How expensive is Mexico? Here is a look at our grocery costs in Guadalajara, Mexico. We don’t drive or take taxis, so we mostly shop at nearby grocery stores where we can conveniently walk. We did most of our shopping at Soriana, a chain grocery store in central Mexico. At local street markets and smaller groceries you can also shop and find items at lower costs.
Grocery Costs in Mexico
In Mexico, we mostly shop at larger grocery stores for the convenience. The prices are still great compared to what we’re used to paying in the US. However, if you buy imported items, expect to pay about the same or even higher prices. The Ramen noodles bought at the Soriana grocery were similarly priced to what we would pay in the US.
Also, if you’re shopping at a larger grocery store in Mexico, you may see older folks or kids at the register bagging your groceries. These individuals work for tips, so if you buy enough groceries to appreciate the bagging service, then be sure to have cash for a tip.
CG and I are traveling long term in Mexico, but we only carry the things we need. We’ve traveled now for over a year each carrying a single Osprey Porter 30 Travel Backpack. Nothing makes travel more enjoyable than traveling light. You can find more info about our travel packs and the current prices for these packs on Amazon.
Learning Spanish Numbers will make Shopping More Fun
Shopping in Mexico is more enjoyable if you are familiar with Spanish numbers. If you don’t see a price, you can ask the price of an item by saying “Cuanto cuesta?” Of course, whatever they answer may not mean anything if you don’t know numbers in Spanish. I talk a lot about learning numbers in Spanish in the blogs I write, because I believe this single effort has made travel in Spanish speaking countries much easier, and certainly less stressful.
My Spanish is poor, but I try to study a bit each day. I’m getting better, but it’s a slow process, and I know it will be a long while before I am remotely conversant. That being said, just a little Spanish language study makes life much easier here. And while I can’t speak Spanish very well, I am able to understand more of the language when it is spoken to me, which is in itself a huge help.
While we frequent larger grocery stores, we also shop at local markets and smaller groceries, but when we do we generally buy only a handful of items, mostly fruits and veggies. And in smaller shops and stalls, items are often not priced, so we have to ask “cuanto cuesta?”
Pat Attention or Pay More …Don’t Get Ripped off
Recently I was shopping at an open air market where I selected a papaya, avocado, and a small stalk of broccoli. The fella running the vegetable stand appeared to be a walnut that had transformed itself into a person, but with fewer teeth. He weighed the papaya, or more accurately banged the side of a rusty scale with the papaya, then bagged my items.
“Cuanto cuesta?” I asked.
Walnut Man reached out a leathery hand and smiled with the teeth he had and said, “Cuarenta tres.”
My eyes rolled up into my head looking for the translation, and I found it. “Cuarenta y tres,” I said aloud. 43 Pesos. That’s about $2.50 USD, which sounded kinda high, but I’m a gringo so I don’t really know, but the price wasn’t too crazy.
I reached into my wallet and gave him a 100 peso note.
Walnut man turned to a small stack of scattered bills and loose change on a table and counted out 7 pesos and grabbed a 50 peso note. He held the 50 peso note at his side and reached out the 7 pesos and put them into my hand, smiling.
Hmmmm…that was interesting.
I looked at the five coins in my hand that added up to 7 pesos. Then I looked at the fifty-peso note poking out of Walnut Man’s hand, the note still held casually at his side.
“Cuarenta y tres?” I said, but with a question mark.
He smiled a little bigger, and that’s all.
I held up 4 fingers and then 3 fingers and said, “Cuarenta y tres? Forty-three.”
He waited a beat, then another beat, then reached the fifty-peso note out to me and I put it in my wallet. He was still smiling. I said “Hasta luego,” although I knew I would not return to that vegetable stall again.
After almost two months in Mexico, there have only been two instances where I recognized that I was being taken advantage of because I’m “a gringo with little Spanish”. Neither instance involved a lot of money, and perhaps there are other instances of which I’m not even aware.
In almost every interaction I’ve had with locals in Mexico, individuals are extraordinarily friendly and helpful and have made my experience in this country simply wonderful. I know this because even a little understanding of Spanish makes it very clear.
But make the effort to learn numbers in Spanish and you will feel much more confident making money transactions, and you’ll enjoy them more.
One of the best reasons to come to Mexico is the incredible food. Check out this video and blog featuring tips about dining out in restaurants in Mexico. I hope this glimpse into our grocery costs in Mexico was a help to your future travel plans. Happy Trails!
We appreciate you watching our videos…Thanks!
We include affiliate links for products on our website, so if you make a purchase after clicking on our links, we may earn a commission which helps us produce more videos and drink more coffee :^)
We are participants in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, which is an affiliate advertising program that provides a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites, so we can make more videos.