Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between St.James and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in St.James: $917 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $8,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

St.James, Trinidad And Tobago
Mexico City, Mexico
St.James
🇹🇹 Trinidad And Tobago
$917
/mo nomad
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,608
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $917 in St.James versus $1,608 in Mexico City.

  • St.James $917
  • Mexico City $1,608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,593 in St.James versus $2,549 in Mexico City.

  • St.James $1,593
  • Mexico City $2,549

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,270 in St.James versus $3,490 in Mexico City.

  • St.James $2,270
  • Mexico City $3,490

Living in St.James costs roughly 43% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

The two cities straddle the global median: St.James is 33% below, Mexico City is 18% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
St.James
Mexico City
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.13 TTD 68.0
$10.62 MX$200
-4.61%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$88.4 TTD 593
$48.35 MX$909
82.75%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.03 TTD 60.6
$10.35 MX$194
-12.75%
Cappuccino
$3.65 TTD 24.49
$3.69 MX$69.4
-1.08%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.99 TTD 6.67
$1.67 MX$31.32
-40.72%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.77 TTD 5.15
$1.27 MX$23.78
-39.37%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.25 TTD 15.06
$3.19 MX$60.0
-29.47%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.67 TTD 24.62
$5.31 MX$99.7
-30.89%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
St.James
Mexico City
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.51 TTD 16.85
$1.72 MX$32.41
45.93%
White Bread (500g)
$2.48 TTD 16.67
$3.04 MX$57.1
-18.42%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.80 TTD 18.82
$1.94 MX$36.48
44.33%
Eggs
$4.43 TTD 29.73
$2.89 MX$54.3
53.29%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$6.57 TTD 44.06
$10.97 MX$206
-40.11%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.90 TTD 66.4
$9.25 MX$174
7.03%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.79 TTD 79.1
$15.13 MX$284
-22.08%
Apples (1kg)
$5.66 TTD 37.97
$3.05 MX$57.3
85.57%
Banana (1kg)
$2.97 TTD 19.90
$1.94 MX$36.48
53.09%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.75 TTD 25.19
$2.03 MX$38.06
84.73%
Tomato (1kg)
$4.28 TTD 28.70
$2.31 MX$43.50
85.28%
Potato (1kg)
$2.21 TTD 14.84
$2.04 MX$38.25
8.33%
Onion (1kg)
$1.87 TTD 12.54
$1.80 MX$33.83
3.89%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.91 TTD 12.84
$1.48 MX$27.80
29.05%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.35 TTD 9.08
$1.27 MX$23.82
6.30%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.73 TTD 38.48
$5.30 MX$99.7
8.11%
Wine (Bottle)
$19.28 TTD 129
$16.10 MX$303
19.75%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.21 TTD 14.82
$1.98 MX$37.27
11.62%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.00 TTD 20.13
$4.25 MX$79.9
-29.41%
🚌 Getting Around
St.James
Mexico City
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
-
$0.31 MX$5.73
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$19.73 MX$371
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.01 TTD 6.78
$1.84 MX$34.53
-45.11%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.23 TTD 8.26
$0.53 MX$10.03
132.08%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$14.65 TTD 98.3
$5.30 MX$99.5
176.42%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.17 TTD 7.83
$1.51 MX$28.39
-22.52%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$37.2K TTD 249.9K
$21.8K MX$408.8K
71.22%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$40.7K TTD 273.4K
$24.0K MX$450.8K
69.89%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
St.James
Mexico City
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$90.2 TTD 605
$63.0 MX$1,184
43.27%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$50.9 TTD 341
$27.39 MX$515
85.80%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$56.0 TTD 376
$35.67 MX$670
56.99%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
St.James
Mexico City
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
-
$58.9 MX$1,108
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$23.64 MX$444
-
Cinema Ticket
$9.06 TTD 60.8
$6.40 MX$120
41.56%
🧸 Childcare & Education
St.James
Mexico City
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$398 TTD 2,669
$432 MX$8,111
-7.82%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$10.9K TTD 73.1K
$11.4K MX$214.7K
-4.59%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
St.James
Mexico City
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$54.3 TTD 364
$68.2 MX$1,282
-20.38%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$51.3 TTD 344
$53.1 MX$999
-3.44%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$148 TTD 996
$108 MX$2,026
37.66%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$103 TTD 693
$117 MX$2,204
-11.87%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
St.James
Mexico City
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
-
$1,113 MX$20.9K
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
-
$710 MX$13.4K
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
-
$2,588 MX$48.6K
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
-
$1,406 MX$26.4K
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$3,631 MX$68.2K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$2,135 MX$40.1K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
St.James
Mexico City
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
-
$946 MX$17.8K
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.75
11.35
-49.34%

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

Last update for St.James: October 24, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Groceries & Markets
St.James
$356
Mexico City
$320 10.2% $36
Monthly Utilities & Internet
St.James
$197
Mexico City
$126 36.1% $71
Eating Out
St.James
$178
Mexico City
$199 11.9% $21
Clothing & Footwear
St.James
$161
Mexico City
$156 3.1% $4.9
Sport & Entertainment
St.James
$18 *
Mexico City
$72 296% $54
Getting Around
St.James
$7.2 *
Mexico City
$25 256% $18
Accommodation & Living
St.James
- *
Mexico City
$710

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $88 in St.James vs $48 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $356 vs $320 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇹🇹 St.James
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🕒 Local time
22:04 10:04 PM
20:04 8:04 PM
2 h behind St.James
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
4,342
9,209,944 Capital
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to TTD – Trinidad and Tobago Dollar Converter

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 6.71 TTD (1 TTD = 0.149 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 TTD (1 TTD = 0.133 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.98 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • St.James Mexico City 4,140 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight
From you
  • St.James
  • 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
St.James vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in St.James and in Mexico City?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $917 in St.James and $1,608 in Mexico City, so St.James is about 43% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
What salary covers living expenses in St.James compared to Mexico City?
You’d need roughly $1,375 in St.James and $2,412 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.
What is the difference in childcare costs between St.James and Mexico City?
Childcare runs $398 in St.James versus $432 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city has cheaper restaurants?
Dining out is cheaper in Mexico City – a meal for two runs $48 versus $88 in St.James. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
Which city is more doable on $1,200 per month?
At $917 in St.James versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $1,200 budget is realistic in St.James but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes St.James the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between St.James 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.

St.James vs other spots: cost of living compared

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