Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Taif and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Taif: $1,239 a month against $1,567 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Taif
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia
$1,239
/mo nomad
Mexico City
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,567
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,239 in Taif versus $1,567 in Mexico City.

  • Taif $1,239
  • Mexico City $1,567

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,827 in Taif versus $2,450 in Mexico City.

  • Taif $1,827
  • Mexico City $2,450

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,416 in Taif versus $3,333 in Mexico City.

  • Taif $2,416
  • Mexico City $3,333

Living in Taif costs roughly 21% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Taif is 8% below, Mexico City is 16% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Taif
Mexico City
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$5.28 SAR 19.82
$10.75 MX$199
-50.88%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$37.38 SAR 140
$50.3 MX$929
-25.61%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$7.31 SAR 27.41
$11.10 MX$205
-34.14%
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.08 SAR 7.80
-
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.36 SAR 5.11
-
-
Cappuccino
$2.23 SAR 8.37
$3.68 MX$68.1
-39.40%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.70 SAR 2.64
$1.65 MX$30.42
-57.58%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.17 SAR 0.64
$1.30 MX$24.08
-86.92%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
-
$3.32 MX$61.3
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$5.54 MX$102
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Taif
Mexico City
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.75 SAR 6.57
$1.77 MX$32.68
-1.13%
White Bread (500g)
$0.26 SAR 0.97
$3.05 MX$56.4
-91.48%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.34 SAR 8.80
$2.01 MX$37.20
16.42%
Eggs
$2.74 SAR 10.26
$2.77 MX$51.1
-1.08%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$5.97 SAR 22.40
$11.91 MX$220
-49.87%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.11 SAR 26.68
$9.33 MX$172
-23.79%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$9.46 SAR 35.50
$15.02 MX$278
-37.02%
Apples (1kg)
$2.38 SAR 8.94
$3.08 MX$56.8
-22.73%
Banana (1kg)
$1.72 SAR 6.45
$1.95 MX$35.97
-11.79%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.84 SAR 6.90
$2.03 MX$37.54
-9.36%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.83 SAR 6.86
$2.21 MX$40.92
-17.19%
Potato (1kg)
$1.31 SAR 4.92
$2.02 MX$37.41
-35.15%
Onion (1kg)
$1.42 SAR 5.33
$1.82 MX$33.67
-21.98%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.94 SAR 3.54
$1.52 MX$28.07
-38.16%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.82 SAR 3.07
$1.28 MX$23.65
-35.94%
Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)
$3.20 SAR 11.99
-
-
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.42 SAR 5.32
-
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.00 SAR 7.50
-
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$7.36 SAR 27.63
$5.27 MX$97.4
39.66%
Wine (Bottle)
-
$16.12 MX$298
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
-
$1.95 MX$36.05
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$4.25 MX$78.6
-
🚌 Getting Around
Taif
Mexico City
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.07 SAR 4.03
$0.31 MX$5.82
245.16%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$36.19 SAR 136
$19.85 MX$367
82.32%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.30 SAR 4.86
$2.00 MX$36.93
-35.00%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.05 SAR 7.68
$0.53 MX$9.86
286.79%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$9.42 SAR 35.34
$5.62 MX$104
67.62%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.60 SAR 2.26
$1.52 MX$28.07
-60.53%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$44.6K SAR 167.3K
$21.0K MX$388.7K
111.99%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$20.8K SAR 78.1K
$25.2K MX$465.3K
-17.33%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Taif
Mexico City
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$138 SAR 519
$62.5 MX$1,155
121.14%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$28.04 SAR 105
$28.77 MX$532
-2.54%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$67.4 SAR 253
$34.45 MX$637
95.50%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Taif
Mexico City
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$145 SAR 543
$57.1 MX$1,055
153.45%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$13.23 SAR 49.64
$24.81 MX$458
-46.67%
Cinema Ticket
$19.68 SAR 73.9
$6.67 MX$123
195.05%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Taif
Mexico City
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$185 SAR 693
$431 MX$7,964
-57.17%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$3,342 SAR 12.5K
$11.7K MX$216.9K
-71.54%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Taif
Mexico City
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$42.10 SAR 158
$70.8 MX$1,308
-40.53%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$55.3 SAR 208
$51.8 MX$958
6.77%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$95.5 SAR 358
$109 MX$2,011
-12.23%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$86.4 SAR 324
$112 MX$2,076
-23.06%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Taif
Mexico City
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$583 SAR 2,187
$1,051 MX$19.4K
-44.55%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$368 SAR 1,380
$665 MX$12.3K
-44.69%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$803 SAR 3,012
$2,346 MX$43.3K
-65.79%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$566 SAR 2,124
$1,227 MX$22.7K
-53.85%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,395 SAR 8,986
$3,554 MX$65.7K
-32.61%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,368 SAR 5,132
$1,977 MX$36.5K
-30.83%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Taif
Mexico City
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,567 SAR 5,880
$975 MX$18.0K
60.78%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.54
11.3
-50.97%

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

Last update for Taif: October 10, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Taif
$368
Mexico City
$665 80.8% $297
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Taif
$234
Mexico City
$126 46.2% $108
Sport & Entertainment
Taif
$184
Mexico City
$70 61.7% $114
Groceries & Markets
Taif
$181
Mexico City
$323 78% $141
Clothing & Footwear
Taif
$126
Mexico City
$155 23% $29
Eating Out
Taif
$94
Mexico City
$203 115% $109
Getting Around
Taif
$52
Mexico City
$26 50.4% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $583 in Taif and $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Taif pays 61% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $37.00 in Taif vs $50.0 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $181 vs $323 per month, with Taif cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇸🇦 Taif
🇲🇽 Mexico City
🕒 Local time
02:24 2:24 AM
17:24 5:24 PM
9 h behind Taif
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
579,970
9,209,944 Capital
💱 Currency
Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to SAR – Saudi Riyal Converter

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Taif Mexico City 13,700 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Taif
  • 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
Taif vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Taif and in Mexico City?
Taif and Mexico City differ by about 26% in total monthly costs ($1,239 vs $1,567 including rent). Taif is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city pays better: Taif or Mexico City?
Average pay runs 61% higher in Taif, 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 Taif and in Mexico City?
Rent for a central apartment: $583 in Taif versus $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How do commuting costs compare in Taif and in Mexico City?
A monthly transit pass in Taif runs roughly 82% less than in Mexico City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Taif and Mexico City?
Childcare runs $185 in Taif versus $431 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city is more doable on $1,000 per month?
At $1,239 in Taif versus $1,567 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Taif but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Taif the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Taif 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.
Is Taif or Mexico City safer for residents?
Safety-wise, Taif 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.
Where should expats move: Taif or Mexico City?
Expats usually find Taif gentler on the wallet – expenses run 26% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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