Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between New Plymouth and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,608 a month against $1,820 in New Plymouth, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in New Plymouth
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New Plymouth Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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New Plymouth

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,820

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,820 in New Plymouth versus $1,608 in Mexico City.

New Plymouth $1,820
Mexico City $1,608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in New Plymouth versus $2,549 in Mexico City.

New Plymouth $2,828
Mexico City $2,549

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,836 in New Plymouth versus $3,490 in Mexico City.

New Plymouth $3,836
Mexico City $3,490

Living in New Plymouth is roughly 13% more expensive than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: New Plymouth 34% above, Mexico City 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.43 NZ$22.06

$10.62 MX$199

17.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.9 NZ$121

$48.35 MX$908

40.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.44 NZ$14.98

$10.35 MX$194

-18.45%

Cappuccino

$3.34 NZ$5.93

$3.69 MX$69.3

-9.49%

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

$2.12 NZ$3.76

$1.67 MX$31.29

26.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 NZ$3.28

$1.27 MX$23.76

45.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.32 NZ$9.45

$3.19 MX$59.9

66.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.65 NZ$10.02

$5.31 MX$99.6

6.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 NZ$2.55

$1.72 MX$32.38

-16.28%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 NZ$2.22

$3.04 MX$57.1

-58.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.65 NZ$2.92

$1.94 MX$36.44

-14.95%

Eggs

$5.53 NZ$9.82

$2.89 MX$54.2

91.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.52 NZ$9.79

$10.97 MX$206

-49.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.19 NZ$12.76

$9.25 MX$174

-22.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.42 NZ$20.28

$15.13 MX$284

-24.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.63 NZ$4.67

$3.05 MX$57.2

-13.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.86 NZ$3.29

$1.94 MX$36.45

-4.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.93 NZ$5.20

$2.03 MX$38.02

44.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.12 NZ$10.86

$2.31 MX$43.46

164.94%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 NZ$3.53

$2.04 MX$38.21

-2.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.41 NZ$2.51

$1.80 MX$33.79

-21.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.88 NZ$3.33

$1.48 MX$27.77

27.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 NZ$2.35

$1.27 MX$23.80

3.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.12 NZ$41.04

$5.30 MX$99.6

336.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.73 NZ$15.51

$16.10 MX$302

-45.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.03 NZ$5.37

$1.98 MX$37.23

53.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.78 NZ$6.72

$4.25 MX$79.8

-11.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.68 NZ$2.99

$0.31 MX$5.73

441.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.6 NZ$133

$19.73 MX$371

278.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.68 NZ$6.53

$1.84 MX$34.50

100.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MX$10.02

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 MX$99.4

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.67 NZ$2.97

$1.51 MX$28.36

10.60%

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

$28.7K NZ$50.9K

$21.8K MX$408.4K

31.81%

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

$22.8K NZ$40.5K

$24.0K MX$450.3K

-4.98%

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

$130 NZ$231

$63.0 MX$1,182

106.18%

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

$27.85 NZ$49.44

$27.39 MX$514

1.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.35 NZ$85.8

$35.67 MX$670

35.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.29 NZ$76.9

$58.9 MX$1,107

-26.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.64 MX$444

Cinema Ticket

$8.20 NZ$14.55

$6.40 MX$120

28.12%

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

$680 NZ$1,206

$432 MX$8,103

57.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.1K NZ$41.0K

$11.4K MX$214.5K

102.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.3 NZ$109

$68.2 MX$1,281

-10.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.74 NZ$68.8

$53.1 MX$997

-27.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.6 NZ$161

$108 MX$2,023

-15.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 NZ$188

$117 MX$2,202

-9.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$907 NZ$1,611

$1,113 MX$20.9K

-18.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$836 NZ$1,485

$710 MX$13.3K

17.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,740 NZ$3,089

$2,588 MX$48.6K

-32.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 NZ$2,821

$1,406 MX$26.4K

13.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,209 NZ$5,697

$3,631 MX$68.2K

-11.63%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,622 NZ$4,655

$2,135 MX$40.1K

22.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,787 NZ$4,948

$946 MX$17.8K

194.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.93

11.35

-47.75%

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

Last update for New Plymouth: October 26, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

New Plymouth

$836 45.9%

Mexico City

$710 44.2% 15.1% $126

Groceries & Markets

New Plymouth

$281 15.5%

Mexico City

$320 19.9% 13.6% $38

Eating Out

New Plymouth

$219 12%

Mexico City

$199 12.4% 9.1% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

New Plymouth

$206 11.3%

Mexico City

$126 7.8% 38.8% $80

Clothing & Footwear

New Plymouth

$133 7.3%

Mexico City

$156 9.7% 16.8% $22

Getting Around

New Plymouth

$85 * 4.7%

Mexico City

$25 1.6% 70.1% $60

Sport & Entertainment

New Plymouth

$60 3.3%

Mexico City

$72 4.5% 20.2% $12

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 $907 in New Plymouth and $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

New Plymouth pays about 2.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $68 in New Plymouth vs $48 in Mexico City. Groceries flip the comparison at $281 vs $320, with New Plymouth cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇳🇿 New Plymouth

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

17:54 5:54 PM

22:54 10:54 PM

19 h behind New Plymouth

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

58,400

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.504 EUR

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to NZD – New Zealand Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.563 USD). 1 EUR = 1.98 NZD (1 NZD = 0.504 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

New Plymouth Mexico City 11,090 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

New Plymouth
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

New Plymouth vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,820 in New Plymouth and $1,608 in Mexico City, so Mexico City is about 12% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in New Plymouth is about 2.9 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $907 in New Plymouth 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 74% less than in New Plymouth. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $680 in New Plymouth versus $432 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Mexico City gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Mexico City wins on affordability, New Plymouth on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.