Cost of living comparison
compared to
Mexico City vs. Cairns Cost of Living Summary
Mexico City is 29.2% cheaper than Cairns.
- Restaurants
-
pay 34.9% less in Mexico City
- Groceries
-
pay 15.2% less in Mexico City
- Transportation
-
pay 37.4% less in Mexico City
- Housing
-
pay 42.1% less in Mexico City
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 28.0% less in Mexico City
- Clothing
-
pay 17.7% less in Mexico City
Expenses including housing, transportation, restaurants, entertainment and sports, clothing, and groceries are lower in Mexico City.
Mexico City vs. Cairns Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Mexico City instead of Cairns, you would:
pay 34.9% less for restaurants
|
Cairns
|
Mexico City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$13.74
A$21.02
|
$10.86
MX$198.62
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.78
A$18.01
|
$8.82
MX$161.38
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.14
A$4.80
|
$1.73
MX$31.68
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.53
A$3.88
|
$1.30
MX$23.86
|
|
Cairns vs. Mexico City - Cost of restaurants
pay 15.2% less for groceries
|
Cairns
|
Mexico City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.62
A$4.00
|
$2.63
MX$48.03
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.03
A$6.17
|
$5.04
MX$92.21
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.81
A$10.42
|
$6.54
MX$119.62
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.01
A$6.13
|
$2.61
MX$47.69
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.76
A$7.29
|
$3.80
MX$69.61
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.48
A$2.27
|
$1.37
MX$25.05
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.03
A$1.58
|
$0.80
MX$14.63
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.24
A$1.89
|
$0.97
MX$17.81
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.84
A$4.34
|
$0.91
MX$16.58
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.01
A$1.54
|
$0.96
MX$17.54
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.09
A$1.66
|
$0.99
MX$18.19
|
|
Cairns vs. Mexico City - Cost of groceries
pay 37.4% less for transportation
|
Cairns
|
Mexico City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.29
A$6.56
|
$5.14
MX$93.99
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$65.42
A$100.07
|
$19.54
MX$357.52
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$22,896.08
A$35,025.35
|
$20,030.45
MX$366,457.13
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$32.71
A$50.04
|
$4.42
MX$80.95
|
|
Cairns vs. Mexico City - Cost of transportation
pay 42.1% less for housing
|
Cairns
|
Mexico City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$59.69
A$91.32
|
$30.93
MX$565.92
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,251.11
A$1,913.88
|
$1,079.15
MX$19,743.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,105.55
A$1,691.22
|
$677.25
MX$12,390.21
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$116.73
A$178.56
|
$37.36
MX$683.53
|
|
Cairns vs. Mexico City - Cost of housing
pay (unknown) more for childcare
|
Cairns
|
Mexico City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly | ?? |
$430.39
MX$7,873.93
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters | ?? |
$10,897.53
MX$199,370.32
|
Cairns vs. Mexico City - Cost of childcare
pay 28.0% less for entertainment and sports
|
Cairns
|
Mexico City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.54
A$10.01
|
$3.26
MX$59.59
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.09
A$6.25
|
$3.81
MX$69.77
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$29.44
A$45.03
|
$4.34
MX$79.45
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$38.38
A$58.71
|
$58.44
MX$1,069.25
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.08
A$20.01
|
$6.51
MX$119.17
|
|
Cairns vs. Mexico City - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 17.7% less for clothing
|
Cairns
|
Mexico City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$84.82
A$129.76
|
$60.95
MX$1,114.99
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$67.60
A$103.41
|
$48.08
MX$879.56
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$100.09
A$153.11
|
$105.72
MX$1,934.15
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$137.38
A$210.15
|
$110.91
MX$2,029.10
|
|
Cairns vs. Mexico City - Cost of clothing
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: December 2025
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