Mexico vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Mexico United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1075
$2522
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$2561
$5757
🏠 One person rent
$483
$1593
🏘️ Family rent
$800
$2642
🍽️ Food expenses
$395
$656
🚐 Transport expenses
$101
$103
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$873
$4550
💸 GDP per capita
$14186
$84534
😃 Human freedom index
6.72
8.71
❤️ Life expectancy
75.1
78.4
👮 Corruption perceptions index
27
64
🌐 English speaking %
13%
95.9%
🎓 Higher education
89
100
😀 Quality of life
50
88
🏙️ Population
131M
340M

The average cost of living in Mexico ($1075) is 57% less expensive than in the United States ($2522). Mexico ranked 85th vs 9th for the United States in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 0.8 months in Mexico compared to 1.8 months in the United States. Ranked 92nd and 22nd best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

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Prices in Mexico vs the United States

We calculate prices for Mexico and the United States as a population-weighted mean of 144 and 2202 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

Mexico United States
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$11
$19.8
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$37
$77
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$9.23
$11.7
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.8
$6.39
 Cappuccino
$4
$5.44
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$1.53
$2.76
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$603
$1682
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$369
$1337
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1158
$2997
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$712
$2414
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$45.8
$130
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$70.3
$200
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$28.7
$68.9
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
11.39%
6.16%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$2442
$4871
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$1523
$3394
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$0.68
$2.34
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$33.7
$71.1
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$14
$18
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.4
$1.02
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.66
$1.11
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.34
$3.58
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.7
$4.47
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.72
$4.73
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$9.22
$13.2
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$8.31
$12.3
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.6
$17.3
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.82
$5.06
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.68
$1.82
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.11
$4.57
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.93
$4.83
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.9
$2.88
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.15
$2.97
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.82
$1.52
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.06
$2.75
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$12.9
$15
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.77
$2.45
🚬 Cigarette pack
$4.57
$11.1
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$6.17
$10.5
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.93
$6.66
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$2.01
$4.59
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.03
$2.24
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$41.6
$52.6
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$5.5
$14.7
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$36.2
$127
💇 Haircut, simple
$11.1
$22.1
👖 Brand Jeans
$58.1
$55.3
👟 Brand Sneakers
$99.4
$94.7
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$315
$1520
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$7651
$20019

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Mexico vs the United States

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Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Mexico

City Cost of living Population
Mexico City
$1475
9.21M
Veracruz
$972
8.06M
San Luis Potosi
$1124
2.82M
Ecatepec de Morelos
$832
1.93M
Tijuana
$1276
1.96M
Monterrey
$1463
1.14M
Zapopan
$1349
1.26M
Guadalajara
$1222
1.39M
Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl
$959
1.07M
Puebla
$1051
1.43M
Leon
$869
1.58M
Naucalpan
$977
872K
Aguascalientes
$969
934K
Chihuahua
$1053
926K
Ciudad Juarez
$1066
1.32M
Hermosillo
$1097
856K
Mexicali
$994
854K
Queretaro
$1255
795K
Guadalupe
$1056
692K
Saltillo
$1023
864K
Cancun
$1260
889K
Tlalnepantla
$1003
653K
Culiacan
$891
808K
Torreon
$912
690K
Merida
$1198
892K
Apodaca
$1174
523K
Tlaquepaque
$775
650K
Cuautitlan Izcalli
$878
531K
Morelia
$935
743K
Tultitlan de Mariano Escobedo
$940
521K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4202
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3420
3.9M
Chicago
$2851
2.75M
Houston
$2261
2.3M
San Diego
$3486
1.39M
Philadelphia
$2597
1.6M
San Francisco
$4110
874K
Phoenix
$2423
1.61M
Dallas
$2472
1.3M
San Jose
$3957
1.01M
San Antonio
$2071
1.43M
Washington
$3350
690K
Seattle
$3183
737K
Austin
$2475
962K
Boston
$3680
676K
Fort Worth
$2259
919K
Hempstead
$2710
793K
Indianapolis
$2405
888K
Charlotte
$2470
875K
Jacksonville
$2192
950K
Columbus
$2140
906K
Denver
$2848
716K
Portland
$2785
653K
Nashville
$2451
689K
Atlanta
$2628
499K
Oklahoma City
$1931
681K
Baltimore
$2224
586K
Las Vegas
$2294
642K
Sacramento
$2682
525K
Memphis
$1917
633K