Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Riga and Mexico City

For one person, living costs are similar in Riga and in Mexico City: $1,591 and $1,567 a month, rent and utilities included.

77

Cost of Living Index in Riga
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Riga Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Riga

🇱🇻 Latvia

$1,591

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,591 in Riga versus $1,567 in Mexico City.

Riga $1,591
Mexico City $1,567

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,428 in Riga versus $2,450 in Mexico City.

Riga $2,428
Mexico City $2,450

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,264 in Riga versus $3,333 in Mexico City.

Riga $3,264
Mexico City $3,333

Living in Riga is roughly 2% more expensive than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Riga 18% above, Mexico City 16% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.05 €15.17

$10.75 MX$199

58.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.9 €58.6

$50.3 MX$929

31.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.94 €7.96

$11.10 MX$205

-19.46%

Cappuccino

$3.63 €3.23

$3.68 MX$68.1

-1.36%

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

$1.62 €1.44

$1.65 MX$30.42

-1.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.20 €1.07

$1.30 MX$24.08

-7.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.43 €4.83

$3.32 MX$61.3

63.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.96 €4.41

$5.54 MX$102

-10.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 €1.06

$1.77 MX$32.68

-32.77%

White Bread (500g)

$1.49 €1.33

$3.05 MX$56.4

-51.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.50 €2.22

$2.01 MX$37.20

24.38%

Eggs

$3.61 €3.21

$2.77 MX$51.1

30.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.61 €9.44

$11.91 MX$220

-10.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.86 €7.88

$9.33 MX$172

-5.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.85 €12.32

$15.02 MX$278

-7.79%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$3.08 MX$56.8

-30.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.95 MX$35.97

-6.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.45 €2.18

$2.03 MX$37.54

20.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.09 €2.75

$2.21 MX$40.92

39.82%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 €0.74

$2.02 MX$37.41

-58.91%

Onion (1kg)

$0.95 €0.84

$1.82 MX$33.67

-47.80%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 €1.51

$1.52 MX$28.07

11.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 €0.87

$1.28 MX$23.65

-23.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.75 €6.01

$5.27 MX$97.4

28.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.66 €6.81

$16.12 MX$298

-52.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 €1.75

$1.95 MX$36.05

0.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$4.25 MX$78.6

-51.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.69 €1.51

$0.31 MX$5.82

445.16%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$33.13 €29.47

$19.85 MX$367

66.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.40 €3.02

$2.00 MX$36.93

70.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 €0.88

$0.53 MX$9.86

86.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.89 €15.91

$5.62 MX$104

218.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.01 €1.79

$1.52 MX$28.07

32.24%

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

$27.0K €24.0K

$21.0K MX$388.7K

28.32%

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

$31.4K €28.0K

$25.2K MX$465.3K

24.80%

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

$369 €328

$62.5 MX$1,155

490.40%

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

$19.45 €17.30

$28.77 MX$532

-32.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.83 €17.64

$34.45 MX$637

-42.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.9 €45.28

$57.1 MX$1,055

-10.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.88 €31.91

$24.81 MX$458

44.62%

Cinema Ticket

$11.05 €9.83

$6.67 MX$123

65.67%

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

$690 €614

$431 MX$7,964

60.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.7K €15.7K

$11.7K MX$216.9K

50.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$69.3 €61.6

$70.8 MX$1,308

-2.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.5 €44.88

$51.8 MX$958

-2.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.7 €76.3

$109 MX$2,011

-21.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$140 €124

$112 MX$2,076

24.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$560 €498

$1,051 MX$19.4K

-46.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$383 €341

$665 MX$12.3K

-42.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$2,346 MX$43.3K

-51.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$739 €657

$1,227 MX$22.7K

-39.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,993 €2,662

$3,554 MX$65.7K

-15.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,050 €1,824

$1,977 MX$36.5K

3.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,478 €1,315

$975 MX$18.0K

51.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.77

11.3

-57.79%

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

Last update for Riga: October 12, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Riga

$408 25.7%

Mexico City

$126 8% 69.2% $283

Accommodation & Living

Riga

$383 24.1%

Mexico City

$665 42.4% 73.5% $282

Groceries & Markets

Riga

$268 16.8%

Mexico City

$323 20.6% 20.4% $55

Eating Out

Riga

$255 16%

Mexico City

$203 13% 20.5% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Riga

$155 9.8%

Mexico City

$155 9.9% 0.4% $0.6

Sport & Entertainment

Riga

$73 4.6%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 3.5% $2.6

Getting Around

Riga

$48 3%

Mexico City

$26 1.6% 46.6% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $560 in Riga and $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Riga pays 52% 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 Riga vs $50.0 in Mexico City. Groceries flip the comparison at $268 vs $323, with Riga cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇱🇻 Riga

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

10:39 10:39 AM

01:39 1:39 AM

9 h behind Riga

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

660,187 Capital

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

Riga Mexico City 10,030 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Riga
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

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

Riga and Mexico City differ by about 2% in total monthly costs ($1,591 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 52% higher in Riga, 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: $560 in Riga 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 67% less than in Riga. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $690 in Riga 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 $1,591 in Riga, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in Riga. 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, Riga 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 2% less than in Riga. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.