Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Waukegan, IL and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,548 a month against $2,588 in Waukegan, IL, rent and utilities included – about $12,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Waukegan, IL
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Waukegan, IL Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Waukegan, IL

🇺🇸 United States

$2,588

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,548

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,588 in Waukegan, IL versus $1,548 in Mexico City.

Waukegan, IL $2,588
Mexico City $1,548

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,760 in Waukegan, IL versus $2,436 in Mexico City.

Waukegan, IL $3,760
Mexico City $2,436

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,931 in Waukegan, IL versus $3,323 in Mexico City.

Waukegan, IL $4,931
Mexico City $3,323

Living in Waukegan, IL is roughly 67% 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: Waukegan, IL 91% above, Mexico City 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.80 $18.80

$11.02 MX$204

70.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$73.9 $73.9

$48.68 MX$900

51.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.09 $11.09

$10.90 MX$201

1.74%

Cappuccino

$5.04 $5.04

$3.68 MX$68.1

36.96%

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

$2.47 $2.47

$1.63 MX$30.18

51.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 $1.95

$1.25 MX$23.07

56.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.12 $6.12

$3.25 MX$60.1

88.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.15 $7.15

$5.53 MX$102

29.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.01 $1.01

$1.70 MX$31.50

-40.59%

White Bread (500g)

$3.44 $3.44

$3.02 MX$55.8

13.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.19 $4.19

$1.92 MX$35.53

118.23%

Eggs

$4.06 $4.06

$2.73 MX$50.5

48.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.46 $12.46

$11.77 MX$218

5.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.48 $11.48

$9.53 MX$176

20.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.19 $15.19

$14.41 MX$266

5.41%

Apples (1kg)

$4.94 $4.94

$3.02 MX$55.8

63.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 $1.56

$1.89 MX$35.01

-17.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.15 $4.15

$1.99 MX$36.70

108.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.60 $4.60

$2.19 MX$40.38

110.05%

Potato (1kg)

$2.77 $2.77

$1.92 MX$35.43

44.27%

Onion (1kg)

$2.86 $2.86

$1.87 MX$34.49

52.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.02 $2.02

$1.44 MX$26.62

40.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.08 $2.08

$1.27 MX$23.39

63.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.56 $9.56

$5.22 MX$96.4

83.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.83 $13.83

$16.17 MX$299

-14.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 $1.77

$1.90 MX$35.03

-6.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.28 $3.28

$4.22 MX$78.0

-22.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.96 $1.96

$0.34 MX$6.30

476.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.65 MX$363

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.52 $3.52

$2.00 MX$36.90

76.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 $1.58

$0.52 MX$9.67

203.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.94 $28.94

$5.34 MX$98.7

441.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.91 $0.91

$1.52 MX$28.13

-40.13%

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

$29.7K $29.7K

$22.1K MX$408.0K

34.74%

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

$25.6K $25.6K

$24.5K MX$452.9K

4.44%

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

$188 $188

$61.1 MX$1,129

208.35%

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

$51.9 $51.9

$28.58 MX$528

81.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$66.3 $66.3

$34.47 MX$637

92.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.42 $42.42

$56.4 MX$1,042

-24.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.88 MX$460

Cinema Ticket

$13.37 $13.37

$6.66 MX$123

100.75%

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

$1,314 $1,314

$427 MX$7,891

207.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.5K $23.5K

$11.6K MX$215.0K

102.23%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.5 $51.5

$67.8 MX$1,253

-24.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.19 $40.19

$52.0 MX$960

-22.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.5 $87.5

$106 MX$1,959

-17.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 $114

$113 MX$2,080

1.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,631 $1,631

$1,025 MX$18.9K

59.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,373 $1,373

$654 MX$12.1K

109.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,587 $2,587

$2,308 MX$42.7K

12.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,235 $2,235

$1,242 MX$22.9K

79.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,798 $2,798

$3,613 MX$66.8K

-22.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,430 $2,430

$1,936 MX$35.8K

25.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$964 MX$17.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.51

11.3

-42.39%

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

Last update for Waukegan, IL: 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

Waukegan, IL

$1.4K 53.1%

Mexico City

$654 42.3% 52.4% $719

Groceries & Markets

Waukegan, IL

$382 14.7%

Mexico City

$318 20.6% 16.6% $63

Eating Out

Waukegan, IL

$307 11.9%

Mexico City

$204 13.2% 33.5% $103

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Waukegan, IL

$306 11.8%

Mexico City

$124 8% 59.5% $182

Clothing & Footwear

Waukegan, IL

$132 5.1%

Mexico City

$152 9.8% 15.4% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Waukegan, IL

$69 2.7%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 0.8% $0.5

Getting Around

Waukegan, IL

$19 * 0.7%

Mexico City

$26 1.7% 32.9% $6.3

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 $1,631 in Waukegan, IL and $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $74.0 in Waukegan, IL vs $49.00 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $382 vs $318 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Waukegan, IL

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

19:14 7:14 PM

18:14 6:14 PM

1 h behind Waukegan, IL

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

89,321

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Waukegan, IL Mexico City 2,760 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Waukegan, IL
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

Waukegan, IL vs Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Waukegan, IL and Mexico City differ by about 67% in total monthly costs ($2,588 vs $1,548 including rent). Mexico City is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $3,882 in Waukegan, IL and $2,322 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: $1,631 in Waukegan, IL versus $1,025 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,314 in Waukegan, IL 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 Mexico City – a meal for two runs $49.00 versus $74.0 in Waukegan, IL. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,548 in Mexico City versus $2,588 in Waukegan, IL, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in Waukegan, IL. The gap between the two cities makes Mexico City 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 Mexico City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 67% less than in Waukegan, IL. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.