Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Olten and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,548 a month against $3,049 in Olten, rent and utilities included – about $18,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

148

Cost of Living Index in Olten
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Olten Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

Jump to prices

Olten

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,049

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,548

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,049 in Olten versus $1,548 in Mexico City.

Olten $3,049
Mexico City $1,548

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,812 in Olten versus $2,436 in Mexico City.

Olten $4,812
Mexico City $2,436

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,576 in Olten versus $3,323 in Mexico City.

Olten $6,576
Mexico City $3,323

Living in Olten is roughly 97% more expensive than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Olten 125% above, Mexico City 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$33.18 CHF 27.33

$11.02 MX$204

201.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$122 CHF 100

$48.68 MX$900

150.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$17.69 CHF 14.57

$10.90 MX$201

62.29%

Cappuccino

$6.29 CHF 5.18

$3.68 MX$68.1

70.92%

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

$5.51 CHF 4.54

$1.63 MX$30.18

238.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.21 CHF 4.29

$1.25 MX$23.07

316.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.22 CHF 7.59

$3.25 MX$60.1

183.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.52 CHF 6.19

$5.53 MX$102

35.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.11 CHF 1.73

$1.70 MX$31.50

24.12%

White Bread (500g)

$3.87 CHF 3.19

$3.02 MX$55.8

28.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.81 CHF 3.14

$1.92 MX$35.53

98.44%

Eggs

$8.37 CHF 6.90

$2.73 MX$50.5

206.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$26.10 CHF 21.50

$11.77 MX$218

121.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$26.77 CHF 22.05

$9.53 MX$176

180.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$46.34 CHF 38.16

$14.41 MX$266

221.58%

Apples (1kg)

$4.02 CHF 3.31

$3.02 MX$55.8

33.11%

Banana (1kg)

$2.69 CHF 2.22

$1.89 MX$35.01

42.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.97 CHF 2.45

$1.99 MX$36.70

49.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.69 CHF 3.86

$2.19 MX$40.38

114.16%

Potato (1kg)

$2.49 CHF 2.05

$1.92 MX$35.43

29.69%

Onion (1kg)

$2.14 CHF 1.76

$1.87 MX$34.49

14.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.55 CHF 2.10

$1.44 MX$26.62

77.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 CHF 1.06

$1.27 MX$23.39

1.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.85 CHF 8.93

$5.22 MX$96.4

107.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.12 CHF 11.63

$16.17 MX$299

-12.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.79 CHF 2.30

$1.90 MX$35.03

46.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 CHF 2.68

$4.22 MX$78.0

-22.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.30 CHF 4.37

$0.34 MX$6.30

1458.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$107 CHF 88.3

$19.65 MX$363

445.80%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$8.39 CHF 6.91

$2.00 MX$36.90

319.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.53 CHF 3.73

$0.52 MX$9.67

771.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$90.2 CHF 74.3

$5.34 MX$98.7

1589.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.16 CHF 1.78

$1.52 MX$28.13

42.11%

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

$39.5K CHF 32.6K

$22.1K MX$408.0K

79.13%

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

$39.3K CHF 32.4K

$24.5K MX$452.9K

60.34%

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

$275 CHF 227

$61.1 MX$1,129

350.89%

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

$32.97 CHF 27.15

$28.58 MX$528

15.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.51 CHF 39.13

$34.47 MX$637

37.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$80.2 CHF 66.1

$56.4 MX$1,042

42.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.88 MX$460

Cinema Ticket

$21.01 CHF 17.30

$6.66 MX$123

215.47%

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

$3,608 CHF 2,971

$427 MX$7,891

744.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$41.7K CHF 34.3K

$11.6K MX$215.0K

258.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$143 CHF 118

$67.8 MX$1,253

110.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 CHF 48.81

$52.0 MX$960

14.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$167 CHF 137

$106 MX$1,959

57.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$210 CHF 173

$113 MX$2,080

87.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,210 CHF 997

$1,025 MX$18.9K

18.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,035 CHF 852

$654 MX$12.1K

58.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,968 CHF 1,621

$2,308 MX$42.7K

-14.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,948 CHF 1,605

$1,242 MX$22.9K

56.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,613 MX$66.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,936 MX$35.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,837 CHF 4,808

$964 MX$17.8K

505.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.07

11.3

-81.68%

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

Last update for Olten: October 20, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Olten

$1K 34%

Mexico City

$654 42.3% 36.8% $381

Groceries & Markets

Olten

$617 20.3%

Mexico City

$318 20.6% 48.5% $299

Eating Out

Olten

$498 16.3%

Mexico City

$204 13.2% 59.1% $294

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Olten

$356 11.7%

Mexico City

$124 8% 65.1% $232

Clothing & Footwear

Olten

$261 8.6%

Mexico City

$152 9.8% 41.6% $108

Getting Around

Olten

$160 5.2%

Mexico City

$26 1.7% 83.9% $134

Sport & Entertainment

Olten

$122 4%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 43% $53

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,210 in Olten and $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Olten pays 505% 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 Olten vs $49.00 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $617 vs $318 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Olten

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

14:32 2:32 PM

06:32 6:32 AM

8 h behind Olten

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

17,280

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.824 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.926 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

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Between locations

Olten Mexico City 9,640 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Olten
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

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

Olten and Mexico City differ by about 97% in total monthly costs ($3,049 vs $1,548 including rent). Mexico City is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 505% higher in Olten, 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: $1,210 in Olten 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 Mexico City runs roughly 446% less than in Olten. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $3,608 in Olten versus $427 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,548 in Mexico City versus $3,049 in Olten, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in Olten. The gap between the two cities makes Mexico City 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.

Safety-wise, Olten 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.

Expats usually find Mexico City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 97% less than in Olten. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.