Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Roman and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Roman: $842 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $10,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Roman, Romania
Mexico City, Mexico
Roman
🇷🇴 Romania
$842
/mo nomad
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,674
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $842 in Roman versus $1,674 in Mexico City.

  • Roman $842
  • Mexico City $1,674

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,393 in Roman versus $2,606 in Mexico City.

  • Roman $1,393
  • Mexico City $2,606

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,944 in Roman versus $3,537 in Mexico City.

  • Roman $1,944
  • Mexico City $3,537

Living in Roman costs roughly 50% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Roman is 38% below, Mexico City is 24% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Roman
Mexico City
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.46 RON 49.67
$10.59 MX$197
-1.23%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$33.05 RON 157
$52.0 MX$967
-36.39%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$7.27 RON 34.51
$10.73 MX$200
-32.25%
Cappuccino
$2.54 RON 12.05
$3.80 MX$70.7
-33.16%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.35 RON 6.40
$1.61 MX$30.01
-16.15%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.04 RON 4.93
$1.21 MX$22.55
-14.05%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.14 RON 10.16
$3.18 MX$59.1
-32.70%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.18 RON 10.35
$5.44 MX$101
-59.93%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Roman
Mexico City
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.18 RON 5.61
$1.72 MX$31.96
-31.40%
White Bread (500g)
$0.66 RON 3.14
$2.97 MX$55.2
-77.78%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.43 RON 6.81
$1.93 MX$35.84
-25.91%
Eggs
$2.91 RON 13.82
$2.77 MX$51.6
5.05%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.85 RON 37.28
$11.67 MX$217
-32.73%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.76 RON 27.35
$9.48 MX$176
-39.24%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$8.25 RON 39.18
$15.37 MX$286
-46.32%
Apples (1kg)
$1.07 RON 5.06
$3.10 MX$57.8
-65.48%
Banana (1kg)
$1.49 RON 7.10
$1.96 MX$36.49
-23.98%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.39 RON 6.58
$1.98 MX$36.88
-29.80%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.83 RON 8.69
$2.34 MX$43.46
-21.79%
Potato (1kg)
$0.68 RON 3.25
$2.02 MX$37.66
-66.34%
Onion (1kg)
$0.83 RON 3.94
$1.82 MX$33.95
-54.40%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.81 RON 3.86
$1.54 MX$28.74
-47.40%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.73 RON 3.45
$1.31 MX$24.42
-44.27%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.32 RON 25.24
$5.35 MX$99.6
-0.56%
Wine (Bottle)
$5.38 RON 25.56
$16.19 MX$301
-66.77%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$0.96 RON 4.55
$1.96 MX$36.46
-51.02%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.17 RON 5.58
$4.35 MX$81.0
-73.10%
🚌 Getting Around
Roman
Mexico City
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.74 RON 3.53
$0.30 MX$5.67
146.67%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$20.48 RON 97.3
$19.49 MX$363
5.08%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.65 RON 3.11
$1.92 MX$35.68
-66.15%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.65 RON 3.08
$0.47 MX$8.80
38.30%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$7.36 RON 34.94
$5.41 MX$101
36.04%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.82 RON 8.65
$1.48 MX$27.61
22.97%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$28.3K RON 134.4K
$21.4K MX$397.7K
32.46%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.7K RON 117.5K
$23.8K MX$442.1K
4.18%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Roman
Mexico City
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$147 RON 698
$62.0 MX$1,154
137.31%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$6.70 RON 31.82
$28.47 MX$530
-76.47%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$8.03 RON 38.14
$34.11 MX$635
-76.46%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Roman
Mexico City
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$37.42 RON 178
$58.4 MX$1,087
-35.91%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$17.23 RON 81.8
$24.50 MX$456
-29.67%
Cinema Ticket
$6.26 RON 29.70
$6.59 MX$123
-5.01%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Roman
Mexico City
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$290 RON 1,375
$434 MX$8,081
-33.29%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$6,433 RON 30.5K
$14.0K MX$261.2K
-54.17%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Roman
Mexico City
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$96.0 RON 456
$68.4 MX$1,272
40.40%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$25.20 RON 120
$54.8 MX$1,020
-54.01%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$61.6 RON 292
$111 MX$2,063
-44.47%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$58.4 RON 277
$116 MX$2,159
-49.64%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Roman
Mexico City
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$213 RON 1,013
$1,179 MX$21.9K
-81.90%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$159 RON 754
$771 MX$14.3K
-79.41%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$611 RON 2,903
$2,570 MX$47.8K
-76.21%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$459 RON 2,179
$1,420 MX$26.4K
-67.67%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,818 RON 8,634
$3,586 MX$66.7K
-49.29%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,519 RON 7,212
$2,064 MX$38.4K
-26.41%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Roman
Mexico City
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$828 RON 3,931
$1,003 MX$18.7K
-17.43%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
7.2
11.35
-36.56%

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

Last update for Roman: November 2, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Groceries & Markets
Roman
$176
Mexico City
$324 84.4% $148
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Roman
$162
Mexico City
$125 23% $37
Eating Out
Roman
$161
Mexico City
$201 24.9% $40
Accommodation & Living
Roman
$159
Mexico City
$771 386% $612
Clothing & Footwear
Roman
$109
Mexico City
$158 45.1% $49
Sport & Entertainment
Roman
$50
Mexico City
$72 43.3% $22
Getting Around
Roman
$27
Mexico City
$25 8.6% $2.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $213 in Roman and $1,179 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 21% 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: $33 in Roman vs $52 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $176 vs $324 per month, with Roman cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇷🇴 Roman
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🕒 Local time
21:16 9:16 PM
13:16 1:16 PM
8 h behind Roman
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
80,328
9,209,944 Capital
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 4.75 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.86 MXN (100 MXN = 4.79 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Roman Mexico City 10,880 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Roman
  • 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
Roman vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Roman and in Mexico City?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $842 in Roman and $1,674 in Mexico City, so Roman is about 50% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city has better-paying jobs?
On paper, salaries run 17% lower in Roman. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
How do apartment prices compare in Roman and in Mexico City?
Rent for a central apartment: $213 in Roman versus $1,179 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How do commuting costs compare in Roman and in Mexico City?
A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 5% less than in Roman. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Roman and Mexico City?
Childcare runs $290 in Roman versus $434 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city is more doable on $1,000 per month?
At $842 in Roman versus $1,674 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Roman but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Roman the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Roman and Mexico City?
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.
How do I decide between Roman and Mexico City?
It comes down to priorities – Roman wins on affordability, Mexico City on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.

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