Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Noumea and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,608 a month against $2,676 in Noumea, rent and utilities included – about $12,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

128

Cost of Living Index in Noumea
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Noumea Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Noumea

🇳🇨 New Caledonia

$2,676

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,676 in Noumea versus $1,608 in Mexico City.

Noumea $2,676
Mexico City $1,608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,200 in Noumea versus $2,549 in Mexico City.

Noumea $4,200
Mexico City $2,549

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,724 in Noumea versus $3,490 in Mexico City.

Noumea $5,724
Mexico City $3,490

Living in Noumea is roughly 66% more expensive than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Noumea 97% above, Mexico City 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.74 CFPF 2,216

$10.62 MX$198

95.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$112 CFPF 12.0K

$48.35 MX$901

131.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.07 CFPF 1,503

$10.35 MX$193

35.94%

Cappuccino

$4.48 CFPF 479

$3.69 MX$68.7

21.41%

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

$1.96 CFPF 209

$1.67 MX$31.05

17.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.23 CFPF 132

$1.27 MX$23.58

-3.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.59 CFPF 1,025

$3.19 MX$59.5

200.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.14 CFPF 763

$5.31 MX$98.9

34.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 CFPF 127

$1.72 MX$32.13

-30.81%

White Bread (500g)

$3.42 CFPF 365

$3.04 MX$56.6

12.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.24 CFPF 240

$1.94 MX$36.17

15.46%

Eggs

$6.21 CFPF 664

$2.89 MX$53.8

114.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$29.94 CFPF 3,199

$10.97 MX$204

172.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$28.58 CFPF 3,054

$9.25 MX$172

208.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$27.62 CFPF 2,951

$15.13 MX$282

82.55%

Apples (1kg)

$4.71 CFPF 504

$3.05 MX$56.8

54.43%

Banana (1kg)

$6.93 CFPF 741

$1.94 MX$36.17

257.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.18 CFPF 661

$2.03 MX$37.73

204.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$8.08 CFPF 864

$2.31 MX$43.12

249.78%

Potato (1kg)

$5.65 CFPF 604

$2.04 MX$37.91

176.96%

Onion (1kg)

$3.83 CFPF 409

$1.80 MX$33.53

112.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$4.09 CFPF 437

$1.48 MX$27.56

176.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 CFPF 155

$1.27 MX$23.62

14.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$19.14 CFPF 2,045

$5.30 MX$98.8

261.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.58 CFPF 1,772

$16.10 MX$300

2.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.56 CFPF 594

$1.98 MX$36.95

180.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 MX$79.2

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.75 CFPF 507

$0.31 MX$5.68

1432.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$285 CFPF 30.5K

$19.73 MX$368

1345.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.08 CFPF 756

$1.84 MX$34.23

284.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.12 CFPF 120

$0.53 MX$9.94

111.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.24 CFPF 2,270

$5.30 MX$98.7

300.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 CFPF 165

$1.51 MX$28.14

2.65%

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

$32.8K CFPF 3.5M

$21.8K MX$405.3K

50.67%

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

$38.0K CFPF 4.1M

$24.0K MX$446.9K

58.51%

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

$196 CFPF 21.0K

$63.0 MX$1,173

211.88%

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

$44.13 CFPF 4,715

$27.39 MX$510

61.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.00 CFPF 5,129

$35.67 MX$664

34.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.1 CFPF 5,348

$58.9 MX$1,098

-15.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.54 CFPF 913

$23.64 MX$441

-63.87%

Cinema Ticket

$14.25 CFPF 1,523

$6.40 MX$119

122.66%

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

$740 CFPF 79.1K

$432 MX$8,041

71.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,264 CFPF 989.9K

$11.4K MX$212.8K

-18.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$109 CFPF 11.6K

$68.2 MX$1,271

59.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$65.4 CFPF 6,984

$53.1 MX$990

23.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$97.1 CFPF 10.4K

$108 MX$2,008

-9.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$254 CFPF 27.1K

$117 MX$2,185

116.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$749 CFPF 80.0K

$1,113 MX$20.7K

-32.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$774 CFPF 82.7K

$710 MX$13.2K

8.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,508 CFPF 161.2K

$2,588 MX$48.2K

-41.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,311 CFPF 140.1K

$1,406 MX$26.2K

-6.72%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,760 CFPF 508.6K

$3,631 MX$67.6K

31.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,387 CFPF 361.9K

$2,135 MX$39.8K

58.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,657 CFPF 283.9K

$946 MX$17.6K

180.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.13

11.35

-72.42%

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

Last update for Noumea: October 24, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Noumea

$774 28.9%

Mexico City

$710 44.2% 8.2% $63

Groceries & Markets

Noumea

$645 * 24.1%

Mexico City

$320 19.9% 50.5% $326

Eating Out

Noumea

$337 12.6%

Mexico City

$199 12.4% 41% $138

Getting Around

Noumea

$317 11.8%

Mexico City

$25 1.6% 92% $291

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Noumea

$289 10.8%

Mexico City

$126 7.8% 56.3% $163

Clothing & Footwear

Noumea

$236 8.8%

Mexico City

$156 9.7% 34.1% $81

Sport & Entertainment

Noumea

$79 2.9%

Mexico City

$72 4.5% 8.7% $6.8

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 $749 in Noumea and $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Noumea pays about 2.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $112 in Noumea vs $48 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $645 vs $320 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇨 Noumea

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

22:06 10:06 PM

05:06 5:06 AM

17 h behind Noumea

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

91,386 Capital

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

CFP Franc XPF Fr

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 XPF = 9.36 USD

1,000 XPF = 8.39 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to XPF – CFP Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🌐 CFP Franc (Fr)

CFP Franc exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 107 XPF (1,000 XPF = 9.36 USD). 1 EUR = 119 XPF (1,000 XPF = 8.39 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.63 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.79 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to XPF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Noumea Mexico City 11,250 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Noumea
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,676 in Noumea and $1,608 in Mexico City, so Mexico City is about 40% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Noumea is about 2.8 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: $749 in Noumea 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 93% less than in Noumea. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $740 in Noumea 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, Noumea on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.