Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Port Elizabeth and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Port Elizabeth: $1,216 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Port Elizabeth
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Port Elizabeth Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Port Elizabeth

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,216

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,216 in Port Elizabeth versus $1,567 in Mexico City.

Port Elizabeth $1,216
Mexico City $1,567

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,835 in Port Elizabeth versus $2,450 in Mexico City.

Port Elizabeth $1,835
Mexico City $2,450

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,453 in Port Elizabeth versus $3,333 in Mexico City.

Port Elizabeth $2,453
Mexico City $3,333

Living in Port Elizabeth costs roughly 22% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Port Elizabeth is 10% below, Mexico City is 16% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.00 R 181

$10.75 MX$199

2.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.67 R 687

$50.3 MX$929

-17.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.84 R 96.2

$11.10 MX$205

-47.39%

Cappuccino

$2.17 R 35.81

$3.68 MX$68.1

-41.03%

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

$1.03 R 16.91

$1.65 MX$30.42

-37.58%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 R 12.59

$1.30 MX$24.08

-41.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.69 R 44.37

$3.32 MX$61.3

-18.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.24 R 53.3

$5.54 MX$102

-41.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 R 18.39

$1.77 MX$32.68

-36.72%

White Bread (500g)

$1.04 R 17.20

$3.05 MX$56.4

-65.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 R 24.94

$2.01 MX$37.20

-24.88%

Eggs

$2.81 R 46.35

$2.77 MX$51.1

1.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.58 R 141

$11.91 MX$220

-27.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.33 R 87.7

$9.33 MX$172

-42.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.36 R 138

$15.02 MX$278

-44.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.19 R 36.04

$3.08 MX$56.8

-28.90%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.58

$1.95 MX$35.97

-23.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.70 R 28.04

$2.03 MX$37.54

-16.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.81 R 29.74

$2.21 MX$40.92

-18.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.41

$2.02 MX$37.41

-17.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.45 R 23.83

$1.82 MX$33.67

-20.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.26 R 20.72

$1.52 MX$28.07

-17.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 R 16.39

$1.28 MX$23.65

-22.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.26 R 53.8

$5.27 MX$97.4

-38.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.82 R 79.4

$16.12 MX$298

-70.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 R 20.99

$1.95 MX$36.05

-34.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.82 R 30.00

$4.25 MX$78.6

-57.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.10 R 18.17

$0.31 MX$5.82

254.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$36.67 R 604

$19.85 MX$367

84.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.04 R 33.68

$2.00 MX$36.93

2.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.50 R 8.25

$0.53 MX$9.86

-5.66%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.45 R 139

$5.62 MX$104

50.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 R 24.38

$1.52 MX$28.07

-2.63%

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

$35.8K R 589.5K

$21.0K MX$388.7K

70.12%

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

$34.1K R 562.5K

$25.2K MX$465.3K

35.59%

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

$125 R 2,058

$62.5 MX$1,155

99.90%

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

$34.90 R 575

$28.77 MX$532

21.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.55 R 734

$34.45 MX$637

29.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.20 R 530

$57.1 MX$1,055

-43.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.27 R 383

$24.81 MX$458

-6.21%

Cinema Ticket

$10.74 R 177

$6.67 MX$123

61.02%

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

$177 R 2,924

$431 MX$7,964

-58.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,046 R 99.6K

$11.7K MX$216.9K

-48.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.4 R 1,193

$70.8 MX$1,308

2.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.28 R 631

$51.8 MX$958

-26.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 R 1,806

$109 MX$2,011

0.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.6 R 1,574

$112 MX$2,076

-14.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$598 R 9,859

$1,051 MX$19.4K

-43.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$415 R 6,838

$665 MX$12.3K

-37.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$808 R 13.3K

$2,346 MX$43.3K

-65.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$682 R 11.2K

$1,227 MX$22.7K

-44.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$764 R 12.6K

$3,554 MX$65.7K

-78.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$522 R 8,604

$1,977 MX$36.5K

-73.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,625 R 26.8K

$975 MX$18.0K

66.69%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.94

11.3

5.66%

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

Last update for Port Elizabeth: 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

Port Elizabeth

$415 34.1%

Mexico City

$665 42.4% 60.2% $250

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Port Elizabeth

$204 16.8%

Mexico City

$126 8% 38.5% $79

Groceries & Markets

Port Elizabeth

$197 16.2%

Mexico City

$323 20.6% 64.1% $126

Eating Out

Port Elizabeth

$159 13.1%

Mexico City

$203 13% 27.9% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Port Elizabeth

$142 11.7%

Mexico City

$155 9.9% 8.8% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Port Elizabeth

$54 4.4%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 31.2% $17

Getting Around

Port Elizabeth

$46 3.8%

Mexico City

$26 1.6% 43.5% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $598 in Port Elizabeth and $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Port Elizabeth pays 67% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $42.00 in Port Elizabeth vs $50.0 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $197 vs $323 per month, with Port Elizabeth cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Port Elizabeth

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

13:36 1:36 PM

05:36 5:36 AM

8 h behind Port Elizabeth

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,050,000

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Port Elizabeth Mexico City 14,360 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Port Elizabeth
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

Port Elizabeth vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Port Elizabeth and Mexico City differ by about 29% in total monthly costs ($1,216 vs $1,567 including rent). Port Elizabeth is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 67% higher in Port Elizabeth, 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: $598 in Port Elizabeth 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 Port Elizabeth runs roughly 85% less than in Mexico City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $177 in Port Elizabeth versus $431 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,216 in Port Elizabeth versus $1,567 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Port Elizabeth but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Port Elizabeth 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 Port Elizabeth gentler on the wallet – expenses run 29% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.