Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between New York, NY and Los Cabos

For one person, living is cheaper in Los Cabos: $1,371 a month against $4,950 in New York, NY, rent and utilities included – about $42,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

239

Cost of Living Index in New York, NY
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New York, NY Living Index
66

Cost of Living Index in Los Cabos
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Los Cabos Living Index

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New York, NY

🇺🇸 United States

$4,950

/mo nomad

Los Cabos

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,371

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in New York, NY and in Los Cabos

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,950 in New York, NY versus $1,371 in Los Cabos.

New York, NY $4,950
Los Cabos $1,371

Estimated couple costs with rent: $7,265 in New York, NY versus $2,211 in Los Cabos.

New York, NY $7,265
Los Cabos $2,211

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $9,581 in New York, NY versus $3,051 in Los Cabos.

New York, NY $9,581
Los Cabos $3,051

Living in New York, NY is roughly 261% more expensive than in Los Cabos, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: New York, NY 267% above, Los Cabos 2% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.65 $24.65

$22.30 MX$412

10.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$122 $122

$43.70 MX$807

178.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.91 $13.91

$13.76 MX$254

1.09%

Cappuccino

$6.59 $6.59

$5.22 MX$96.5

26.25%

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

$3.84 $3.84

$2.30 MX$42.51

66.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.87 $2.87

$2.06 MX$38.06

39.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.79 $7.79

$4.99 MX$92.2

56.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.85 $9.85

$8.36 MX$154

17.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 $1.38

$1.65 MX$30.46

-16.36%

White Bread (500g)

$4.68 $4.68

$2.86 MX$52.8

63.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$7.54 $7.54

$2.38 MX$44.07

216.81%

Eggs

$5.93 $5.93

$2.41 MX$44.49

146.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.83 $18.83

$8.96 MX$166

110.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$17.36 $17.36

$9.56 MX$177

81.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.51 $18.51

$17.76 MX$328

4.22%

Apples (1kg)

$6.74 $6.74

$4.13 MX$76.4

63.20%

Banana (1kg)

$2.09 $2.09

$1.78 MX$32.89

17.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.07 $6.07

$2.93 MX$54.2

107.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.74 $6.74

$2.53 MX$46.70

166.40%

Potato (1kg)

$4.05 $4.05

$2.34 MX$43.16

73.08%

Onion (1kg)

$4.37 $4.37

$2.53 MX$46.73

72.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.89 $2.89

$1.24 MX$22.99

133.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.60 $2.60

$0.86 MX$15.94

202.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$18.72 $18.72

$4.52 MX$83.6

314.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.06 $20.06

$10.32 MX$191

94.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.25 $3.25

$1.61 MX$29.70

101.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.73 $3.73

$3.13 MX$57.8

19.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.06 $3.06

$1.41 MX$25.98

117.02%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$140 $140

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.04 $3.04

$2.66 MX$49.20

14.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.15 $2.15

$1.93 MX$35.59

11.40%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.82 $41.82

$11.63 MX$215

259.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.12 $1.12

$1.38 MX$25.43

-18.84%

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

$35.5K $35.5K

$21.0K MX$388.2K

68.77%

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

$26.0K $26.0K

$24.3K MX$449.9K

6.94%

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

$219 $219

$58.6 MX$1,083

273.80%

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

$73.2 $73.2

$27.70 MX$512

164.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$72.0 $72.0

$24.59 MX$454

192.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$123 $123

$34.48 MX$637

255.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$67.7 $67.7

$20.05 MX$371

237.51%

Cinema Ticket

$22.85 $22.85

$4.28 MX$79.1

433.88%

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

$3,333 $3,333

$215 MX$3,971

1450.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$60.0K $60.0K

$4,652 MX$86.0K

1189.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$75.2 $75.2

$93.3 MX$1,724

-19.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.4 $52.4

$40.63 MX$751

28.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$122 $122

$124 MX$2,298

-2.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 $133

$89.7 MX$1,657

48.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,389 $4,389

$612 MX$11.3K

617.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,130 $3,130

$391 MX$7,226

700.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$8,918 $8,918

$1,044 MX$19.3K

754.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$5,354 $5,354

$781 MX$14.4K

585.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.4K $19.4K

$1,933 MX$35.7K

903.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,806 $6,806

$1,131 MX$20.9K

501.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,343 $5,343

$811 MX$15.0K

559.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.82

11.3

-39.65%

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

Last update for New York, NY: October 13, 2026

Last update for Los Cabos: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

New York, NY

$3.1K 63.2%

Los Cabos

$391 28.5% 87.5% $2.7K

Groceries & Markets

New York, NY

$545 11%

Los Cabos

$310 22.6% 43.1% $235

Eating Out

New York, NY

$404 8.2%

Los Cabos

$341 24.9% 15.4% $62

Monthly Utilities & Internet

New York, NY

$364 7.4%

Los Cabos

$111 8.1% 69.6% $253

Clothing & Footwear

New York, NY

$172 3.5%

Los Cabos

$157 11.4% 9% $16

Sport & Entertainment

New York, NY

$168 3.4%

Los Cabos

$43 3.1% 74.4% $125

Getting Around

New York, NY

$167 3.4%

Los Cabos

$18 * 1.3% 89.2% $149

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 $4,389 in New York, NY and $612 in Los Cabos. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

New York, NY pays 559% 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: $122 in New York, NY vs $44.00 in Los Cabos for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $545 vs $310 per month, with Los Cabos cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 New York, NY

🇲🇽 Los Cabos

🕒 Local time

12:58 12:58 PM

09:58 9:58 AM

3 h behind New York, NY

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,804,190

202,694

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 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 18, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

New York, NY Los Cabos 3,870 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

New York, NY
Los Cabos

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 York, NY vs Los Cabos: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Los Cabos is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 261% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 559% higher in New York, NY, 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: $4,389 in New York, NY versus $612 in Los Cabos. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 76% higher in New York, NY. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $4,950 per month in New York, NY versus $1,371 in Los Cabos – a 261% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,371 in Los Cabos versus $4,950 in New York, NY, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Los Cabos but tight or insufficient in New York, NY. The gap between the two cities makes Los Cabos the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Los Cabos is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in New York, NY, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Los Cabos gentler on the wallet – expenses run 261% less than in New York, NY. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.