Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rome and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,567 a month against $1,998 in Rome, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

97

Cost of Living Index in Rome
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Rome Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

Jump to prices

Rome

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,998

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,998 in Rome versus $1,567 in Mexico City.

Rome $1,998
Mexico City $1,567

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,117 in Rome versus $2,450 in Mexico City.

Rome $3,117
Mexico City $2,450

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,236 in Rome versus $3,333 in Mexico City.

Rome $4,236
Mexico City $3,333

Living in Rome is roughly 28% more expensive than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Rome 48% above, Mexico City 16% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$10.75 MX$199

55.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 €58.5

$50.3 MX$929

30.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.08 €9.85

$11.10 MX$205

-0.18%

Cappuccino

$2.10 €1.87

$3.68 MX$68.1

-42.93%

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

$2.91 €2.59

$1.65 MX$30.42

76.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.32

$1.30 MX$24.08

13.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.62 €5.00

$3.32 MX$61.3

69.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.68 €5.94

$5.54 MX$102

20.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 €1.53

$1.77 MX$32.68

-2.82%

White Bread (500g)

$2.27 €2.02

$3.05 MX$56.4

-25.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.99 €2.66

$2.01 MX$37.20

48.76%

Eggs

$4.75 €4.23

$2.77 MX$51.1

71.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.53 €12.92

$11.91 MX$220

22.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.63 €11.24

$9.33 MX$172

35.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.86 €17.67

$15.02 MX$278

32.22%

Apples (1kg)

$2.64 €2.35

$3.08 MX$56.8

-14.29%

Banana (1kg)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.95 MX$35.97

16.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.46 €2.19

$2.03 MX$37.54

21.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.42 €2.15

$2.21 MX$40.92

9.50%

Potato (1kg)

$1.38 €1.22

$2.02 MX$37.41

-31.68%

Onion (1kg)

$1.55 €1.38

$1.82 MX$33.67

-14.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.32 €1.17

$1.52 MX$28.07

-13.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$1.28 MX$23.65

-57.03%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.31 €6.50

$5.27 MX$97.4

38.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.44 €4.84

$16.12 MX$298

-66.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 €1.40

$1.95 MX$36.05

-18.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.62 €2.33

$4.25 MX$78.6

-38.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.63 €1.45

$0.31 MX$5.82

425.81%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$39.26 €34.92

$19.85 MX$367

97.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.51 €5.79

$2.00 MX$36.93

225.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.68 €1.50

$0.53 MX$9.86

216.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.24 €29.57

$5.62 MX$104

491.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.17 €1.93

$1.52 MX$28.07

42.76%

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

$35.3K €31.4K

$21.0K MX$388.7K

68.07%

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

$35.4K €31.5K

$25.2K MX$465.3K

40.68%

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

$203 €181

$62.5 MX$1,155

224.79%

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

$11.50 €10.22

$28.77 MX$532

-60.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.03 €28.49

$34.45 MX$637

-7.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$65.9 €58.6

$57.1 MX$1,055

15.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.89 €20.36

$24.81 MX$458

-7.74%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$6.67 MX$123

68.37%

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

$484 €430

$431 MX$7,964

12.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.7K

$11.7K MX$216.9K

40.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.0 €63.1

$70.8 MX$1,308

0.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.51 €32.47

$51.8 MX$958

-29.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.9 €75.5

$109 MX$2,011

-22.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 €108

$112 MX$2,076

8.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,222 €1,087

$1,051 MX$19.4K

16.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$881 €784

$665 MX$12.3K

32.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,537 €2,257

$2,346 MX$43.3K

8.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,721 €1,530

$1,227 MX$22.7K

40.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,274 €7,360

$3,554 MX$65.7K

132.84%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,084 €2,743

$1,977 MX$36.5K

55.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,942 €1,728

$975 MX$18.0K

99.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.52

11.3

-68.85%

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

Last update for Rome: October 12, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rome

$881 44.1%

Mexico City

$665 42.4% 24.5% $216

Groceries & Markets

Rome

$329 16.5%

Mexico City

$323 20.6% 2% $6.5

Eating Out

Rome

$251 12.6%

Mexico City

$203 13% 19.1% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rome

$246 12.3%

Mexico City

$126 8% 49% $121

Clothing & Footwear

Rome

$141 7.1%

Mexico City

$155 9.9% 9.4% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Rome

$88 4.4%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 20.3% $18

Getting Around

Rome

$61 3%

Mexico City

$26 1.6% 57.5% $35

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,222 in Rome and $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Rome pays 99% 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 Rome vs $50.0 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $329 vs $323 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Rome

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

12:06 12:06 PM

04:06 4:06 AM

8 h behind Rome

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,848,084 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 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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 EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Rome Mexico City 10,240 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

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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

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

Rome and Mexico City differ by about 28% in total monthly costs ($1,998 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 99% higher in Rome, 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: $1,222 in Rome 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 98% less than in Rome. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $484 in Rome 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 $1,998 in Rome, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in Rome. 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, Rome 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 28% less than in Rome. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.