Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tarragona and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,608 a month against $1,774 in Tarragona, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

85

Cost of Living Index in Tarragona
Learn more

Tarragona Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index

Jump to prices

Tarragona

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,774

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,774 in Tarragona versus $1,608 in Mexico City.

Tarragona $1,774
Mexico City $1,608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,602 in Tarragona versus $2,549 in Mexico City.

Tarragona $2,602
Mexico City $2,549

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,429 in Tarragona versus $3,490 in Mexico City.

Tarragona $3,429
Mexico City $3,490

Living in Tarragona is roughly 10% more expensive than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Tarragona 30% above, Mexico City 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.82 €15.97

$10.62 MX$200

67.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.0 €53.8

$48.35 MX$909

24.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.19 €8.23

$10.35 MX$194

-11.21%

Cappuccino

$2.42 €2.17

$3.69 MX$69.4

-34.42%

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

$2.50 €2.24

$1.67 MX$31.32

49.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.97 €1.77

$1.27 MX$23.78

55.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.25 €2.91

$3.19 MX$60.0

1.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.93 €3.52

$5.31 MX$99.7

-25.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.26 €1.13

$1.72 MX$32.41

-26.74%

White Bread (500g)

$1.97 €1.76

$3.04 MX$57.1

-35.20%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.94 MX$36.48

-24.23%

Eggs

$3.40 €3.04

$2.89 MX$54.3

17.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.30 €11.92

$10.97 MX$206

21.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.50 €9.41

$9.25 MX$174

13.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.50 €13.00

$15.13 MX$284

-4.16%

Apples (1kg)

$2.84 €2.54

$3.05 MX$57.3

-6.89%

Banana (1kg)

$2.45 €2.20

$1.94 MX$36.48

26.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$2.03 MX$38.06

37.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.58 €2.31

$2.31 MX$43.50

11.69%

Potato (1kg)

$1.54 €1.38

$2.04 MX$38.25

-24.51%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.80 MX$33.83

5.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.50 €1.34

$1.48 MX$27.80

1.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 €0.61

$1.27 MX$23.82

-46.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.63 €5.94

$5.30 MX$99.7

25.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.00 €4.48

$16.10 MX$303

-68.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.97 €1.77

$1.98 MX$37.27

-0.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 €1.64

$4.25 MX$79.9

-56.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.70 €1.52

$0.31 MX$5.73

448.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.24 €24.41

$19.73 MX$371

38.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.98 €3.57

$1.84 MX$34.53

116.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.52 €1.36

$0.53 MX$10.03

186.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.90 €19.63

$5.30 MX$99.5

313.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 €1.62

$1.51 MX$28.39

19.87%

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

$35.8K €32.0K

$21.8K MX$408.8K

64.40%

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

$29.4K €26.4K

$24.0K MX$450.8K

22.63%

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

$128 €114

$63.0 MX$1,184

102.46%

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

$23.01 €20.62

$27.39 MX$515

-15.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.52 €30.93

$35.67 MX$670

-3.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.4 €54.2

$58.9 MX$1,108

2.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.62 €21.16

$23.64 MX$444

-0.08%

Cinema Ticket

$8.95 €8.02

$6.40 MX$120

39.84%

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

$320 €287

$432 MX$8,111

-25.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$214.7K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$103 €91.9

$68.2 MX$1,282

50.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.90 €29.48

$53.1 MX$999

-38.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.9 €72.5

$108 MX$2,026

-24.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.0 €79.7

$117 MX$2,204

-24.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$911 €817

$1,113 MX$20.9K

-18.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$799 €716

$710 MX$13.4K

12.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,222 €1,095

$2,588 MX$48.6K

-52.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,168 €1,047

$1,406 MX$26.4K

-16.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,704 €2,423

$3,631 MX$68.2K

-25.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,289 €1,155

$2,135 MX$40.1K

-39.64%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,024 €1,814

$946 MX$17.8K

113.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.02

11.35

-73.39%

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

Last update for Tarragona: 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

Tarragona

$799 45.1%

Mexico City

$710 44.2% 11.1% $89

Groceries & Markets

Tarragona

$287 16.2%

Mexico City

$320 19.9% 11.4% $33

Eating Out

Tarragona

$241 13.6%

Mexico City

$199 12.4% 17.6% $43

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tarragona

$185 10.4%

Mexico City

$126 7.8% 31.9% $59

Clothing & Footwear

Tarragona

$137 7.7%

Mexico City

$156 9.7% 13.5% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Tarragona

$78 4.4%

Mexico City

$72 4.5% 8.4% $6.6

Getting Around

Tarragona

$46 2.6%

Mexico City

$25 1.6% 44.2% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $911 in Tarragona and $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Tarragona pays about 2.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $60 in Tarragona vs $48 in Mexico City. Groceries flip the comparison at $287 vs $320, with Tarragona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Tarragona

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

14:08 2:08 PM

07:08 7:08 AM

7 h behind Tarragona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

138,262

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.97 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Tarragona Mexico City 9,430 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Tarragona
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,774 in Tarragona and $1,608 in Mexico City, so Mexico City is about 9% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Tarragona is about 2.1 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $911 in Tarragona versus $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 28% less than in Tarragona. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $320 in Tarragona versus $432 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

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.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Mexico City wins on affordability, Tarragona on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.