Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nagano and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Nagano: $1,231 a month against $1,548 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Nagano
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Nagano Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

Jump to prices

Nagano

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,231

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,548

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,231 in Nagano versus $1,548 in Mexico City.

Nagano $1,231
Mexico City $1,548

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,891 in Nagano versus $2,436 in Mexico City.

Nagano $1,891
Mexico City $2,436

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,550 in Nagano versus $3,323 in Mexico City.

Nagano $2,550
Mexico City $3,323

Living in Nagano costs roughly 20% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nagano is 9% below, Mexico City is 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.45 ¥1,019

$11.02 MX$204

-41.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.32 ¥6,370

$48.68 MX$900

-17.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.13 ¥810

$10.90 MX$201

-52.94%

Cappuccino

$3.37 ¥532

$3.68 MX$68.1

-8.42%

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

$1.06 ¥167

$1.63 MX$30.18

-34.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.80 ¥126

$1.25 MX$23.07

-36.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ¥409

$3.25 MX$60.1

-20.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.06 ¥483

$5.53 MX$102

-44.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 ¥228

$1.70 MX$31.50

-14.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.64 ¥260

$3.02 MX$55.8

-45.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.57 ¥564

$1.92 MX$35.53

85.94%

Eggs

$1.99 ¥315

$2.73 MX$50.5

-27.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.32 ¥1,630

$11.77 MX$218

-12.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.17 ¥975

$9.53 MX$176

-35.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.40 ¥2,275

$14.41 MX$266

-0.07%

Apples (1kg)

$5.82 ¥919

$3.02 MX$55.8

92.72%

Banana (1kg)

$2.69 ¥425

$1.89 MX$35.01

42.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.84 ¥448

$1.99 MX$36.70

42.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.06 ¥642

$2.19 MX$40.38

85.39%

Potato (1kg)

$2.50 ¥396

$1.92 MX$35.43

30.21%

Onion (1kg)

$2.54 ¥401

$1.87 MX$34.49

35.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 ¥197

$1.44 MX$26.62

-13.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 ¥121

$1.27 MX$23.39

-40.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.68 ¥582

$5.22 MX$96.4

-29.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.21 ¥982

$16.17 MX$299

-61.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ¥287

$1.90 MX$35.03

-4.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.01 ¥317

$4.22 MX$78.0

-52.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.31 ¥207

$0.34 MX$6.30

285.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$51.2 ¥8,082

$19.65 MX$363

160.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.17 ¥501

$2.00 MX$36.90

58.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.70 ¥427

$0.52 MX$9.67

419.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.17 ¥3,187

$5.34 MX$98.7

277.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.05 ¥166

$1.52 MX$28.13

-30.92%

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

$21.6K ¥3.4M

$22.1K MX$408.0K

-2.17%

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

$15.5K ¥2.4M

$24.5K MX$452.9K

-36.87%

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

$130 ¥20.6K

$61.1 MX$1,129

113.12%

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

$23.91 ¥3,778

$28.58 MX$528

-16.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$12.76 ¥2,016

$34.47 MX$637

-62.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.1 ¥8,387

$56.4 MX$1,042

-5.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.88 MX$460

Cinema Ticket

$12.71 ¥2,008

$6.66 MX$123

90.84%

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

$622 ¥98.3K

$427 MX$7,891

45.64%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.9K ¥2.4M

$11.6K MX$215.0K

28.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.8 ¥9,759

$67.8 MX$1,253

-8.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.29 ¥5,733

$52.0 MX$960

-30.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$62.0 ¥9,797

$106 MX$1,959

-41.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$100 ¥15.8K

$113 MX$2,080

-10.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$557 ¥88.0K

$1,025 MX$18.9K

-45.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$375 ¥59.2K

$654 MX$12.1K

-42.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,142 ¥180.4K

$2,308 MX$42.7K

-50.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$648 ¥102.4K

$1,242 MX$22.9K

-47.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,188 ¥661.7K

$3,613 MX$66.8K

15.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,974 ¥311.9K

$1,936 MX$35.8K

1.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$627 ¥99.0K

$964 MX$17.8K

-35.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.64

11.3

-76.64%

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

Last update for Nagano: October 18, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nagano

$375 30.4%

Mexico City

$654 42.3% 74.6% $279

Groceries & Markets

Nagano

$287 23.3%

Mexico City

$318 20.6% 10.7% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nagano

$167 13.6%

Mexico City

$124 8% 25.6% $43

Eating Out

Nagano

$134 10.9%

Mexico City

$204 13.2% 52.3% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Nagano

$117 9.5%

Mexico City

$152 9.8% 30% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Nagano

$79 6.4%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 11.2% $8.8

Getting Around

Nagano

$73 5.9%

Mexico City

$26 1.7% 64.9% $47

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $557 in Nagano and $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 54% 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: $40.00 in Nagano vs $49.00 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $287 vs $318 per month, with Nagano cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Nagano

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

12:00 12:00 PM

21:00 9:00 PM

15 h behind Nagano

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

372,760

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

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Between locations

Nagano Mexico City 11,350 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Nagano
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

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

Nagano and Mexico City differ by about 26% in total monthly costs ($1,231 vs $1,548 including rent). Nagano is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 54% 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: $557 in Nagano versus $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Nagano runs roughly 160% less than in Mexico City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $622 in Nagano versus $427 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,231 in Nagano versus $1,548 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Nagano but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Nagano 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 Nagano gentler on the wallet – expenses run 26% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.