Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ostia and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,567 a month against $1,756 in Ostia, rent and utilities included – about $2,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

85

Cost of Living Index in Ostia
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Ostia Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Ostia

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,756

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,756 in Ostia versus $1,567 in Mexico City.

Ostia $1,756
Mexico City $1,567

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,594 in Ostia versus $2,450 in Mexico City.

Ostia $2,594
Mexico City $2,450

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,432 in Ostia versus $3,333 in Mexico City.

Ostia $3,432
Mexico City $3,333

Living in Ostia is roughly 12% more expensive than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Ostia 30% above, Mexico City 16% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.51 €14.69

$10.75 MX$199

53.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.0 €58.7

$50.3 MX$929

31.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.10

$11.10 MX$205

2.34%

Cappuccino

$2.25 €2.00

$3.68 MX$68.1

-38.86%

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

$2.33 €2.07

$1.65 MX$30.42

41.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.20 €1.06

$1.30 MX$24.08

-7.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.46 €4.86

$3.32 MX$61.3

64.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.80 €4.27

$5.54 MX$102

-13.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 €1.48

$1.77 MX$32.68

-5.65%

White Bread (500g)

$2.16 €1.92

$3.05 MX$56.4

-29.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.00 €2.67

$2.01 MX$37.20

49.25%

Eggs

$4.54 €4.04

$2.77 MX$51.1

63.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.92 €13.27

$11.91 MX$220

25.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.49 €11.11

$9.33 MX$172

33.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.61 €17.44

$15.02 MX$278

30.56%

Apples (1kg)

$2.59 €2.30

$3.08 MX$56.8

-15.91%

Banana (1kg)

$2.06 €1.84

$1.95 MX$35.97

5.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 €2.07

$2.03 MX$37.54

14.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.38 €2.11

$2.21 MX$40.92

7.69%

Potato (1kg)

$1.44 €1.28

$2.02 MX$37.41

-28.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.60 €1.42

$1.82 MX$33.67

-12.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.32 €1.17

$1.52 MX$28.07

-13.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 €0.46

$1.28 MX$23.65

-60.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.63 €5.90

$5.27 MX$97.4

25.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.42 €4.82

$16.12 MX$298

-66.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.56 €1.39

$1.95 MX$36.05

-20.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 €2.22

$4.25 MX$78.6

-41.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.65 €1.47

$0.31 MX$5.82

432.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$39.01 €34.70

$19.85 MX$367

96.52%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.42 €3.93

$2.00 MX$36.93

121.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.24 €1.11

$0.53 MX$9.86

133.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.16 €20.60

$5.62 MX$104

312.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.52 MX$28.07

41.45%

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

$35.3K €31.4K

$21.0K MX$388.7K

67.71%

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

$35.4K €31.5K

$25.2K MX$465.3K

40.64%

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

$197 €175

$62.5 MX$1,155

214.66%

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

$9.61 €8.55

$28.77 MX$532

-66.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.13 €27.69

$34.45 MX$637

-9.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.1 €49.93

$57.1 MX$1,055

-1.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.20 €9.96

$24.81 MX$458

-54.86%

Cinema Ticket

$11.07 €9.85

$6.67 MX$123

65.97%

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

$449 €400

$431 MX$7,964

4.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,805 €7,832

$11.7K MX$216.9K

-25.00%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.2 €64.2

$70.8 MX$1,308

1.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.65 €32.60

$51.8 MX$958

-29.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.6 €75.2

$109 MX$2,011

-22.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 €111

$112 MX$2,076

10.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$853 €759

$1,051 MX$19.4K

-18.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$673 €599

$665 MX$12.3K

1.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,130 €1,005

$2,346 MX$43.3K

-51.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$990 €881

$1,227 MX$22.7K

-19.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,554 MX$65.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,977 MX$36.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,992 €1,772

$975 MX$18.0K

104.37%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.5

11.3

-69.03%

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

Last update for Ostia: October 13, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ostia

$673 38.3%

Mexico City

$665 42.4% 1.2% $8

Groceries & Markets

Ostia

$324 18.4%

Mexico City

$323 20.6% 0.3% $0.9

Eating Out

Ostia

$244 13.9%

Mexico City

$203 13% 16.9% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ostia

$237 13.5%

Mexico City

$126 8% 47% $112

Clothing & Footwear

Ostia

$143 8.2%

Mexico City

$155 9.9% 8.1% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Ostia

$78 4.5%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 10% $7.8

Getting Around

Ostia

$56 3.2%

Mexico City

$26 1.6% 54.2% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $853 in Ostia and $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ostia pays 104% 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: $66.0 in Ostia vs $50.0 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $324 vs $323 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Ostia

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

04:00 4:00 AM

20:00 8:00 PM

8 h behind Ostia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,400

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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 EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ostia Mexico City 10,230 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

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Ostia
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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

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

Ostia and Mexico City differ by about 12% in total monthly costs ($1,756 vs $1,567 including rent). Mexico City is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 104% higher in Ostia, 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: $853 in Ostia versus $1,051 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 97% less than in Ostia. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $449 in Ostia versus $431 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,567 in Mexico City versus $1,756 in Ostia, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in Ostia. 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.

Expats usually find Mexico City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 12% less than in Ostia. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.