Moving to Mexico
Visas and residency, citizenship, tax, company and banking, cost of living and the places to live in Mexico, in one place.
Central America
Navid lived hereThinking about moving to Mexico?
In Mexico, I lived in Playa del Carmen, Tulum, Cancún and Cabo San Lucas.
Here's how long you can stay, the ways to live there for good, what you'd pay in tax and what everyday life costs, each figure from an official source.
In this guide, I'll show you:
- How long you can stay, by passport
- The visas and residency routes that let you live there
- How long citizenship takes
- How tax works, with the rates
- What it costs, and the internet and safety
- The best places to live
- The basics: capital, currency and languages
Pick your passport at the top of the page, and the stay rule shows for you.
TL;DRKey takeaways
Mexico at a glance
How long can you stay in Mexico?
It depends on the passport you hold.
Here's the rule for the most common ones:
US passport- Rule
- Visa-free
- Stay
- 180 days
UK passport- Rule
- Visa-free
- Stay
- 180 days
EU passport (German)- Rule
- Visa-free
- Stay
- 180 days
Canadian passport- Rule
- Visa-free
- Stay
- 180 days
Australian passport- Rule
- Visa-free
- Stay
- 180 days
Indian passport- Rule
- Visa needed
- Stay
- –
For any other passport, pick yours at the top, or see every country on the visa-free countries map.
Visas and residency in Mexico
These routes don't need a local job either:
- Temporary resident visa (economic solvency) (passive income visa) – $4,630 a month, and it can lead to permanent residency
See the investor routes side by side in the golden visa finder, and the ones for retirees in the retirement visa finder.
Citizenship in Mexico
Naturalization takes about 5 years of residence.
Dual citizenship is allowed in some cases.
Work out your own timeline with the second passport calculator.
Tax in Mexico
Mexico taxes its tax residents on their income from anywhere.
See where it sits among every country on the territorial tax map.
The main rates:
- Lowest income tax band – 2%
- Top income tax rate – 35%
- Corporate tax – 30%
- VAT or sales tax – 16%
Where you're a tax resident usually comes down to days.
Count yours with the 183-day rule calculator.
Company and banking
Compare the banks and cards that work for people abroad in the bank account finder.
Move money for less with the money transfer comparison.
Setting up a company here?
See the fees and yearly costs in company formation compared.
Many people who live abroad run a US LLC instead; check yours with the US LLC for non-residents checker.
Cost of living in Mexico
Everyday prices in Mexico are about 54% of US prices.
That's the World Bank's price level for 2025: its purchasing power conversion factor divided by the exchange rate.
It's cheaper than the US, though rent in the big cities can close the gap.
A night's stay in a whole place, by Inside Airbnb's median:
- Mexico City – $116
Convert what things cost with the currency converter.
Is Mexico safe?
The US State Department rates Mexico Level 2 ("Exercise increased caution", updated 2026-05-29), the same level it gives France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Spain. Levels 1 and 2 are both everyday travel; the US only asks you to reconsider a trip at Level 3. Some advisories are stricter for parts of a country, so read the full advisory before you go.
See every country's level on the travel advisory map.
Internet in Mexico
In M-Lab's open speed tests across Mexico over the last 12 months, half came in above 39 Mbps download.
The fastest quarter of lines came in above 102 Mbps, closer to a good fiber connection (19,864,937 tests).
By place:
- Mexico City – 33 Mbps typical
- Playa del Carmen – 42 Mbps typical
- Tulum – 41 Mbps typical
- Cancún – 23 Mbps typical
- Cabo San Lucas – 52 Mbps typical
- Oaxaca – 29 Mbps typical
- Puerto Escondido – 20 Mbps typical
- Puerto Vallarta – 54 Mbps typical
- Guadalajara – 53 Mbps typical
- Mérida – 40 Mbps typical
- San Miguel de Allende – 37 Mbps typical
- Sayulita – 44 Mbps typical
Test your own line when you arrive with my internet speed test.
The best places to live in Mexico
- Mexico City
- Playa del Carmen – I lived here
- Tulum – I lived here
- Cancún – I lived here
- Cabo San Lucas – I lived here
- Oaxaca
- Puerto Escondido
- Puerto Vallarta
- Guadalajara
- Mérida
- San Miguel de Allende
- Sayulita
Compare them with places everywhere in digital nomad locations.
Mexico: the basics
| What | Mexico |
|---|---|
| Capital | Mexico City |
| Currency | Mexican peso (MXN) |
| Languages | Spanish |
| Population | about 126.2 million |
From GeoNames' country data (CC BY 4.0).
More tools for Mexico
- Passport index and compare passports
- Time zone overlap calculator for calls with home
- eSIM finder for data when you land
- Card fees abroad calculator before you spend
Mexico FAQs
Visa-free, for 180 days.
Pick another passport at the top of the page to see its rule.
It depends on your passport.
Pick yours at the top of the page to see the days, and whether you need a visa first.
Not that I've found in official sources as of 2026-09-29.
The digital nomad visa finder lists every country that has one.
Yes, with Temporary resident visa (economic solvency).
Each asks for a steady income; the section above lists the amounts.
About 5 years of residence.
In some cases.
Check the rules for your situation and your own country's.
Mexico taxes its tax residents on their income from anywhere.
Check the details with a tax adviser before you move.
Everyday prices are about 54% of US prices, by the World Bank's price level for 2025.
Rent in the biggest cities can be higher than that suggests.
The US State Department rates it Level 2.
Levels 1 and 2 are everyday travel; read the full advisory for any regions it warns about.
Half of M-Lab's tests there came in above 39 Mbps download over the last 12 months.
The fastest quarter of lines passed 102 Mbps.
The places I cover there are Mexico City, Playa del Carmen, Tulum, Cancún, Cabo San Lucas, Oaxaca, Puerto Escondido, Puerto Vallarta, Guadalajara, Mérida, San Miguel de Allende and Sayulita.
Each has its own guide with the weather by month, internet and costs.
The Mexican peso (MXN).
The main language is Spanish.
Navid Moazzez
AI business strategist & AI OS builder
Navid Moazzez helps creators and founders master AI and build their own AI Operating System (AI OS) to automate their business and life.
Navid.me is reader-supported. When you buy through links on this site, I may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more.
Places to live in Mexico
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