Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mombasa and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mombasa: $719 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $10,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Mombasa
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Mombasa Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Mombasa

🇰🇪 Kenya

$719

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Mombasa and in Mexico City actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $719 in Mombasa versus $1,567 in Mexico City.

Mombasa $719
Mexico City $1,567

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,147 in Mombasa versus $2,450 in Mexico City.

Mombasa $1,147
Mexico City $2,450

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,575 in Mombasa versus $3,333 in Mexico City.

Mombasa $1,575
Mexico City $3,333

Living in Mombasa costs roughly 54% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mombasa is 47% below, Mexico City is 16% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.66 KES 345

$10.75 MX$199

-75.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$25.34 KES 3,285

$50.3 MX$929

-49.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.48 KES 1,359

$11.10 MX$205

-5.59%

Cappuccino

$2.74 KES 355

$3.68 MX$68.1

-25.54%

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

$0.68 KES 88.0

$1.65 MX$30.42

-58.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.52 KES 67.7

$1.30 MX$24.08

-60.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.34 KES 303

$3.32 MX$61.3

-29.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.30 KES 428

$5.54 MX$102

-40.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.00 KES 130

$1.77 MX$32.68

-43.50%

White Bread (500g)

$0.51 KES 65.6

$3.05 MX$56.4

-83.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.55 KES 201

$2.01 MX$37.20

-22.89%

Eggs

$1.82 KES 236

$2.77 MX$51.1

-34.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.91 KES 1,803

$11.91 MX$220

16.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.00 KES 648

$9.33 MX$172

-46.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.25 KES 681

$15.02 MX$278

-65.05%

Apples (1kg)

$2.10 KES 272

$3.08 MX$56.8

-31.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.16 KES 150

$1.95 MX$35.97

-40.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.76 KES 228

$2.03 MX$37.54

-13.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.70 KES 90.9

$2.21 MX$40.92

-68.33%

Potato (1kg)

$0.72 KES 93.8

$2.02 MX$37.41

-64.36%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 KES 130

$1.82 MX$33.67

-44.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.60 KES 78.4

$1.52 MX$28.07

-60.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.43 KES 55.6

$1.28 MX$23.65

-66.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.00 KES 518

$5.27 MX$97.4

-24.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.56 KES 1,239

$16.12 MX$298

-40.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.99 KES 258

$1.95 MX$36.05

2.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 KES 365

$4.25 MX$78.6

-33.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.80 KES 104

$0.31 MX$5.82

158.06%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$38.84 KES 5,035

$19.85 MX$367

95.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.16 KES 410

$2.00 MX$36.93

58.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.75 KES 227

$0.53 MX$9.86

230.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.65 KES 603

$5.62 MX$104

-17.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.56 KES 202

$1.52 MX$28.07

2.63%

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

$12.1K KES 1.6M

$21.0K MX$388.7K

-42.61%

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

$11.8K KES 1.5M

$25.2K MX$465.3K

-53.05%

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

$76.9 KES 9,975

$62.5 MX$1,155

23.12%

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

$9.14 KES 1,184

$28.77 MX$532

-68.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.48 KES 4,470

$34.45 MX$637

0.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$18.18 KES 2,357

$57.1 MX$1,055

-68.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.93 KES 2,454

$24.81 MX$458

-23.70%

Cinema Ticket

$15.63 KES 2,027

$6.67 MX$123

134.33%

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

$86.4 KES 11.2K

$431 MX$7,964

-79.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,415 KES 702.1K

$11.7K MX$216.9K

-53.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$13.05 KES 1,692

$70.8 MX$1,308

-81.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$13.77 KES 1,785

$51.8 MX$958

-73.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$23.30 KES 3,021

$109 MX$2,011

-78.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$46.20 KES 5,990

$112 MX$2,076

-58.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$227 KES 29.5K

$1,051 MX$19.4K

-78.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$157 KES 20.4K

$665 MX$12.3K

-76.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$540 KES 70.0K

$2,346 MX$43.3K

-76.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$372 KES 48.3K

$1,227 MX$22.7K

-69.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,411 KES 701.6K

$3,554 MX$65.7K

52.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,884 KES 503.6K

$1,977 MX$36.5K

96.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$313 KES 40.5K

$975 MX$18.0K

-67.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

15.04%

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

Last update for Mombasa: October 10, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Mombasa

$185 25.8%

Mexico City

$323 20.6% 74% $137

Accommodation & Living

Mombasa

$157 21.9%

Mexico City

$665 42.4% 323% $508

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mombasa

$121 16.8%

Mexico City

$126 8% 4.3% $5.2

Eating Out

Mombasa

$109 15.1%

Mexico City

$203 13% 86.7% $94

Getting Around

Mombasa

$54 7.5%

Mexico City

$26 1.6% 52.2% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Mombasa

$49 6.9%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 42.4% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Mombasa

$43 6%

Mexico City

$155 9.9% 257% $111

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $227 in Mombasa and $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 212% 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: $25.00 in Mombasa vs $50.0 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $185 vs $323 per month, with Mombasa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇰🇪 Mombasa

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

14:48 2:48 PM

05:48 5:48 AM

9 h behind Mombasa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,300,000

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Kenyan Shilling KES Sh

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 KES = 7.71 USD

1,000 KES = 6.86 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to KES – Kenyan Shilling Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇪 Kenyan Shilling (Sh)

Kenyan Shilling exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 130 KES (1,000 KES = 7.71 USD). 1 EUR = 146 KES (1,000 KES = 6.86 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.78 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to KES in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Mombasa Mexico City 15,230 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Mombasa
Mexico City

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

Mombasa vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mombasa and Mexico City differ by about 118% in total monthly costs ($719 vs $1,567 including rent). Mombasa is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 212% 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: $227 in Mombasa versus $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Mombasa runs roughly 96% less than in Mexico City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $86.4 in Mombasa versus $431 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $719 in Mombasa versus $1,567 in Mexico City, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mombasa but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Mombasa 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 Mombasa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 118% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.