Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Wakayama and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Wakayama: $1,276 a month against $1,548 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

61

Cost of Living Index in Wakayama
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Wakayama Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Wakayama

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,276

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,548

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,276 in Wakayama versus $1,548 in Mexico City.

Wakayama $1,276
Mexico City $1,548

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,031 in Wakayama versus $2,436 in Mexico City.

Wakayama $2,031
Mexico City $2,436

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,785 in Wakayama versus $3,323 in Mexico City.

Wakayama $2,785
Mexico City $3,323

Living in Wakayama costs roughly 18% less than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Wakayama is 6% below, Mexico City is 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.47 ¥1,022

$11.02 MX$204

-41.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.22 ¥4,932

$48.68 MX$900

-35.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.89 ¥773

$10.90 MX$201

-55.14%

Cappuccino

$2.46 ¥389

$3.68 MX$68.1

-33.15%

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

$1.25 ¥197

$1.63 MX$30.18

-23.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.86 ¥136

$1.25 MX$23.07

-31.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.20 ¥506

$3.25 MX$60.1

-1.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 ¥293

$5.53 MX$102

-66.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 ¥248

$1.70 MX$31.50

-7.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.53 ¥242

$3.02 MX$55.8

-49.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.27 ¥675

$1.92 MX$35.53

122.40%

Eggs

$2.11 ¥334

$2.73 MX$50.5

-22.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.04 ¥2,534

$11.77 MX$218

36.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.05 ¥1,114

$9.53 MX$176

-26.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.10 ¥2,701

$14.41 MX$266

18.67%

Apples (1kg)

$8.20 ¥1,296

$3.02 MX$55.8

171.52%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 ¥478

$1.89 MX$35.01

59.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.15 ¥814

$1.99 MX$36.70

158.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$7.94 ¥1,255

$2.19 MX$40.38

262.56%

Potato (1kg)

$4.01 ¥633

$1.92 MX$35.43

108.85%

Onion (1kg)

$4.59 ¥726

$1.87 MX$34.49

145.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 ¥179

$1.44 MX$26.62

-20.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 ¥139

$1.27 MX$23.39

-30.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 ¥630

$5.22 MX$96.4

-23.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.33 ¥1,475

$16.17 MX$299

-42.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.49 ¥393

$1.90 MX$35.03

31.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 ¥340

$4.22 MX$78.0

-49.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 ¥236

$0.34 MX$6.30

341.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.8 ¥8,496

$19.65 MX$363

173.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.07 ¥485

$2.00 MX$36.90

53.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.91 ¥460

$0.52 MX$9.67

459.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.69 ¥2,478

$5.34 MX$98.7

193.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ¥167

$1.52 MX$28.13

-30.26%

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

$22.0K ¥3.5M

$22.1K MX$408.0K

-0.43%

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

$15.0K ¥2.4M

$24.5K MX$452.9K

-38.63%

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

$117 ¥18.4K

$61.1 MX$1,129

91.16%

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

$23.45 ¥3,705

$28.58 MX$528

-17.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.45 ¥4,968

$34.47 MX$637

-8.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.3 ¥8,109

$56.4 MX$1,042

-8.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.88 MX$460

Cinema Ticket

$11.21 ¥1,771

$6.66 MX$123

68.32%

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

$564 ¥89.1K

$427 MX$7,891

32.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ¥2.3M

$11.6K MX$215.0K

27.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.37 ¥7,800

$67.8 MX$1,253

-27.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.42 ¥5,596

$52.0 MX$960

-31.83%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$59.4 ¥9,385

$106 MX$1,959

-43.98%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.7 ¥15.6K

$113 MX$2,080

-12.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$526 ¥83.1K

$1,025 MX$18.9K

-48.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$337 ¥53.3K

$654 MX$12.1K

-48.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,093 ¥172.7K

$2,308 MX$42.7K

-52.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$738 ¥116.5K

$1,242 MX$22.9K

-40.60%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,206 ¥664.5K

$3,613 MX$66.8K

16.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,756 ¥277.4K

$1,936 MX$35.8K

-9.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,965 ¥626.4K

$964 MX$17.8K

311.27%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.67

11.3

-85.22%

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

Last update for Wakayama: October 17, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Wakayama

$382 30%

Mexico City

$318 20.6% 16.8% $64

Accommodation & Living

Wakayama

$337 26.4%

Mexico City

$654 42.3% 94% $317

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Wakayama

$172 13.5%

Mexico City

$124 8% 27.7% $48

Eating Out

Wakayama

$124 9.7%

Mexico City

$204 13.2% 64.2% $80

Clothing & Footwear

Wakayama

$109 8.6%

Mexico City

$152 9.8% 39.3% $43

Getting Around

Wakayama

$77 6.1%

Mexico City

$26 1.7% 66.9% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Wakayama

$74 5.8%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 5.5% $4.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $526 in Wakayama and $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Wakayama pays 311% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $31.00 in Wakayama vs $49.00 in Mexico City. Groceries flip the comparison at $382 vs $318, with Mexico City cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Wakayama

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

09:54 9:54 AM

18:54 6:54 PM

15 h behind Wakayama

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

362,163

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

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Between locations

Wakayama Mexico City 11,730 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Wakayama
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

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

Wakayama and Mexico City differ by about 21% in total monthly costs ($1,276 vs $1,548 including rent). Wakayama is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 311% higher in Wakayama, 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: $526 in Wakayama versus $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Wakayama runs roughly 174% less than in Mexico City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $564 in Wakayama versus $427 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,276 in Wakayama versus $1,548 in Mexico City, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Wakayama but tight or insufficient in Mexico City. The gap between the two cities makes Wakayama 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 Wakayama gentler on the wallet – expenses run 21% less than in Mexico City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.