Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Cruz, Costa Rica and Mexico City

For one person, living costs are similar in Santa Cruz and in Mexico City: $1,711 and $1,674 a month, rent and utilities included.

82

Cost of Living Index in Santa Cruz
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Santa Cruz Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Santa Cruz

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,711

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,711 in Santa Cruz versus $1,674 in Mexico City.

Santa Cruz $1,711
Mexico City $1,674

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,714 in Santa Cruz versus $2,606 in Mexico City.

Santa Cruz $2,714
Mexico City $2,606

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,718 in Santa Cruz versus $3,537 in Mexico City.

Santa Cruz $3,718
Mexico City $3,537

Monthly costs are close between Santa Cruz and Mexico City; which city is cheaper depends on the spending category.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Santa Cruz 27% above, Mexico City 24% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.17 ₡5,475

$10.59 MX$197

14.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.9 ₡27.8K

$52.0 MX$967

19.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.04 ₡4,962

$10.73 MX$200

2.89%

Cappuccino

$4.49 ₡2,018

$3.80 MX$70.6

18.16%

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

$2.30 ₡1,034

$1.61 MX$30.01

42.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 ₡839

$1.21 MX$22.55

53.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.38 ₡1,522

$3.18 MX$59.1

6.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 ₡2,039

$5.44 MX$101

-16.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.40 ₡1,079

$1.72 MX$31.96

39.53%

White Bread (500g)

$3.15 ₡1,416

$2.97 MX$55.2

6.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.41 ₡1,085

$1.93 MX$35.84

24.87%

Eggs

$3.59 ₡1,616

$2.77 MX$51.6

29.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.64 ₡4,785

$11.67 MX$217

-8.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 ₡4,699

$9.48 MX$176

10.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.90 ₡6,251

$15.37 MX$286

-9.56%

Apples (1kg)

$5.00 ₡2,249

$3.10 MX$57.8

61.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 ₡500

$1.96 MX$36.49

-43.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.73 ₡2,126

$1.98 MX$36.88

138.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.95 ₡1,774

$2.34 MX$43.46

68.80%

Potato (1kg)

$3.86 ₡1,736

$2.02 MX$37.66

91.09%

Onion (1kg)

$3.60 ₡1,617

$1.82 MX$33.95

97.80%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ₡506

$1.54 MX$28.74

-27.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.12 ₡1,402

$1.31 MX$24.42

138.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.86 ₡2,634

$5.35 MX$99.6

9.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.93 ₡8,962

$16.19 MX$301

23.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.76 ₡1,242

$1.96 MX$36.46

40.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.53 ₡1,586

$4.35 MX$81.0

-18.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.30 ₡583

$0.30 MX$5.67

333.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$363

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.43 ₡1,091

$1.92 MX$35.68

26.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 ₡699

$0.47 MX$8.80

229.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 ₡3,808

$5.41 MX$101

56.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡706

$1.48 MX$27.61

6.08%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$21.4K MX$397.7K

61.51%

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

$41.3K ₡18.6M

$23.8K MX$442.1K

74.00%

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

$95.7 ₡43.0K

$62.0 MX$1,154

54.41%

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

$35.08 ₡15.8K

$28.47 MX$530

23.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.4 ₡27.2K

$34.11 MX$635

77.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.5 ₡29.9K

$58.4 MX$1,087

13.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$456

Cinema Ticket

$6.68 ₡3,004

$6.59 MX$123

1.37%

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

$997 ₡448.3K

$434 MX$8,081

129.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.2K ₡7.7M

$14.0K MX$261.2K

22.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.5 ₡31.7K

$68.4 MX$1,272

3.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.6 ₡25.5K

$54.8 MX$1,020

3.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$130 ₡58.4K

$111 MX$2,063

17.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 ₡58.8K

$116 MX$2,158

12.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$807 ₡362.8K

$1,179 MX$21.9K

-31.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$626 ₡281.6K

$771 MX$14.3K

-18.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,909 ₡858.3K

$2,570 MX$47.8K

-25.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,252 ₡563.0K

$1,420 MX$26.4K

-11.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,586 MX$66.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

11.35

-24.05%

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

Last update for Santa Cruz: November 1, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santa Cruz

$626 36.6%

Mexico City

$771 46.1% 23.1% $145

Groceries & Markets

Santa Cruz

$397 23.2%

Mexico City

$324 19.3% 18.5% $74

Eating Out

Santa Cruz

$227 13.3%

Mexico City

$201 12% 11.6% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santa Cruz

$191 11.2%

Mexico City

$125 7.4% 34.8% $67

Clothing & Footwear

Santa Cruz

$174 10.2%

Mexico City

$158 9.4% 9.7% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Santa Cruz

$80 4.7%

Mexico City

$72 4.3% 10.4% $8.3

Getting Around

Santa Cruz

$15 * 0.9%

Mexico City

$25 1.5% 62.5% $9.6

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 $807 in Santa Cruz and $1,179 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $62 in Santa Cruz vs $52 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $397 vs $324 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Santa Cruz

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

10:51 10:51 AM

Same time as Santa Cruz

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,665

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 503 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.83 MXN (100 MXN = 4.8 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Santa Cruz Mexico City 1,780 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Santa Cruz
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

Santa Cruz vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

You’d need roughly $2,567 in Santa Cruz and $2,510 in Mexico City to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $807 in Santa Cruz versus $1,179 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $997 in Santa Cruz versus $434 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in Santa Cruz. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Mexico City gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.