Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico and Costa Rica Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico and Costa Rica

Name: Costa Rica
Address: CR

🙂 Solo nomad: Mexico is 24.9% cheaper than Costa Rica without rent, and 22.8% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Mexico is 25.2% cheaper than Costa Rica without rent, and 21.1% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.49 MX$185

$9.67 ₡4,549

8.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.52 MX$730

$58.6 ₡27.6K

-29.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.98 MX$140

$10.23 ₡4,816

-21.99%

Cappuccino

$3.42 MX$60.1

$3.97 ₡1,870

-13.85%

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

$1.32 MX$23.13

$2.17 ₡1,021

-39.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.00 MX$17.53

$1.73 ₡814

-42.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.40 MX$42.16

$2.89 ₡1,361

-16.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.26 MX$74.9

$4.40 ₡2,073

-3.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$26.58

$2.05 ₡966

-26.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.57 MX$45.16

$3.09 ₡1,453

-16.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.74 MX$30.65

$2.51 ₡1,181

-30.68%

Eggs

$2.48 MX$43.64

$3.30 ₡1,552

-24.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.65 MX$152

$9.16 ₡4,312

-5.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.93 MX$139

$9.29 ₡4,374

-14.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.10 MX$195

$13.16 ₡6,195

-15.65%

Apples (1kg)

$2.81 MX$49.48

$4.48 ₡2,108

-37.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 MX$26.22

$1.62 ₡762

-8.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.92 MX$33.72

$3.22 ₡1,514

-40.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.78 MX$31.36

$2.98 ₡1,404

-40.27%

Potato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$35.76

$3.01 ₡1,416

-32.56%

Onion (1kg)

$2.03 MX$35.79

$2.85 ₡1,339

-28.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 MX$22.27

$1.01 ₡476

25.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.00 MX$17.61

$2.51 ₡1,182

-60.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.32 MX$76.0

$4.94 ₡2,325

-12.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.55 MX$203

$15.72 ₡7,401

-26.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.65 MX$28.95

$2.38 ₡1,118

-30.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.00 MX$52.9

$2.71 ₡1,277

10.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.65 MX$11.35

$0.94 ₡443

-30.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.37 MX$464

$48.94 ₡23.0K

-46.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.63 MX$46.26

$1.79 ₡843

46.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.93 MX$34.03

$2.01 ₡946

-3.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.51 MX$185

$7.82 ₡3,683

34.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 MX$23.34

$1.51 ₡711

-11.92%

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

$20.2K MX$356.1K

$36.8K ₡17.3M

-45.05%

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

$22.6K MX$397.1K

$34.7K ₡16.3M

-35.01%

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

$62.2 MX$1,094

$86.8 ₡40.9K

-28.33%

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

$23.42 MX$412

$25.69 ₡12.1K

-8.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.93 MX$491

$53.8 ₡25.3K

-48.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.84 MX$613

$55.9 ₡26.3K

-37.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.07 MX$318

$28.78 ₡13.5K

-37.21%

Cinema Ticket

$4.87 MX$85.6

$9.04 ₡4,257

-46.13%

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

$253 MX$4,455

$560 ₡263.7K

-54.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,689 MX$100.1K

$10.0K ₡4.7M

-43.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.6 MX$908

$72.4 ₡34.1K

-28.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.34 MX$727

$54.4 ₡25.6K

-23.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.7 MX$1,630

$117 ₡55.1K

-20.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.5 MX$1,556

$103 ₡48.4K

-14.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$634 MX$11.1K

$811 ₡381.9K

-21.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$454 MX$7,988

$551 ₡259.2K

-17.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,249 MX$22.0K

$1,482 ₡697.7K

-15.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$877 MX$15.4K

$1,036 ₡487.6K

-15.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,736 MX$48.1K

$2,301 ₡1.1M

18.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,630 MX$28.7K

$1,575 ₡741.5K

3.46%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$830 MX$14.6K

$1,030 ₡484.9K

-19.47%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

10.53

8.74%

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

Last update for Mexico: March 2, 2026

Last update for Costa Rica: March 2, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated January 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico and Costa Rica Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico and Costa Rica

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated January 2026)

Mexico

Costa Rica

Mexico

Costa Rica

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