Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sur and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Sur: $1,149 a month against $1,608 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Sur, Oman
Mexico City, Mexico
Sur
🇴🇲 Oman
$1,149
/mo nomad
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,608
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,149 in Sur versus $1,608 in Mexico City.

  • Sur $1,149
  • Mexico City $1,608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,653 in Sur versus $2,549 in Mexico City.

  • Sur $1,653
  • Mexico City $2,549

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,156 in Sur versus $3,490 in Mexico City.

  • Sur $2,156
  • Mexico City $3,490

Living in Sur costs roughly 29% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sur is 16% below, Mexico City is 18% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Sur
Mexico City
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.88 OMR 1.49
$10.62 MX$198
-63.47%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$25.96 OMR 9.99
$48.35 MX$901
-46.31%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$7.63 OMR 2.94
$10.35 MX$193
-26.28%
Cappuccino
$5.05 OMR 1.94
$3.69 MX$68.8
36.86%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.73 OMR 0.28
$1.67 MX$31.07
-56.29%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.27 OMR 0.10
$1.27 MX$23.59
-78.74%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$12.80 OMR 4.93
$3.19 MX$59.5
301.25%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$12.79 OMR 4.92
$5.31 MX$98.9
140.87%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Sur
Mexico City
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.59 OMR 0.61
$1.72 MX$32.15
-7.56%
White Bread (500g)
$1.23 OMR 0.48
$3.04 MX$56.7
-59.54%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.73 OMR 0.66
$1.94 MX$36.19
-10.82%
Eggs
$1.95 OMR 0.75
$2.89 MX$53.8
-32.53%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.19 OMR 2.77
$10.97 MX$205
-34.46%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.81 OMR 2.62
$9.25 MX$172
-26.38%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$8.99 OMR 3.46
$15.13 MX$282
-40.58%
Apples (1kg)
$2.35 OMR 0.91
$3.05 MX$56.8
-22.95%
Banana (1kg)
$1.28 OMR 0.49
$1.94 MX$36.19
-34.02%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.06 OMR 0.41
$2.03 MX$37.75
-47.78%
Tomato (1kg)
$0.80 OMR 0.31
$2.31 MX$43.15
-65.37%
Potato (1kg)
$0.76 OMR 0.29
$2.04 MX$37.94
-62.75%
Onion (1kg)
$0.54 OMR 0.21
$1.80 MX$33.55
-70.00%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.55 OMR 0.60
$1.48 MX$27.58
4.73%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.53 OMR 0.21
$1.27 MX$23.63
-58.27%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$6.38 OMR 2.45
$5.30 MX$98.9
20.38%
Wine (Bottle)
$15.86 OMR 6.11
$16.10 MX$300
-1.49%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$6.10 OMR 2.35
$1.98 MX$36.97
208.08%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$10.30 OMR 3.96
$4.25 MX$79.3
142.35%
🚌 Getting Around
Sur
Mexico City
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
-
$0.31 MX$5.69
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$19.73 MX$368
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.32 OMR 1.28
$1.84 MX$34.25
80.43%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.61 OMR 1.01
$0.53 MX$9.94
392.45%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$7.74 OMR 2.98
$5.30 MX$98.7
46.04%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.53 OMR 0.20
$1.51 MX$28.16
-64.90%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$24.7K OMR 9,491
$21.8K MX$405.5K
13.32%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$20.7K OMR 7,965
$24.0K MX$447.1K
-13.75%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Sur
Mexico City
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$77.7 OMR 29.90
$63.0 MX$1,174
23.32%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.09 OMR 8.89
$27.39 MX$511
-15.70%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$69.7 OMR 26.85
$35.67 MX$665
95.51%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Sur
Mexico City
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$86.3 OMR 33.21
$58.9 MX$1,099
46.35%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$23.64 MX$441
-
Cinema Ticket
$10.25 OMR 3.95
$6.40 MX$119
60.16%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Sur
Mexico City
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$502 OMR 193
$432 MX$8,045
16.39%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$6,458 OMR 2,486
$11.4K MX$212.9K
-43.47%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Sur
Mexico City
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$56.9 OMR 21.89
$68.2 MX$1,272
-16.64%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$44.07 OMR 16.97
$53.1 MX$990
-17.05%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$88.9 OMR 34.23
$108 MX$2,009
-17.52%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 OMR 34.01
$117 MX$2,186
-24.66%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Sur
Mexico City
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$257 OMR 99.0
$1,113 MX$20.8K
-76.91%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$271 OMR 104
$710 MX$13.2K
-61.92%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$467 OMR 180
$2,588 MX$48.2K
-81.97%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$385 OMR 148
$1,406 MX$26.2K
-72.64%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$583 OMR 224
$3,631 MX$67.7K
-83.95%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$515 OMR 198
$2,135 MX$39.8K
-75.89%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Sur
Mexico City
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$2,660 OMR 1,024
$946 MX$17.6K
181.10%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.25
11.35
-53.74%

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

Last update for Sur: October 26, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Sur
$271
Mexico City
$710 163% $440
Groceries & Markets
Sur
$252
Mexico City
$320 26.8% $68
Eating Out
Sur
$208
Mexico City
$199 4.6% $9.5
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Sur
$170
Mexico City
$126 26.1% $44
Clothing & Footwear
Sur
$125
Mexico City
$156 24.5% $31
Sport & Entertainment
Sur
$107
Mexico City
$72 32.8% $35
Getting Around
Sur
$16 *
Mexico City
$25 55.4% $9.1

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 $257 in Sur and $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sur pays about 2.8 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $26 in Sur vs $48 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $252 vs $320 per month, with Sur cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇴🇲 Sur
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🕒 Local time
21:45 9:45 PM
11:45 11:45 AM
10 h behind Sur
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
120,000
9,209,944 Capital
💱 Currency
Omani Rial OMR ر.ع.
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to OMR – Omani Rial Converter

Omani Rial exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.385 OMR (1 OMR = 2.6 USD). 1 EUR = 0.429 OMR (1 OMR = 2.33 EUR).

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
  • Sur Mexico City 14,800 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Sur
  • 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
Sur vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Sur and in Mexico City?
Sur and Mexico City differ by about 40% in total monthly costs ($1,149 vs $1,608 including rent). Sur is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city pays better: Sur or Mexico City?
Average pay in Sur is about 2.8 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 Sur and in Mexico City?
Rent for a central apartment: $257 in Sur versus $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Sur and Mexico City?
Childcare runs $502 in Sur 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 Sur – a meal for two runs $26 versus $48 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
Which city is more doable on $1,500 per month?
At $1,149 in Sur versus $1,608 in Mexico City, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Sur but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Sur the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Sur 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.

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