City comparison
Cost of living in Málaga vs Mexico City
One person needs about €1,380 a month in Málaga and €1,284 in Mexico City, rent included — Mexico City is 7% cheaper overall.
Salary you'd need to keep the same lifestyle
Enter your current net monthly pay. We scale it by the full cost basket — rent, groceries, transport, utilities, eating out and internet.
To live in Mexico City the way you live in Málaga on €3,000, you need
€2,791/ month net
7% less than today (-€209)
- Málaga today
- Basket €1,380 · left over €1,620 (54%)
- Mexico City at the matched salary
- Basket €1,284 · left over €1,507 (54%)
Local pay context: average tech net pay covers the basket 148% over in Mexico City (adequate) vs 152% in Málaga. Purchasing power index · How we calculate this
🇪🇸 Málaga
The current favourite of remote workers: 300 sunny days, fast fibre, and Barcelona living for 40% less.
Monthly budget: €1,380
Sources: INE Spain + Eurostat, HICP & provincial rent index (2025) · 286 community reports
🇲🇽 Mexico City
Great food, US time zones, and rents rising quickly in Roma and Condesa.
Monthly budget: €1,284
Sources: Eurostat, Harmonised price indices (2025) · 0 community reports
Should you move to Málaga or Mexico City?
On salary, Málaga pays more for tech roles (€2,100 versus €1,900 a month), so the money left over after costs is €720 in Málaga at the top end.
Rent drives most of the gap: €850 in Málaga against €850 in Mexico City. Groceries, transport and utilities move far less between the two.
For remote workers, the nomad index scores Málaga at 88 and Mexico City at 78 — see the full nomad index and our data methodology.