Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Saint-Etienne and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Saint-Etienne: $1,436 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $2,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Mexico City outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

Saint-Etienne, France
Mexico City, Mexico
Saint-Etienne
🇫🇷 France
$1,436
/mo nomad
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,608
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,436 in Saint-Etienne versus $1,608 in Mexico City.

  • Saint-Etienne $1,436
  • Mexico City $1,608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,264 in Saint-Etienne versus $2,549 in Mexico City.

  • Saint-Etienne $2,264
  • Mexico City $2,549

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,092 in Saint-Etienne versus $3,490 in Mexico City.

  • Saint-Etienne $3,092
  • Mexico City $3,490

Living in Saint-Etienne costs roughly 11% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Saint-Etienne 6% above, Mexico City 18% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Saint-Etienne
Mexico City
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$16.56 €14.88
$10.62 MX$198
55.93%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$56.7 €50.9
$48.35 MX$901
17.17%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$13.54 €12.16
$10.35 MX$193
30.82%
Cappuccino
$2.07 €1.86
$3.69 MX$68.8
-43.90%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.42 €3.07
$1.67 MX$31.07
104.79%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.70 €1.53
$1.27 MX$23.59
33.86%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$5.07 €4.55
$3.19 MX$59.5
58.93%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.75 €5.16
$5.31 MX$98.9
8.29%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Saint-Etienne
Mexico City
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.29 €1.15
$1.72 MX$32.15
-25.00%
White Bread (500g)
$1.10 €0.99
$3.04 MX$56.7
-63.82%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.09 €1.88
$1.94 MX$36.19
7.73%
Eggs
$3.05 €2.74
$2.89 MX$53.8
5.54%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$17.01 €15.28
$10.97 MX$205
55.06%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$11.17 €10.03
$9.25 MX$172
20.76%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$16.35 €14.68
$15.13 MX$282
8.06%
Apples (1kg)
$3.27 €2.94
$3.05 MX$56.8
7.21%
Banana (1kg)
$2.54 €2.28
$1.94 MX$36.19
30.93%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.45 €2.20
$2.03 MX$37.75
20.69%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.71 €2.43
$2.31 MX$43.15
17.32%
Potato (1kg)
$1.57 €1.41
$2.04 MX$37.94
-23.04%
Onion (1kg)
$1.73 €1.55
$1.80 MX$33.55
-3.89%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.10 €0.99
$1.48 MX$27.58
-25.68%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$2.30 €2.07
$1.27 MX$23.63
81.10%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$12.15 €10.91
$5.30 MX$98.9
129.25%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.14 €9.11
$16.10 MX$300
-37.02%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$3.32 €2.99
$1.98 MX$36.97
67.68%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.26 €2.93
$4.25 MX$79.3
-23.29%
🚌 Getting Around
Saint-Etienne
Mexico City
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.81 €1.62
$0.31 MX$5.69
483.87%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$39.87 €35.82
$19.73 MX$368
102.08%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.83 €2.54
$1.84 MX$34.25
53.80%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
-
$0.53 MX$9.94
-
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
-
$5.30 MX$98.7
-
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.11 €1.89
$1.51 MX$28.16
39.74%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$20.1K €18.0K
$21.8K MX$405.5K
-7.68%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$32.0K €28.7K
$24.0K MX$447.1K
33.32%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Saint-Etienne
Mexico City
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$164 €148
$63.0 MX$1,174
160.92%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$29.01 €26.06
$27.39 MX$511
5.91%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$19.04 €17.11
$35.67 MX$665
-46.62%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Saint-Etienne
Mexico City
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$29.86 €26.82
$58.9 MX$1,099
-49.34%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$6.61 €5.94
$23.64 MX$441
-72.04%
Cinema Ticket
$9.89 €8.88
$6.40 MX$119
54.53%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Saint-Etienne
Mexico City
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$996 €894
$432 MX$8,045
130.67%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$15.8K €14.2K
$11.4K MX$212.9K
38.32%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Saint-Etienne
Mexico City
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$72.1 €64.8
$68.2 MX$1,272
5.75%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$30.47 €27.37
$53.1 MX$990
-42.65%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$103 €92.3
$108 MX$2,009
-4.69%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$151 €135
$117 MX$2,186
28.50%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Saint-Etienne
Mexico City
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$515 €463
$1,113 MX$20.8K
-53.71%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$370 €332
$710 MX$13.2K
-47.92%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$873 €785
$2,588 MX$48.2K
-66.26%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$716 €643
$1,406 MX$26.2K
-49.06%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,677 €1,506
$3,631 MX$67.7K
-53.82%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,619 €1,454
$2,135 MX$39.8K
-24.17%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Saint-Etienne
Mexico City
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$2,255 €2,026
$946 MX$17.6K
138.36%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.67
11.35
-67.67%

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

Last update for Saint-Etienne: October 25, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Saint-Etienne
$370
Mexico City
$710 92% $340
Groceries & Markets
Saint-Etienne
$339
Mexico City
$320 5.7% $19
Eating Out
Saint-Etienne
$255
Mexico City
$199 22.2% $57
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Saint-Etienne
$212
Mexico City
$126 40.7% $86
Clothing & Footwear
Saint-Etienne
$160
Mexico City
$156 2.7% $4.3
Getting Around
Saint-Etienne
$50 *
Mexico City
$25 49% $24
Sport & Entertainment
Saint-Etienne
$50
Mexico City
$72 44.5% $22

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $515 in Saint-Etienne and $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Saint-Etienne pays about 2.4 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $57 in Saint-Etienne vs $48 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $339 vs $320 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇫🇷 Saint-Etienne
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🕒 Local time
14:05 2:05 PM
07:05 7:05 AM
7 h behind Saint-Etienne
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
172,718
9,209,944 Capital
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Saint-Etienne Mexico City 9,480 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Saint-Etienne
  • 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
Saint-Etienne vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Saint-Etienne and in Mexico City?
Saint-Etienne and Mexico City differ by about 12% in total monthly costs ($1,436 vs $1,608 including rent). Saint-Etienne is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city pays better: Saint-Etienne or Mexico City?
Average pay in Saint-Etienne is about 2.4 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
How do apartment prices compare in Saint-Etienne and in Mexico City?
Rent for a central apartment: $515 in Saint-Etienne versus $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How do commuting costs compare in Saint-Etienne and in Mexico City?
A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 51% less than in Saint-Etienne. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Saint-Etienne and Mexico City?
Childcare runs $996 in Saint-Etienne versus $432 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
How does quality of life compare between Saint-Etienne 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.

Saint-Etienne vs other spots: cost of living compared

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