Cost of living comparison

 Mexico City, Mexico
compared to
 Costa Rica
Costa Rica vs. Mexico City Cost of Living Summary

Costa Rica is 50.9% more expensive than Mexico City.

Restaurants
pay 49.9% more in Costa Rica
Groceries
pay 24.3% more in Costa Rica
Transportation
pay 2.6 times more in Costa Rica
Housing
pay 53.0% more in Costa Rica
Childcare
pay 33.2% more in Costa Rica
Entertainment and Sports
pay 24.6% more in Costa Rica
Clothing
pay 12.6% more in Costa Rica

The cost of transportation, housing, restaurants, childcare, entertainment and sports, and groceries in Costa Rica are more expensive than in Mexico City. Notably, transportation is significantly more expensive in Costa Rica.

Costa Rica vs. Mexico City Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Costa Rica instead of Mexico City, you would:

pay 49.9% more for restaurants

 
Mexico City
Costa Rica
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $9.93
MX$186.17
$9.75
CRC4,917.04
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$7.45
MX$139.63
$9.08
CRC4,581.11
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $1.08
MX$20.24
$2.01
CRC1,014.24

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pay 24.3% more for groceries

 
Mexico City
Costa Rica
Bread
1 loaf
$2.45
MX$45.98
$2.53
CRC1,277.35
Local cheese (8 oz) $4.87
MX$91.26
$3.76
CRC1,898.10
Milk (1 gallon) $5.51
MX$103.27
$6.98
CRC3,518.97

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pay 2.6 times more for transportation

 
Mexico City
Costa Rica
Gasoline (1 gallon) $4.64
MX$86.95
$5.63
CRC2,838.54
Monthly public transit pass $17.87
MX$335.11
$49.00
CRC24,717.36
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $18,615.02
MX$349,070.68
$35,063.37
CRC17,687,604.54

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pay 53.0% more for housing

 
Mexico City
Costa Rica
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$24.38
MX$457.16
$48.50
CRC24,465.89
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $893.52
MX$16,755.39
$778.04
CRC392,478.59
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $544.24
MX$10,205.56
$547.50
CRC276,186.27

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pay 33.2% more for childcare

 
Mexico City
Costa Rica
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $381.33
MX$7,150.66
$519.07
CRC261,841.96
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $8,426.99
MX$158,023.74
$10,987.74
CRC5,542,731.53

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pay 24.6% more for entertainment and sports

 
Mexico City
Costa Rica
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $2.73
MX$51.20
$2.73
CRC1,375.71
Cappuccino in mid-range area $3.01
MX$56.37
$3.65
CRC1,843.37
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$3.92
MX$73.54
$4.58
CRC2,311.53

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pay 12.6% more for clothing

 
Mexico City
Costa Rica
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$56.36
MX$1,056.78
$65.32
CRC32,952.30
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$41.06
MX$769.94
$44.54
CRC22,468.24
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$91.99
MX$1,725.05
$110.39
CRC55,683.62

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: July 2025
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