Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Thika and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Thika: $516 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $13,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

25

Cost of Living Index in Thika
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Thika Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

Jump to prices

Thika

🇰🇪 Kenya

$516

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $516 in Thika versus $1,674 in Mexico City.

Thika $516
Mexico City $1,674

Estimated couple costs with rent: $880 in Thika versus $2,606 in Mexico City.

Thika $880
Mexico City $2,606

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,245 in Thika versus $3,537 in Mexico City.

Thika $1,245
Mexico City $3,537

Living in Thika costs roughly 69% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Thika is 62% below, Mexico City is 24% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.42 KES 444

$10.59 MX$197

-67.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$33.96 KES 4,412

$52.0 MX$967

-34.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.26 KES 813

$10.73 MX$200

-41.66%

Cappuccino

$1.93 KES 251

$3.80 MX$70.6

-49.21%

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

$0.30 KES 38.67

$1.61 MX$30.01

-81.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.63 KES 81.6

$1.21 MX$22.55

-47.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.96 KES 255

$3.18 MX$59.1

-38.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 KES 280

$5.44 MX$101

-60.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.73 KES 95.3

$1.72 MX$31.96

-57.56%

White Bread (500g)

$0.44 KES 57.6

$2.97 MX$55.2

-85.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.20 KES 155

$1.93 MX$35.84

-37.82%

Eggs

$1.41 KES 183

$2.77 MX$51.6

-49.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.96 KES 1,423

$11.67 MX$217

-6.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.73 KES 874

$9.48 MX$176

-29.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$3.94 KES 511

$15.37 MX$286

-74.37%

Apples (1kg)

$1.58 KES 206

$3.10 MX$57.8

-49.03%

Banana (1kg)

$0.61 KES 79.2

$1.96 MX$36.49

-68.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.74 KES 96.7

$1.98 MX$36.88

-62.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.15 KES 149

$2.34 MX$43.46

-50.85%

Potato (1kg)

$0.37 KES 47.85

$2.02 MX$37.66

-81.68%

Onion (1kg)

$0.45 KES 58.5

$1.82 MX$33.95

-75.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.69 KES 89.4

$1.54 MX$28.74

-55.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.39 KES 50.8

$1.31 MX$24.42

-70.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.79 KES 363

$5.35 MX$99.6

-47.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.72 KES 743

$16.19 MX$301

-64.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 KES 231

$1.96 MX$36.46

-9.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.97 KES 256

$4.35 MX$81.0

-54.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.67

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$363

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.52 KES 198

$1.92 MX$35.68

-20.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.96 KES 125

$0.47 MX$8.80

104.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.93 KES 381

$5.41 MX$101

-45.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.41 KES 184

$1.48 MX$27.61

-4.73%

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

$19.3K KES 2.5M

$21.4K MX$397.7K

-9.49%

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

$21.5K KES 2.8M

$23.8K MX$442.1K

-9.61%

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

$34.90 KES 4,533

$62.0 MX$1,154

-43.70%

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

$14.86 KES 1,931

$28.47 MX$530

-47.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.82 KES 4,523

$34.11 MX$635

2.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.48 KES 5,908

$58.4 MX$1,087

-22.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$456

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 KES 971

$6.59 MX$123

13.35%

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

$54.0 KES 7,008

$434 MX$8,081

-87.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,528 KES 458.3K

$14.0K MX$261.2K

-74.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$28.24 KES 3,668

$68.4 MX$1,272

-58.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.33 KES 3,809

$54.8 MX$1,020

-46.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.2 KES 8,994

$111 MX$2,063

-37.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$19.51 KES 2,534

$116 MX$2,158

-83.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$99.5 KES 12.9K

$1,179 MX$21.9K

-91.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$56.8 KES 7,383

$771 MX$14.3K

-92.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$270 KES 35.0K

$2,570 MX$47.8K

-89.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$178 KES 23.2K

$1,420 MX$26.4K

-87.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$611 KES 79.4K

$3,586 MX$66.7K

-82.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

14.71

11.35

29.60%

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

Last update for Thika: October 31, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Thika

$154 30%

Mexico City

$324 19.3% 109% $169

Eating Out

Thika

$87 16.9%

Mexico City

$201 12% 130% $113

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Thika

$85 16.4%

Mexico City

$125 7.4% 47.3% $40

Clothing & Footwear

Thika

$66 12.8%

Mexico City

$158 9.4% 139% $92

Sport & Entertainment

Thika

$60 11.7%

Mexico City

$72 4.3% 18.4% $11

Accommodation & Living

Thika

$57 11%

Mexico City

$771 46.1% 1256% $714

Getting Around

Thika

$6.3 * 1.2%

Mexico City

$25 1.5% 295% $19

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 $100 in Thika and $1,179 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $34 in Thika vs $52 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $155 vs $324 per month, with Thika cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇰🇪 Thika

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

01:26 1:26 AM

16:26 4:26 PM

9 h behind Thika

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

83,000

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Kenyan Shilling KES Sh

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 KES = 7.7 USD

1,000 KES = 6.88 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to KES – Kenyan Shilling Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇪 Kenyan Shilling (Sh)

Kenyan Shilling exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 130 KES (1,000 KES = 7.7 USD). 1 EUR = 145 KES (1,000 KES = 6.88 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to KES in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Thika Mexico City 14,830 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Thika
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $516 in Thika and $1,674 in Mexico City, so Thika is about 69% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $773 in Thika and $2,510 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $100 in Thika versus $1,179 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $54 in Thika versus $434 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 Thika – a meal for two runs $34 versus $52 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $516 in Thika versus $1,674 in Mexico City, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Thika but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Thika 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.