Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Quito and Mazatlan

For one person, living is cheaper in Quito: $979 a month against $1,436 in Mazatlan, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

48

Cost of Living Index in Quito
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Quito Living Index
70

Cost of Living Index in Mazatlan
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Mazatlan Living Index

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Quito

🇪🇨 Ecuador

$979

/mo nomad

Mazatlan

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,436

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Quito and in Mazatlan

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Quito and in Mazatlan actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $979 per month in Quito vs $1,436 in Mazatlan, rent included.

Quito $979
Mazatlan $1,436

A couple spends around $1,607 per month in Quito vs $2,041 in Mazatlan, rent included.

Quito $1,607
Mazatlan $2,041

A family of three spends $2,234 per month in Quito vs $2,645 in Mazatlan, rent included.

Quito $2,234
Mazatlan $2,645

Quito is about 32% cheaper than Mazatlan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Quito sits 27% below the global median, while Mazatlan is 7% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.14 $6.14

$10.96 MX$199

-43.98%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$53.9 $53.9

$46.29 MX$842

16.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.81 $7.81

$8.37 MX$152

-6.69%

Cappuccino

$3.42 $3.42

$3.40 MX$61.8

0.59%

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

$1.44 $1.44

$1.45 MX$26.29

-0.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.14 $1.14

$1.10 MX$19.94

3.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.48 $3.48

$2.13 MX$38.67

63.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.89 $5.89

$2.83 MX$51.5

108.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.14 $1.14

$1.64 MX$29.86

-30.49%

White Bread (500g)

$1.54 $1.54

$2.59 MX$47.05

-40.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 $1.51

$1.33 MX$24.22

13.53%

Eggs

$2.16 $2.16

$2.74 MX$49.92

-21.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.40 $6.40

$8.06 MX$147

-20.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.48 $5.48

$6.94 MX$126

-21.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.81 $7.81

$7.67 MX$140

1.83%

Apples (1kg)

$2.33 $2.33

$2.72 MX$49.43

-14.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.24 $1.24

$1.70 MX$30.88

-27.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.31 $1.31

$1.62 MX$29.51

-19.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.14 $1.14

$0.52 MX$9.43

119.23%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 $1.21

$1.63 MX$29.72

-25.77%

Onion (1kg)

$1.02 $1.02

$1.37 MX$24.89

-25.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 $0.93

$1.60 MX$29.17

-41.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 $1.05

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.02 $6.02

$4.20 MX$76.4

43.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.93 $9.93

$15.98 MX$291

-37.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 $1.59

$2.03 MX$36.89

-21.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 $3.08

$3.09 MX$56.2

-0.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.37 $0.37

$0.69 MX$12.60

-46.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.95 $20.95

$41.84 MX$761

-49.93%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.54 $1.54

$3.71 MX$67.4

-58.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 $1.53

$2.45 MX$44.58

-37.55%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.01 $10.01

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.87 $0.87

$1.53 MX$27.91

-43.14%

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

$21.0K $21.0K

$21.4K MX$389.3K

-1.96%

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

$28.6K $28.6K

$24.8K MX$450.8K

15.21%

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

$28.97 $28.97

$59.0 MX$1,074

-50.93%

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

$17.57 $17.57

$46.93 MX$854

-62.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.14 $28.14

$43.53 MX$792

-35.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.48 $46.48

$45.05 MX$819

3.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.70 $17.70

Cinema Ticket

$6.38 $6.38

$4.39 MX$79.9

45.33%

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

$746 $746

$88.4 MX$1,609

743.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,015 $9,015

$2,007 MX$36.5K

349.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.8 $68.8

$63.9 MX$1,162

7.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.4 $50.4

$27.58 MX$502

82.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 $117

$112 MX$2,036

4.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$109 $109

$84.1 MX$1,530

29.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$478 $478

$788 MX$14.3K

-39.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$313 $313

$619 MX$11.3K

-49.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$967 $967

$1,241 MX$22.6K

-22.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$549 $549

$840 MX$15.3K

-34.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,763 $1,763

$1,579 MX$28.7K

11.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$720 $720

$1,051 MX$19.1K

-31.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$597 $597

$533 MX$9,694

11.98%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.12

11.6

-12.76%

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

Last update for Quito: October 4, 2026

Last update for Mazatlan: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Quito

$313 31.8%

Mazatlan

$619 43.4% 97.7% $306

Groceries & Markets

Quito

$198 20.1%

Mazatlan

$236 * 16.5% 19.3% $38

Clothing & Footwear

Quito

$156 15.8%

Mazatlan

$129 9.1% 16.8% $26

Eating Out

Quito

$153 15.5%

Mazatlan

$180 12.6% 17.6% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Quito

$75 7.6%

Mazatlan

$150 10.5% 100% $75

Sport & Entertainment

Quito

$59 6%

Mazatlan

$54 3.8% 9.1% $5.4

Getting Around

Quito

$32 3.2%

Mazatlan

$61 4.2% 91.5% $29

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $478 in Quito versus $788 in Mazatlan. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 12% higher in Quito, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $54.0 in Quito versus $46.00 in Mazatlan. Groceries tell a different story – $198 in Quito vs $236 in Mazatlan – so Quito wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇪🇨 Quito

🇲🇽 Mazatlan

🕒 Local time

04:05 4:05 AM

02:05 2:05 AM

2 h behind Quito

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,671,191 Capital

441,975

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

100 MXN = 5.5 USD

100 MXN = 4.9 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.19 MXN (100 MXN = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20.4 MXN (100 MXN = 4.9 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Quito Mazatlan 3,980 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Quito
Mazatlan

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

Quito vs Mazatlan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $979 in Quito, $1,436 in Mazatlan – roughly 47% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in utilities.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,468 per month in Quito and $2,155 in Mazatlan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Quito, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 100% less in Quito. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $746 per month in Quito and $88.4 in Mazatlan. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Quito, where all-in costs run around $979, than in Mazatlan at $1,436. In Quito it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mazatlan it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Mazatlan has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $979 in Quito to $1,436 in Mazatlan. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Quito. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Mazatlan makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.