Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tripoli and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Tripoli: $538 a month against $1,548 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $12,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

26

Cost of Living Index in Tripoli
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Tripoli Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

Jump to prices

Tripoli

🇱🇾 Libya

$538

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,548

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $538 in Tripoli versus $1,548 in Mexico City.

Tripoli $538
Mexico City $1,548

Estimated couple costs with rent: $812 in Tripoli versus $2,436 in Mexico City.

Tripoli $812
Mexico City $2,436

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,087 in Tripoli versus $3,323 in Mexico City.

Tripoli $1,087
Mexico City $3,323

Living in Tripoli costs roughly 65% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Tripoli is 60% below, Mexico City is 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.82 LYD 24.48

$11.02 MX$204

-65.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$15.79 LYD 101

$48.68 MX$900

-67.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.60 LYD 16.69

$10.90 MX$201

-76.15%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.63 LYD 4.04

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.69 LYD 4.41

Cappuccino

$0.44 LYD 2.83

$3.68 MX$68.1

-88.04%

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

$0.42 LYD 2.68

$1.63 MX$30.18

-74.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.10 LYD 0.63

$1.25 MX$23.07

-92.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.25 MX$60.1

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.53 MX$102

Milk (1 liter)

$0.97 LYD 6.25

$1.70 MX$31.50

-42.94%

White Bread (500g)

$0.20 LYD 1.28

$3.02 MX$55.8

-93.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.19 LYD 7.62

$1.92 MX$35.53

-38.02%

Eggs

$1.38 LYD 8.83

$2.73 MX$50.5

-49.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.33 LYD 34.13

$11.77 MX$218

-54.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.61 LYD 23.16

$9.53 MX$176

-62.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.17 LYD 58.7

$14.41 MX$266

-36.36%

Apples (1kg)

$2.23 LYD 14.29

$3.02 MX$55.8

-26.16%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 LYD 9.57

$1.89 MX$35.01

-21.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.71 LYD 4.54

$1.99 MX$36.70

-64.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.55 LYD 3.55

$2.19 MX$40.38

-74.89%

Potato (1kg)

$0.77 LYD 4.94

$1.92 MX$35.43

-59.90%

Onion (1kg)

$0.49 LYD 3.14

$1.87 MX$34.49

-73.80%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.39 LYD 2.51

$1.44 MX$26.62

-72.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.20 LYD 1.31

$1.27 MX$23.39

-84.25%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.77 LYD 11.32

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 LYD 6.34

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.77 LYD 4.95

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.91 LYD 12.24

$5.22 MX$96.4

-63.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.17 MX$299

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 MX$35.03

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.22 MX$78.0

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 LYD 1.91

$0.34 MX$6.30

-11.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.65 MX$363

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.80 LYD 5.10

$2.00 MX$36.90

-60.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.48 LYD 3.09

$0.52 MX$9.67

-7.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.34 MX$98.7

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.02 LYD 0.13

$1.52 MX$28.13

-98.68%

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

$23.6K LYD 151.3K

$22.1K MX$408.0K

6.98%

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

$21.0K LYD 134.7K

$24.5K MX$452.9K

-14.24%

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

$93.1 LYD 597

$61.1 MX$1,129

52.43%

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

$6.05 LYD 38.75

$28.58 MX$528

-78.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.35 LYD 175

$34.47 MX$637

-20.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.58 LYD 158

$56.4 MX$1,042

-56.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$2.36 LYD 15.14

$24.88 MX$460

-90.51%

Cinema Ticket

$6.66 MX$123

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

$53.1 LYD 340

$427 MX$7,891

-87.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,534 LYD 9,830

$11.6K MX$215.0K

-86.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$22.65 LYD 145

$67.8 MX$1,253

-66.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.61 LYD 113

$52.0 MX$960

-66.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$63.3 LYD 406

$106 MX$1,959

-40.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$67.1 LYD 430

$113 MX$2,080

-40.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$351 LYD 2,251

$1,025 MX$18.9K

-65.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$143 LYD 917

$654 MX$12.1K

-78.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$619 LYD 3,968

$2,308 MX$42.7K

-73.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$258 LYD 1,655

$1,242 MX$22.9K

-79.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,613 MX$66.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,936 MX$35.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$257 LYD 1,646

$964 MX$17.8K

-73.36%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

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

Last update for Tripoli: October 19, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tripoli

$143 26.6%

Mexico City

$654 42.3% 357% $511

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tripoli

$126 23.5%

Mexico City

$124 8% 1.9% $2.4

Groceries & Markets

Tripoli

$117 21.7%

Mexico City

$318 20.6% 173% $202

Clothing & Footwear

Tripoli

$77 14.3%

Mexico City

$152 9.8% 98.2% $75

Eating Out

Tripoli

$46 8.5%

Mexico City

$204 13.2% 346% $158

Sport & Entertainment

Tripoli

$25 * 4.6%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 184% $45

Getting Around

Tripoli

$4.4 * 0.8%

Mexico City

$26 1.7% 483% $21

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 $351 in Tripoli and $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 275% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $16.00 in Tripoli vs $49.00 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $117 vs $318 per month, with Tripoli cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇱🇾 Tripoli

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

12:50 12:50 PM

04:50 4:50 AM

8 h behind Tripoli

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,127,000 Capital

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Libyan Dinar LYD ل.د

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 LYD = 0.156 USD

1 LYD = 0.139 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to LYD – Libyan Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇾 Libyan Dinar (ل.د)

Libyan Dinar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.41 LYD (1 LYD = 0.156 USD). 1 EUR = 7.2 LYD (1 LYD = 0.139 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to LYD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Tripoli Mexico City 10,770 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Tripoli
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

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

Tripoli and Mexico City differ by about 188% in total monthly costs ($538 vs $1,548 including rent). Tripoli is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 275% lower in Mexico City. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $351 in Tripoli versus $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $53.1 in Tripoli versus $427 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 Tripoli – a meal for two runs $16.00 versus $49.00 in Mexico City. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $538 in Tripoli versus $1,548 in Mexico City, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Tripoli but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Tripoli 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.

Expats usually find Tripoli gentler on the wallet – expenses run 188% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.