Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montanita and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Montanita: $893 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in Montanita
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Montanita Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

Jump to prices

Montanita

🇪🇨 Ecuador

$893

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montanita 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 Montanita and in Mexico City actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $893 in Montanita versus $1,608 in Mexico City.

Montanita $893
Mexico City $1,608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,344 in Montanita versus $2,549 in Mexico City.

Montanita $1,344
Mexico City $2,549

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,796 in Montanita versus $3,490 in Mexico City.

Montanita $1,796
Mexico City $3,490

Living in Montanita costs roughly 44% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Montanita is 34% below, Mexico City is 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.44 $3.44

$10.62 MX$198

-67.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.67 $27.67

$48.35 MX$901

-42.77%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.30 $7.30

$10.35 MX$193

-29.47%

Cappuccino

$2.40 $2.40

$3.69 MX$68.8

-34.96%

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

$0.85 $0.85

$1.67 MX$31.07

-49.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.63 $0.63

$1.27 MX$23.59

-50.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.96 $1.96

$3.19 MX$59.5

-38.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.59 $3.59

$5.31 MX$98.9

-32.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 $1.13

$1.72 MX$32.15

-34.30%

White Bread (500g)

$1.71 $1.71

$3.04 MX$56.7

-43.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 $1.50

$1.94 MX$36.19

-22.68%

Eggs

$2.10 $2.10

$2.89 MX$53.8

-27.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.40 $5.40

$10.97 MX$205

-50.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.45 $5.45

$9.25 MX$172

-41.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.40 $6.40

$15.13 MX$282

-57.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.10 $2.10

$3.05 MX$56.8

-31.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.22 $1.22

$1.94 MX$36.19

-37.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.09 $1.09

$2.03 MX$37.75

-46.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.09 $1.09

$2.31 MX$43.15

-52.81%

Potato (1kg)

$1.43 $1.43

$2.04 MX$37.94

-29.90%

Onion (1kg)

$1.02 $1.02

$1.80 MX$33.55

-43.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.49 $0.49

$1.48 MX$27.58

-66.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.02 $1.02

$1.27 MX$23.63

-19.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.10 $6.10

$5.30 MX$98.9

15.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.82 $9.82

$16.10 MX$300

-39.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.52 $1.52

$1.98 MX$36.97

-23.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.55 $2.55

$4.25 MX$79.3

-40.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.36 $0.36

$0.31 MX$5.69

16.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$23.56 $23.56

$19.73 MX$368

19.41%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.53 $1.53

$1.84 MX$34.25

-16.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 $1.02

$0.53 MX$9.94

92.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.03 $10.03

$5.30 MX$98.7

89.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.62 $0.62

$1.51 MX$28.16

-58.94%

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

$24.9K $24.9K

$21.8K MX$405.5K

14.34%

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

$28.3K $28.3K

$24.0K MX$447.1K

17.84%

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

$40.55 $40.55

$63.0 MX$1,174

-35.61%

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

$13.96 $13.96

$27.39 MX$511

-49.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.87 $30.87

$35.67 MX$665

-13.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.86 $29.86

$58.9 MX$1,099

-49.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.43 $14.43

$23.64 MX$441

-38.96%

Cinema Ticket

$7.33 $7.33

$6.40 MX$119

14.53%

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

$256 $256

$432 MX$8,045

-40.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,690 $5,690

$11.4K MX$212.9K

-50.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.5 $55.5

$68.2 MX$1,272

-18.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.86 $42.86

$53.1 MX$990

-19.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 $101

$108 MX$2,009

-6.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$74.8 $74.8

$117 MX$2,186

-36.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$336 $336

$1,113 MX$20.8K

-69.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$321 $321

$710 MX$13.2K

-54.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$622 $622

$2,588 MX$48.2K

-75.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$503 $503

$1,406 MX$26.2K

-64.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,245 $1,245

$3,631 MX$67.7K

-65.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,013 $1,013

$2,135 MX$39.8K

-52.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$946 MX$17.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

-11.89%

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

Last update for Montanita: October 25, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montanita

$321 35.9%

Mexico City

$710 44.2% 122% $390

Groceries & Markets

Montanita

$186 20.8%

Mexico City

$320 19.9% 71.9% $134

Clothing & Footwear

Montanita

$123 13.8%

Mexico City

$156 9.7% 26.5% $33

Eating Out

Montanita

$101 11.3%

Mexico City

$199 12.4% 96.3% $97

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montanita

$85 9.6%

Mexico City

$126 7.8% 47.6% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Montanita

$45 5%

Mexico City

$72 4.5% 61.1% $27

Getting Around

Montanita

$32 3.6%

Mexico City

$25 1.6% 19.6% $6.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $336 in Montanita and $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $28 in Montanita vs $48 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $186 vs $320 per month, with Montanita cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇨 Montanita

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

18:15 6:15 PM

17:15 5:15 PM

1 h behind Montanita

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,000

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Montanita Mexico City 3,100 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Montanita
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $893 in Montanita and $1,608 in Mexico City, so Montanita is about 44% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,339 in Montanita and $2,412 in Mexico City 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: $336 in Montanita versus $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 16% less than in Montanita. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $256 in Montanita versus $432 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $893 in Montanita versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Montanita but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Montanita 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.