Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Shymkent and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Shymkent: $808 a month against $1,548 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $8,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

39

Cost of Living Index in Shymkent
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Shymkent Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Shymkent

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$808

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,548

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $808 in Shymkent versus $1,548 in Mexico City.

Shymkent $808
Mexico City $1,548

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,390 in Shymkent versus $2,436 in Mexico City.

Shymkent $1,390
Mexico City $2,436

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,971 in Shymkent versus $3,323 in Mexico City.

Shymkent $1,971
Mexico City $3,323

Living in Shymkent costs roughly 48% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Shymkent is 40% below, Mexico City is 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.25 ₸5,086

$11.02 MX$204

2.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$33.35 ₸15.1K

$48.68 MX$900

-31.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.50 ₸2,938

$10.90 MX$201

-40.37%

Cappuccino

$2.54 ₸1,147

$3.68 MX$68.1

-30.98%

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

$1.03 ₸467

$1.63 MX$30.18

-36.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 ₸246

$1.25 MX$23.07

-56.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.09 ₸492

$3.25 MX$60.1

-66.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.35 ₸609

$5.53 MX$102

-75.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 ₸661

$1.70 MX$31.50

-14.12%

White Bread (500g)

$0.41 ₸184

$3.02 MX$55.8

-86.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.79 ₸811

$1.92 MX$35.53

-6.77%

Eggs

$1.73 ₸783

$2.73 MX$50.5

-36.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.04 ₸4,538

$11.77 MX$218

-14.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.26 ₸2,376

$9.53 MX$176

-44.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.98 ₸4,059

$14.41 MX$266

-37.68%

Apples (1kg)

$1.19 ₸538

$3.02 MX$55.8

-60.60%

Banana (1kg)

$2.12 ₸957

$1.89 MX$35.01

12.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.58 ₸1,166

$1.99 MX$36.70

29.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.35 ₸610

$2.19 MX$40.38

-38.36%

Potato (1kg)

$0.55 ₸250

$1.92 MX$35.43

-71.35%

Onion (1kg)

$0.41 ₸184

$1.87 MX$34.49

-78.07%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.88 ₸397

$1.44 MX$26.62

-38.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 ₸376

$1.27 MX$23.39

-34.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.46 ₸1,114

$5.22 MX$96.4

-52.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.55 ₸2,057

$16.17 MX$299

-71.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.03 ₸466

$1.90 MX$35.03

-45.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.51 ₸683

$4.22 MX$78.0

-64.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.14 ₸64.0

$0.34 MX$6.30

-58.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.65 MX$363

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.87 ₸395

$2.00 MX$36.90

-56.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.34 ₸156

$0.52 MX$9.67

-34.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.02 ₸4,532

$5.34 MX$98.7

87.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.64 ₸291

$1.52 MX$28.13

-57.89%

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

$27.2K ₸12.3M

$22.1K MX$408.0K

23.10%

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

$29.0K ₸13.1M

$24.5K MX$452.9K

18.52%

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

$47.29 ₸21.4K

$61.1 MX$1,129

-22.56%

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

$9.60 ₸4,338

$28.58 MX$528

-66.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$14.79 ₸6,685

$34.47 MX$637

-57.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.82 ₸17.5K

$56.4 MX$1,042

-31.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.82 ₸3,986

$24.88 MX$460

-64.55%

Cinema Ticket

$5.68 ₸2,567

$6.66 MX$123

-14.71%

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

$57.8 ₸26.1K

$427 MX$7,891

-86.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K MX$215.0K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$37.55 ₸17.0K

$67.8 MX$1,253

-44.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.85 ₸15.3K

$52.0 MX$960

-34.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$187 ₸84.4K

$106 MX$1,959

76.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$52.9 ₸23.9K

$113 MX$2,080

-53.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$338 ₸153.0K

$1,025 MX$18.9K

-66.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$203 ₸92.0K

$654 MX$12.1K

-68.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$698 ₸315.6K

$2,308 MX$42.7K

-69.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$545 ₸246.2K

$1,242 MX$22.9K

-56.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,104 ₸499.1K

$3,613 MX$66.8K

-69.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$986 ₸445.6K

$1,936 MX$35.8K

-49.08%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$442 ₸199.6K

$964 MX$17.8K

-54.19%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

18.25

11.3

61.50%

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

Last update for Shymkent: October 19, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Shymkent

$203 25.2%

Mexico City

$654 42.3% 222% $451

Groceries & Markets

Shymkent

$185 22.9%

Mexico City

$318 20.6% 71.9% $133

Eating Out

Shymkent

$154 19.1%

Mexico City

$204 13.2% 32% $49

Clothing & Footwear

Shymkent

$140 17.3%

Mexico City

$152 9.8% 8.8% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Shymkent

$72 8.9%

Mexico City

$124 8% 73.2% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Shymkent

$50 6.2%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 38.9% $20

Getting Around

Shymkent

$3.2 * 0.4%

Mexico City

$26 1.7% 711% $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 $338 in Shymkent and $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 118% 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: $33.00 in Shymkent vs $49.00 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $185 vs $318 per month, with Shymkent cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇰🇿 Shymkent

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

20:24 8:24 PM

08:24 8:24 AM

12 h behind Shymkent

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,222,055

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Kazakhstani Tenge KZT ₸

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD

1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to KZT – Kazakhstani Tenge Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇿 Kazakhstani Tenge (₸)

Kazakhstani Tenge exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 452 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD). 1 EUR = 508 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to KZT in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Shymkent Mexico City 13,050 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Shymkent
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

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

Shymkent and Mexico City differ by about 92% in total monthly costs ($808 vs $1,548 including rent). Shymkent is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 118% lower in Mexico City. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $338 in Shymkent versus $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $57.8 in Shymkent versus $427 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Shymkent – a meal for two runs $33.00 versus $49.00 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $808 in Shymkent versus $1,548 in Mexico City, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Shymkent but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Shymkent 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, Shymkent 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 Shymkent gentler on the wallet – expenses run 92% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.