How Much It Cost To Live In Mexico City

This is a breakdown of my personal expenses. It may not reflect everyone

There's a group of people who move to Latin America in order to save money and live as cheaply as possible. You may picture backpackers and nomads living in hostels or shared Airbnbs. Then, there is another group that moves to take advantage of the exchange rate and live a much higher quality of life, residing in more expensive neighborhoods and enjoying more expensive aspects of life. I'll let you decide which group I belong to by the end of this article. Here's a breakdown of my monthly expenses and what you can expect if you want to make the move.

Rent: $1700

Food: $300

Entertainment: $600

Bills: $115

Education: $250*

US Expenses: $160

Total: $3,125

Rent:

You're probably thinking, "1700? I thought Mexico was cheap!" Well, I made the choice to live in a prime area of the city. I'm living 15 floors off the ground in a 2000 sq ft, fully furnished 3 bedroom, 2 bath apartment with a balcony and a view of the city. The building includes security staff, maintenance, and parking. If I chose to live in a one-bedroom or in a different area, I could easily shave off 5-700 from my rent. Fortunately, I am also paying the local price and not an inflated gringo price because I found my apartment through a Mexican website and negotiated the price..

Food:

Grocery-wise, I spend about $300 a month on food. I figured if I'm going to eat, I should eat well. I buy lots of expensive cuts of meat, steaks, and fixings. I somehow go through a carton of eggs a week. To me, this feels expensive. However, if I compared my grocery budget to the same items in the states, it would be closer to $600 a month.

Entertainment:

This number fluctuates. I'm lumping food deliveries, going out to eat, nightlife expenses, Ubers, and trips that I have taken. I eat out pretty often. I'd say at least one meal a day is outside the house, whether it's breakfast, lunch, or dinner. I also took a trip to both Six Flags and Otomi Central this month, both of which were pretty inexpensive though.

Transportation:

Ubers average about $3-4 each way.

Trips:

A typical day trip might cost $50-70 per day.

Dates and Nightlife:

I go on a lot of dates, but a day can range anywhere from $15 for a cheap taco and margarita date to $50-75 for a more expensive dinner with cocktails.

Eating out:

This might average $20 per meal.

Delivery:

Delivery is really the same price as eating out.

*I tend to eat at more expensive places. If you stick to a street food or cheaper diet, you could easily get away with spending $5-10 per meal. When you're hitting street vendors, you could find tacos anywhere from 30-50 cents each.

Bills:

Utilities:

• Gas: $4-8

• Water: $12

• Electric: $12

Cell phone:

I pay $25 a month for a nearly unlimited plan. I could spend less than that, but I admit to being a power user.

Internet/TV:

I pay $15 a month for a high-speed cable/internet/phone package. I have answered the phone and used the cable maybe three times in a year and a half, but the package was cheaper. This is a standard 60MBps Connection.

House Cleaner:

I pay $70. The house cleaner typically comes every other week

Education:

I pay $250 for three hours of Spanish lessons per week with a tutor. I also enrolled in an intensive Spanish course for the next six weeks, which will cost $550 for 15 hours of lessons per week.

US Expenses:

I still manage storage and insurance back in the States, which comes out to about $160.
My house in the States is rented out and generates about $800 a month in profit (thanks to the great market). This rental income covers a lot of my expenses, while my W2 income and money from my wifi business cover everything else. As a result, I save close to 80 percent of my income while living at least 2x the quality of life. Additionally, there are tax breaks such as the Foreign Income and Housing Exclusions, which add even more value to the equation.