Cost of living comparison
compared to
Mexico vs. South Africa Cost of Living Summary
Mexico is 24.9% more expensive than South Africa overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 33.9% more in Mexico
- Groceries
-
pay 48.2% more in Mexico
- Transportation
-
pay 18.5% more in Mexico
- Housing
-
pay 0.4% less in Mexico
- Childcare
-
pay 38.6% more in Mexico
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 26.6% more in Mexico
- Clothing
-
pay 9.2% more in Mexico
The cost of groceries, childcare, restaurants, entertainment and sports, transportation, and clothing in Mexico are more expensive than in South Africa.
Mexico vs. South Africa Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Mexico instead of South Africa, you would:
pay 33.9% more for restaurants
|
South Africa
|
Mexico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$9.33
ZAR159.73
|
$10.13
MX$185.42
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$5.11
ZAR87.49
|
$8.37
MX$153.09
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.03
ZAR17.65
|
$1.38
MX$25.18
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.80
ZAR13.74
|
$1.04
MX$19.08
|
|
South Africa vs. Mexico - Cost of restaurants
pay 48.2% more for groceries
|
South Africa
|
Mexico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.00
ZAR17.16
|
$2.62
MX$47.88
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$3.88
ZAR66.47
|
$4.26
MX$77.96
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.37
ZAR74.79
|
$5.95
MX$108.83
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.33
ZAR39.93
|
$2.45
MX$44.82
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.13
ZAR36.52
|
$3.68
MX$67.25
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.73
ZAR12.46
|
$1.27
MX$23.18
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.65
ZAR11.16
|
$0.67
MX$12.31
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.68
ZAR11.70
|
$0.93
MX$16.95
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.71
ZAR12.14
|
$0.83
MX$15.10
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.59
ZAR10.02
|
$0.90
MX$16.43
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.60
ZAR10.27
|
$0.98
MX$17.91
|
|
South Africa vs. Mexico - Cost of groceries
pay 18.5% more for transportation
|
South Africa
|
Mexico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.92
ZAR84.25
|
$5.00
MX$91.52
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$56.18
ZAR961.29
|
$28.70
MX$525.08
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$21,394.82
ZAR366,106.47
|
$23,996.60
MX$439,017.76
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$9.34
ZAR159.79
|
$19.51
MX$356.97
|
|
South Africa vs. Mexico - Cost of transportation
pay 0.4% less for housing
|
South Africa
|
Mexico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$39.36
ZAR673.48
|
$29.35
MX$537.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$404.16
ZAR6,915.94
|
$587.67
MX$10,751.35
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$361.59
ZAR6,187.51
|
$443.50
MX$8,113.74
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$88.13
ZAR1,508.04
|
$49.22
MX$900.56
|
|
South Africa vs. Mexico - Cost of housing
pay 38.6% more for childcare
|
South Africa
|
Mexico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$173.48
ZAR2,968.50
|
$236.91
MX$4,334.27
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$3,962.11
ZAR67,799.29
|
$5,569.03
MX$101,885.42
|
|
South Africa vs. Mexico - Cost of childcare
pay 26.6% more for entertainment and sports
|
South Africa
|
Mexico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.18
ZAR37.27
|
$2.44
MX$44.57
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.05
ZAR35.06
|
$3.34
MX$61.09
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$2.96
ZAR50.72
|
$4.42
MX$80.80
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$30.26
ZAR517.83
|
$39.27
MX$718.39
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$6.85
ZAR117.19
|
$5.43
MX$99.41
|
|
South Africa vs. Mexico - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 9.2% more for clothing
|
South Africa
|
Mexico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$50.74
ZAR868.31
|
$53.04
MX$970.34
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$32.75
ZAR560.46
|
$40.66
MX$743.79
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$94.19
ZAR1,611.79
|
$95.33
MX$1,744.14
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$81.80
ZAR1,399.67
|
$87.49
MX$1,600.60
|
|
South Africa 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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