Cost of living comparison

compared to

United States vs. Puerto Vallarta Cost of Living Summary

United States is 2.0 times more expensive than Puerto Vallarta.

Restaurants: pay 43.8% more in United States
Groceries: pay 49.4% more in United States
Transportation: pay 87.5% more in United States
Housing: pay 2.0 times more in United States
Childcare: pay 4.5 times more in United States
Entertainment and Sports: pay 82.4% more in United States
Clothing: pay 4.9% more in United States

The cost of childcare, housing, transportation, entertainment and sports, groceries, and restaurants in United States are more expensive than in Puerto Vallarta. Notably, childcare, housing, and transportation are significantly more expensive in United States.

United States vs. Puerto Vallarta Cost Breakdown

If you lived in United States instead of Puerto Vallarta, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 43.8% more for restaurants

	Puerto Vallarta	United States
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$10.86 MX$198.62	$19.45	+79.1%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$9.17 MX$167.84	$11.12	+21.2%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.91 MX$34.88	$2.56	+34.1%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.43 MX$26.09	$2.00	+40.6%
Average			+43.8%

Puerto Vallarta vs. United States - Cost of restaurants

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pay 49.4% more for groceries

	Puerto Vallarta	United States
Bread 1 loaf	$3.59 MX$65.69	$3.56	-0.9%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.78 MX$105.70	$6.50	+12.5%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.24 MX$114.24	$3.97	-36.4%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.09 MX$38.31	$4.27	+103.9%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$4.85 MX$88.82	$5.41	+11.4%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.10 MX$20.16	$2.37	+115.0%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.65 MX$11.92	$0.78	+20.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.76 MX$13.85	$2.04	+168.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.01 MX$18.53	$2.21	+118.4%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.02 MX$18.75	$1.34	+31.2%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.40 MX$25.54	$1.38	-0.9%
Average			+49.4%

Puerto Vallarta vs. United States - Cost of groceries

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pay 87.5% more for transportation

	Puerto Vallarta	United States
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.02 MX$91.92	$3.41	-32.0%
Monthly public transit pass	$16.28 MX$297.93	$65.85	+304.4%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$15,199.26 MX$278,070.45	$32,336.38	+112.7%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$27.14 MX$496.55	$17.61	-35.1%
Average			+87.5%

Puerto Vallarta vs. United States - Cost of transportation

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pay 2.0 times more for housing

	Puerto Vallarta	United States
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$32.90 MX$601.82	$68.97	+109.7%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$990.97 MX$18,129.75	$1,664.59	+68.0%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$687.02 MX$12,568.98	$1,416.15	+106.1%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$68.93 MX$1,261.06	$150.19	+117.9%
Average			+100.4%

Puerto Vallarta vs. United States - Cost of housing

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pay 4.5 times more for childcare

	Puerto Vallarta	United States
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$280.46 MX$5,131.06	$1,387.27	+394.6%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$5,862.57 MX$107,255.75	$23,196.46	+295.7%
Average			+345.1%

Puerto Vallarta vs. United States - Cost of childcare

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pay 82.4% more for entertainment and sports

	Puerto Vallarta	United States
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$2.44 MX$44.69	$5.84	+138.9%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.80 MX$69.52	$5.15	+35.6%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$4.29 MX$78.46	$9.90	+130.8%
Monthly membership at local gym	$36.91 MX$675.31	$51.45	+39.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.14 MX$148.97	$13.64	+67.5%
Average			+82.4%

Puerto Vallarta vs. United States - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 4.9% more for clothing

	Puerto Vallarta	United States
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$54.28 MX$993.11	$51.08	-5.9%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$34.38 MX$628.97	$41.81	+21.6%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$101.78 MX$1,862.08	$87.56	-14.0%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$95.00 MX$1,737.94	$112.04	+17.9%
Average			+4.9%

Puerto Vallarta vs. United States - Cost of clothing

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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: December 2025

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