Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Oaxaca de Juarez and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Oaxaca de Juarez: $1,154 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $5,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

Oaxaca de Juarez
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,154
/mo nomad
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,567
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,154 in Oaxaca de Juarez versus $1,567 in Mexico City.

  • Oaxaca de Juarez $1,154
  • Mexico City $1,567

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,781 in Oaxaca de Juarez versus $2,450 in Mexico City.

  • Oaxaca de Juarez $1,781
  • Mexico City $2,450

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,408 in Oaxaca de Juarez versus $3,333 in Mexico City.

  • Oaxaca de Juarez $2,408
  • Mexico City $3,333

Living in Oaxaca de Juarez costs roughly 26% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Oaxaca de Juarez is 15% below, Mexico City is 16% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Oaxaca de Juarez
Mexico City
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$6.48 MX$120
$10.75 MX$199
-39.72%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$32.81 MX$606
$50.3 MX$929
-34.71%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.33 MX$154
$11.10 MX$205
-24.95%
Cappuccino
$2.82 MX$52.1
$3.68 MX$68.1
-23.37%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.51 MX$27.83
$1.65 MX$30.42
-8.48%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.79 MX$14.59
$1.30 MX$24.08
-39.23%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.48 MX$45.90
$3.32 MX$61.3
-25.30%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.79 MX$70.0
$5.54 MX$102
-31.59%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Oaxaca de Juarez
Mexico City
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.33 MX$24.59
$1.77 MX$32.68
-24.86%
White Bread (500g)
$3.13 MX$57.8
$3.05 MX$56.4
2.62%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.12 MX$20.62
$2.01 MX$37.20
-44.28%
Eggs
$1.74 MX$32.21
$2.77 MX$51.1
-37.18%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$6.44 MX$119
$11.91 MX$220
-45.93%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.49 MX$101
$9.33 MX$172
-41.16%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.27 MX$208
$15.02 MX$278
-24.97%
Apples (1kg)
$2.14 MX$39.46
$3.08 MX$56.8
-30.52%
Banana (1kg)
$1.23 MX$22.80
$1.95 MX$35.97
-36.92%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.90 MX$35.14
$2.03 MX$37.54
-6.40%
Tomato (1kg)
$0.53 MX$9.81
$2.21 MX$40.92
-76.02%
Potato (1kg)
$2.01 MX$37.18
$2.02 MX$37.41
-0.50%
Onion (1kg)
$2.00 MX$36.93
$1.82 MX$33.67
9.89%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.11 MX$20.58
$1.52 MX$28.07
-26.97%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.94 MX$17.46
$1.28 MX$23.65
-26.56%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.24 MX$78.3
$5.27 MX$97.4
-19.54%
Wine (Bottle)
$9.40 MX$174
$16.12 MX$298
-41.69%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.47 MX$27.11
$1.95 MX$36.05
-24.62%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.63 MX$48.64
$4.25 MX$78.6
-38.12%
🚌 Getting Around
Oaxaca de Juarez
Mexico City
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.53 MX$9.81
$0.31 MX$5.82
70.97%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$19.85 MX$367
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.89 MX$71.9
$2.00 MX$36.93
94.50%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.95 MX$36.12
$0.53 MX$9.86
267.92%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$10.89 MX$201
$5.62 MX$104
93.77%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.36 MX$25.17
$1.52 MX$28.07
-10.53%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.4K MX$396.0K
$21.0K MX$388.7K
1.88%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.4K MX$450.4K
$25.2K MX$465.3K
-3.19%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Oaxaca de Juarez
Mexico City
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$62.5 MX$1,155
$62.5 MX$1,155
0.05%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$11.03 MX$204
$28.77 MX$532
-61.66%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$24.19 MX$447
$34.45 MX$637
-29.78%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Oaxaca de Juarez
Mexico City
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$44.34 MX$819
$57.1 MX$1,055
-22.35%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$24.81 MX$458
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.58 MX$103
$6.67 MX$123
-16.34%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Oaxaca de Juarez
Mexico City
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$422 MX$7,795
$431 MX$7,964
-2.12%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$20.0K MX$369.3K
$11.7K MX$216.9K
70.25%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Oaxaca de Juarez
Mexico City
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$53.5 MX$988
$70.8 MX$1,308
-24.47%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$61.6 MX$1,138
$51.8 MX$958
18.85%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$102 MX$1,887
$109 MX$2,011
-6.16%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$98.3 MX$1,816
$112 MX$2,076
-12.51%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Oaxaca de Juarez
Mexico City
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$696 MX$12.9K
$1,051 MX$19.4K
-33.77%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$481 MX$8,885
$665 MX$12.3K
-27.70%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,208 MX$22.3K
$2,346 MX$43.3K
-48.49%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$892 MX$16.5K
$1,227 MX$22.7K
-27.27%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$3,554 MX$65.7K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$1,977 MX$36.5K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Oaxaca de Juarez
Mexico City
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
-
$975 MX$18.0K
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
10.96
11.3
-3.01%

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

Last update for Oaxaca de Juarez: October 12, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Oaxaca de Juarez
$481
Mexico City
$665 38.3% $184
Groceries & Markets
Oaxaca de Juarez
$222
Mexico City
$323 45.2% $100
Clothing & Footwear
Oaxaca de Juarez
$142
Mexico City
$155 9% $13
Eating Out
Oaxaca de Juarez
$140
Mexico City
$203 45.1% $63
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Oaxaca de Juarez
$98
Mexico City
$126 28.6% $28
Sport & Entertainment
Oaxaca de Juarez
$56
Mexico City
$70 26.9% $15
Getting Around
Oaxaca de Juarez
$16 *
Mexico City
$26 63.3% $10

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 $696 in Oaxaca de Juarez and $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $33.00 in Oaxaca de Juarez vs $50.0 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $222 vs $323 per month, with Oaxaca de Juarez cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Oaxaca de Juarez
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🕒 Local time
01:54 1:54 AM
01:54 1:54 AM
Same time as Oaxaca de Juarez
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
258,913
9,209,944 Capital
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

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).

On the map
Between locations
  • Oaxaca de Juarez Mexico City 370 km
From you
  • Oaxaca de Juarez
  • Mexico City

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index
Oaxaca de Juarez vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Oaxaca de Juarez and in Mexico City?
Oaxaca de Juarez and Mexico City differ by about 36% in total monthly costs ($1,154 vs $1,567 including rent). Oaxaca de Juarez is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
What salary covers living expenses in Oaxaca de Juarez compared to Mexico City?
You'd need roughly $1,731 in Oaxaca de Juarez and $2,351 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.
How do apartment prices compare in Oaxaca de Juarez and in Mexico City?
Rent for a central apartment: $696 in Oaxaca de Juarez versus $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Oaxaca de Juarez and Mexico City?
Childcare runs $422 in Oaxaca de Juarez versus $431 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city has cheaper restaurants?
Dining out is cheaper in Oaxaca de Juarez – a meal for two runs $33.00 versus $50.0 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
Which city is more doable on $1,000 per month?
At $1,154 in Oaxaca de Juarez versus $1,567 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Oaxaca de Juarez but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Oaxaca de Juarez the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Oaxaca de Juarez and Mexico City?
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.
Is Oaxaca de Juarez or Mexico City safer for residents?
Safety-wise, Oaxaca de Juarez and Mexico City are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.
Where should expats move: Oaxaca de Juarez or Mexico City?
Expats usually find Oaxaca de Juarez gentler on the wallet – expenses run 36% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

Oaxaca de Juarez vs other spots: cost of living compared

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