$123

$6.41 $6.41

2.81%

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

$434 MX$8,081

$744 $744

-41.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.0K MX$261.2K

$8,868 $8,868

58.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.4 MX$1,272

$70.4 $70.4

-2.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.8 MX$1,020

$49.24 $49.24

11.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 MX$2,063

$116 $116

-4.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 MX$2,158

$107 $107

8.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$21.9K

$418 $418

182.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$771 MX$14.3K

$268 $268

187.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,570 MX$47.8K

$832 $832

209.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,420 MX$26.4K

$508 $508

179.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,586 MX$66.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

10.12

12.15%

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

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Tulcán: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$771 46.1%

Tulcán

$268 30.1% 65.3% $503

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$324 19.3%

Tulcán

$192 21.6% 40.6% $131

Eating Out

Mexico City

$201 12%

Tulcán

$148 16.6% 26.2% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$158 9.4%

Tulcán

$155 17.4% 1.9% $3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$125 7.4%

Tulcán

$75 8.5% 39.5% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.3%

Tulcán

$42 4.7% 41% $29

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.5%

Tulcán

$10 * 1.1% 59.2% $15

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 $1,179 in Mexico City and $418 in Tulcán. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $52 in Mexico City vs $56 in Tulcán. Groceries flip the comparison at $324 vs $192, with Tulcán cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇪🇨 Tulcán

🕒 Local time

15:50 3:50 PM

16:50 4:50 PM

1 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

82,734

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 USD = 0.894 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.894 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mexico City Tulcán 3,120 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Tulcán

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 Tulcán: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,674 in Mexico City and $890 in Tulcán, so Tulcán is about 47% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,510 in Mexico City and $1,336 in Tulcán 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: $1,179 in Mexico City versus $418 in Tulcán. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $434 in Mexico City versus $744 in Tulcán. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Mexico City – a meal for two runs $52 versus $56 in Tulcán. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $890 in Tulcán versus $1,674 in Mexico City, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Tulcán but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Tulcán 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.