Cost of living comparison
compared to
Mexico vs. Puerto Vallarta Cost of Living Summary
Mexico is 6.4% cheaper than Puerto Vallarta.
- Restaurants
-
pay 17.5% less in Mexico
- Groceries
-
pay 7.8% less in Mexico
- Transportation
-
pay 26.4% more in Mexico
- Housing
-
pay 28.9% less in Mexico
- Childcare
-
pay 10.2% less in Mexico
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 7.3% less in Mexico
- Clothing
-
pay 0.5% more in Mexico
The cost of transportation and clothing in Mexico are more expensive than in Puerto Vallarta. Expenses including housing, restaurants, childcare, groceries, and entertainment and sports are lower in Mexico.
Mexico vs. Puerto Vallarta Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Mexico instead of Puerto Vallarta, you would:
pay 17.5% less for restaurants
|
Puerto Vallarta
|
Mexico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$10.86
MX$195.57
|
$10.13
MX$182.57
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.17
MX$165.26
|
$8.37
MX$150.74
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.91
MX$34.35
|
$1.38
MX$24.79
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.43
MX$25.69
|
$1.04
MX$18.78
|
|
Puerto Vallarta vs. Mexico - Cost of restaurants
pay 7.8% less for groceries
|
Puerto Vallarta
|
Mexico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.59
MX$64.68
|
$2.62
MX$47.15
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.78
MX$104.08
|
$4.26
MX$76.76
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.24
MX$112.48
|
$5.95
MX$107.16
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.09
MX$37.72
|
$2.45
MX$44.13
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.85
MX$87.45
|
$3.68
MX$66.21
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.10
MX$19.85
|
$1.27
MX$22.83
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.65
MX$11.74
|
$0.67
MX$12.12
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.76
MX$13.63
|
$0.93
MX$16.69
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.01
MX$18.25
|
$0.83
MX$14.86
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.02
MX$18.46
|
$0.90
MX$16.17
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.40
MX$25.15
|
$0.98
MX$17.63
|
|
Puerto Vallarta vs. Mexico - Cost of groceries
pay 26.4% more for transportation
|
Puerto Vallarta
|
Mexico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.02
MX$90.50
|
$5.00
MX$90.12
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$16.28
MX$293.35
|
$28.70
MX$517.01
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$15,199.26
MX$273,797.94
|
$23,996.60
MX$432,272.31
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$27.14
MX$488.92
|
$19.51
MX$351.48
|
|
Puerto Vallarta vs. Mexico - Cost of transportation
pay 28.9% less for housing
|
Puerto Vallarta
|
Mexico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$32.90
MX$592.58
|
$29.35
MX$528.75
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$990.97
MX$17,851.19
|
$587.67
MX$10,586.16
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$687.02
MX$12,375.86
|
$443.50
MX$7,989.08
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$68.93
MX$1,241.69
|
$49.22
MX$886.72
|
|
Puerto Vallarta vs. Mexico - Cost of housing
pay 10.2% less for childcare
|
Puerto Vallarta
|
Mexico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$280.46
MX$5,052.22
|
$236.91
MX$4,267.68
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$5,862.57
MX$105,607.78
|
$5,569.03
MX$100,319.97
|
|
Puerto Vallarta vs. Mexico - Cost of childcare
pay 7.3% less for entertainment and sports
|
Puerto Vallarta
|
Mexico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.44
MX$44.00
|
$2.44
MX$43.88
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.80
MX$68.45
|
$3.34
MX$60.15
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.29
MX$77.25
|
$4.42
MX$79.56
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$36.91
MX$664.94
|
$39.27
MX$707.36
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$8.14
MX$146.68
|
$5.43
MX$97.88
|
|
Puerto Vallarta vs. Mexico - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 0.5% more for clothing
|
Puerto Vallarta
|
Mexico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$54.28
MX$977.85
|
$53.04
MX$955.43
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$34.38
MX$619.30
|
$40.66
MX$732.36
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$101.78
MX$1,833.47
|
$95.33
MX$1,717.34
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$95.00
MX$1,711.24
|
$87.49
MX$1,576.01
|
|
Puerto Vallarta vs. Mexico - 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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