Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ras al-Khaimah and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,567 a month against $1,840 in Ras al-Khaimah, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

89

Cost of Living Index in Ras al-Khaimah
Learn more

Ras al-Khaimah Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index

Jump to prices

Ras al-Khaimah

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$1,840

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,840 in Ras al-Khaimah versus $1,567 in Mexico City.

Ras al-Khaimah $1,840
Mexico City $1,567

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,803 in Ras al-Khaimah versus $2,450 in Mexico City.

Ras al-Khaimah $2,803
Mexico City $2,450

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,767 in Ras al-Khaimah versus $3,333 in Mexico City.

Ras al-Khaimah $3,767
Mexico City $3,333

Living in Ras al-Khaimah is roughly 17% more expensive than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Ras al-Khaimah 36% above, Mexico City 16% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.76 AED 50.5

$10.75 MX$199

28.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.26 AED 148

$50.3 MX$929

-19.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.53 AED 27.64

$11.10 MX$205

-32.16%

Cappuccino

$5.51 AED 20.22

$3.68 MX$68.1

49.73%

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

$1.11 AED 4.08

$1.65 MX$30.42

-32.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.48 AED 1.76

$1.30 MX$24.08

-63.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$10.16 AED 37.32

$3.32 MX$61.3

206.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.70 AED 35.63

$5.54 MX$102

75.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 AED 6.00

$1.77 MX$32.68

-7.91%

White Bread (500g)

$2.08 AED 7.65

$3.05 MX$56.4

-31.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.96 AED 7.20

$2.01 MX$37.20

-2.49%

Eggs

$2.35 AED 8.62

$2.77 MX$51.1

-15.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.68 AED 46.57

$11.91 MX$220

6.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.95 AED 36.56

$9.33 MX$172

6.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.46 AED 56.8

$15.02 MX$278

2.93%

Apples (1kg)

$2.01 AED 7.39

$3.08 MX$56.8

-34.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.67 AED 6.14

$1.95 MX$35.97

-14.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.55 AED 5.69

$2.03 MX$37.54

-23.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.36 AED 4.98

$2.21 MX$40.92

-38.46%

Potato (1kg)

$0.96 AED 3.54

$2.02 MX$37.41

-52.48%

Onion (1kg)

$0.87 AED 3.20

$1.82 MX$33.67

-52.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.74 AED 6.39

$1.52 MX$28.07

14.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 AED 1.61

$1.28 MX$23.65

-65.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 AED 25.61

$5.27 MX$97.4

32.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.58 AED 49.89

$16.12 MX$298

-15.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.63 AED 9.66

$1.95 MX$36.05

34.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 AED 10.56

$4.25 MX$78.6

-32.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.12 AED 7.80

$0.31 MX$5.82

583.87%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$114 AED 419

$19.85 MX$367

475.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.69 AED 6.21

$2.00 MX$36.93

-15.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.80 AED 2.93

$0.53 MX$9.86

50.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.16 AED 29.96

$5.62 MX$104

45.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.93 AED 3.41

$1.52 MX$28.07

-38.82%

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

$45.8K AED 168.2K

$21.0K MX$388.7K

117.77%

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

$22.3K AED 82.0K

$25.2K MX$465.3K

-11.31%

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

$121 AED 444

$62.5 MX$1,155

93.55%

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

$44.73 AED 164

$28.77 MX$532

55.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$79.4 AED 291

$34.45 MX$637

130.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.9 AED 213

$57.1 MX$1,055

1.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$40.22 AED 148

$24.81 MX$458

62.11%

Cinema Ticket

$12.72 AED 46.70

$6.67 MX$123

90.70%

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

$299 AED 1,099

$431 MX$7,964

-30.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,462 AED 16.4K

$11.7K MX$216.9K

-61.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.6 AED 296

$70.8 MX$1,308

13.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 AED 195

$51.8 MX$958

2.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$119 AED 438

$109 MX$2,011

9.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 AED 430

$112 MX$2,076

4.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$767 AED 2,819

$1,051 MX$19.4K

-26.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$657 AED 2,413

$665 MX$12.3K

-1.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,660 AED 6,095

$2,346 MX$43.3K

-29.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,243 AED 4,563

$1,227 MX$22.7K

1.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,007 AED 18.4K

$3,554 MX$65.7K

40.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,962 AED 7,207

$1,977 MX$36.5K

-0.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,577 AED 5,791

$975 MX$18.0K

61.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.92

11.3

-56.46%

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

Last update for Ras al-Khaimah: 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

Ras al-Khaimah

$657 35.7%

Mexico City

$665 42.4% 1.2% $8

Groceries & Markets

Ras al-Khaimah

$285 15.5%

Mexico City

$323 20.6% 13.4% $38

Eating Out

Ras al-Khaimah

$275 15%

Mexico City

$203 13% 26.3% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ras al-Khaimah

$245 13.3%

Mexico City

$126 8% 48.7% $119

Clothing & Footwear

Ras al-Khaimah

$167 9.1%

Mexico City

$155 9.9% 7.1% $12

Getting Around

Ras al-Khaimah

$128 7%

Mexico City

$26 1.6% 79.9% $103

Sport & Entertainment

Ras al-Khaimah

$83 4.5%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 15.4% $13

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $767 in Ras al-Khaimah and $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ras al-Khaimah pays 62% 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: $40.00 in Ras al-Khaimah vs $50.0 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $285 vs $323 per month, with Ras al-Khaimah cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Ras al-Khaimah

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

09:42 9:42 AM

23:42 11:42 PM

10 h behind Ras al-Khaimah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

241,000

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.242 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to AED – UAE Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇪 UAE Dirham (د.إ)

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.13 AED (1 AED = 0.242 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 AED in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ras al-Khaimah Mexico City 14,310 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Ras al-Khaimah
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

Ras al-Khaimah vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ras al-Khaimah and Mexico City differ by about 17% in total monthly costs ($1,840 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 62% higher in Ras al-Khaimah, 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: $767 in Ras al-Khaimah 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 475% less than in Ras al-Khaimah. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $299 in Ras al-Khaimah 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 $1,840 in Ras al-Khaimah, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in Ras al-Khaimah. 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, Ras al-Khaimah 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 17% less than in Ras al-Khaimah. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.