Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Roubaix and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,548 a month against $1,656 in Roubaix, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Roubaix
Learn more

Roubaix Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index

Jump to prices

Roubaix

🇫🇷 France

$1,656

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,548

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,656 in Roubaix versus $1,548 in Mexico City.

Roubaix $1,656
Mexico City $1,548

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,580 in Roubaix versus $2,436 in Mexico City.

Roubaix $2,580
Mexico City $2,436

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,505 in Roubaix versus $3,323 in Mexico City.

Roubaix $3,505
Mexico City $3,323

Living in Roubaix is roughly 7% 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: Roubaix 22% above, Mexico City 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.17 €16.16

$11.02 MX$204

64.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$74.0 €65.8

$48.68 MX$900

51.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.62 €12.11

$10.90 MX$201

24.95%

Cappuccino

$3.83 €3.41

$3.68 MX$68.1

4.08%

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

$3.19 €2.84

$1.63 MX$30.18

95.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 €1.46

$1.25 MX$23.07

31.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.59 €6.75

$3.25 MX$60.1

133.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.67 €5.04

$5.53 MX$102

2.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.14 €1.02

$1.70 MX$31.50

-32.94%

White Bread (500g)

$1.59 €1.41

$3.02 MX$55.8

-47.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.82 €2.51

$1.92 MX$35.53

46.87%

Eggs

$2.04 €1.81

$2.73 MX$50.5

-25.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.71 €11.30

$11.77 MX$218

7.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.01 €8.01

$9.53 MX$176

-5.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.08 €11.64

$14.41 MX$266

-9.23%

Apples (1kg)

$0.98 €0.88

$3.02 MX$55.8

-67.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 €0.98

$1.89 MX$35.01

-41.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 €1.95

$1.99 MX$36.70

10.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.70 €2.40

$2.19 MX$40.38

23.29%

Potato (1kg)

$0.76 €0.67

$1.92 MX$35.43

-60.42%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 €0.82

$1.87 MX$34.49

-50.80%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.68 €1.49

$1.44 MX$26.62

16.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.22 €0.19

$1.27 MX$23.39

-82.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.66 €10.37

$5.22 MX$96.4

123.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.48 €7.55

$16.17 MX$299

-47.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.37 €2.10

$1.90 MX$35.03

24.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.27 €3.80

$4.22 MX$78.0

1.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.94 €1.72

$0.34 MX$6.30

470.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.11 €42.80

$19.65 MX$363

144.83%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.21 €1.97

$2.00 MX$36.90

10.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.15 €1.91

$0.52 MX$9.67

313.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.07 €21.41

$5.34 MX$98.7

350.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.07 €1.84

$1.52 MX$28.13

36.18%

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

$28.3K €25.1K

$22.1K MX$408.0K

28.06%

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

$27.7K €24.6K

$24.5K MX$452.9K

12.91%

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

$176 €157

$61.1 MX$1,129

188.98%

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

$15.18 €13.50

$28.58 MX$528

-46.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.56 €27.18

$34.47 MX$637

-11.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.62 €31.68

$56.4 MX$1,042

-36.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.88 MX$460

Cinema Ticket

$10.97 €9.76

$6.66 MX$123

64.71%

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

$629 €560

$427 MX$7,891

47.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,319 €7,399

$11.6K MX$215.0K

-28.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €77.4

$67.8 MX$1,253

28.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.20 €35.76

$52.0 MX$960

-22.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 €89.5

$106 MX$1,959

-5.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 €91.1

$113 MX$2,080

-9.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$756 €672

$1,025 MX$18.9K

-26.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$604 €537

$654 MX$12.1K

-7.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,360 €1,209

$2,308 MX$42.7K

-41.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,132 €1,007

$1,242 MX$22.9K

-8.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,956 €3,519

$3,613 MX$66.8K

9.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,007 €2,675

$1,936 MX$35.8K

55.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,761 €1,566

$964 MX$17.8K

82.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.92

11.3

-65.31%

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

Last update for Roubaix: October 18, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Roubaix

$604 36.5%

Mexico City

$654 42.3% 8.3% $50

Eating Out

Roubaix

$301 18.2%

Mexico City

$204 13.2% 32.2% $97

Groceries & Markets

Roubaix

$254 15.3%

Mexico City

$318 20.6% 25.4% $64

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Roubaix

$222 13.4%

Mexico City

$124 8% 44.1% $98

Clothing & Footwear

Roubaix

$149 9%

Mexico City

$152 9.8% 2.5% $3.7

Getting Around

Roubaix

$69 4.2%

Mexico City

$26 1.7% 62.7% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Roubaix

$58 3.5%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 21.1% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $756 in Roubaix and $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Roubaix pays 83% 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: $74.0 in Roubaix vs $49.00 in Mexico City. Groceries flip the comparison at $254 vs $318, with Roubaix cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇫🇷 Roubaix

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

18:15 6:15 PM

10:15 10:15 AM

8 h behind Roubaix

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

98,892

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 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Roubaix Mexico City 9,180 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Roubaix
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

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

Roubaix and Mexico City differ by about 7% in total monthly costs ($1,656 vs $1,548 including rent). Mexico City is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 83% higher in Roubaix, 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: $756 in Roubaix versus $1,025 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 145% less than in Roubaix. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $629 in Roubaix versus $427 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,548 in Mexico City versus $1,656 in Roubaix, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in Roubaix. 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, Roubaix 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 7% less than in Roubaix. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.