Top 6 Places to Live in Mexico and Why

If you’re an American looking to live in Mexico, we’ve got some advice for how to pick the best place in Mexico to live or to retire that is the best for your personality. Our advice includes how much it costs to live in Mexico, the neighborhoods we loved the most in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico City, the Yucatán  (including Mérida , Cancún, Cozumel, and Akumal), Ajijic/Lake Chapala, San Miguel de Allende and Guanajuato, the vibe, and how many expats live nearby. We focus on 2-bedroom rentals generally in the Centro districts of the cities we mention, although there are a few exceptions.

typical scene in mexico's centros
Regardless of which town you pick, Mexico is full of color.

Living in Puerto Vallarta

Puerto Vallarta is a sun-loving coastal town with quick access from the US. Many US and Canadian ex-pats live there among the working class of Mexico. It’s a very pretty town with a romantic zone downtown overflowing with color and charm. The Marina boasts nice yachts and condos, several other neighborhoods offer comfortable homes within walking distance to everything, and even exquisite homes overlook the ocean in exclusive neighborhoods.

Puerto Vallarta has many choices for how and where to live. Let’s focus, though, on where we’d live if we decided to live in Puerto Vallarta.

infinity pool in puerto vallarta
Puerto Vallarta has many options for places to enjoy the sunset over the Pacific.

Puerto Vallarta Neighborhood: We like the Cinco de Diciembre neighborhood. Just north of downtown and south of the Marina, its central location puts you far enough away from the tourist zones, yet close enough to less touristy beaches, good grocery stores, and plenty of locals-oriented lifestyle options. Many of the doctors and hospitals are nearby, and the Costco is a short taxi ride away. You can live in Cinco de Diciembre without a car, relying on feet, bus, and taxis to get around.

Puerto Vallarta Expats: There are many expats who are highly engaged in the life of Puerto Vallarta. Several large expat volunteer organizations exist, helping pets, afterschool programs, language, and the arts. Facebook has over a dozen Puerto Vallarta Expat groups. Many of the non-Mexicans who live in Puerto Vallarta live part-time and transit between the United States/Canada and Mexico.

Puerto Vallarta Vibe: We love PV because it’s easy to get to know the locals with a little bit of Spanish. We frequently went to the local soccer games at the stadium and made friends. We found yoga classes, salsa classes, cooking classes, and even volunteer opportunities through the Mexican community, not having to rely on expats to create our social life.

Speak Spanish: Speaking Spanish always makes the experience better, but you can get by with English in Puerto Vallarta fairly easily.

Cost of a 2-bedroom apartment in 5 de Diciembre: $1100-$1500 (low/high season monthly through an agent)

More info about Puerto Vallarta: Read this blog post. Watch this video.

Living in Mexico City

Mexico City is the largest Spanish-speaking city in the world at a population of over 21 million. The important thing to understand about this metropolis is it’s really just a bunch of pueblos all smushed together. Every tiny neighborhood has its own vibe and everything you need in it. Yet with over 200 museums, you’ll want to enjoy all that Mexico City has to offer. Its very efficient and super cheap metro (about $.20 a ride) can whisk you anywhere you want to go. No car required.

an image representing mexico city
You must know the history of how Mexico City came to be in order to live there 🙂

Mexico City Neighborhood: Many Americans land in one of the expat neighborhoods near Condesa, including Roma Norte and Roma Sur. If you want a heavily populated area of English speakers, these neighborhoods are for you. We preferred a more authentic way to live in Mexico City and favored Coyoacán.

Coyoacán is most famous for housing the home of Diego and Fridha Kahlo and their Casa Azul. But its lively park and market attract not only local Mexicans but Mexicans as tourists as well. Wonderful Mexican food floods the area, and local entertainers attract music lovers every day in the square. We enjoyed spending our afternoons and evenings in the square, meeting families enjoying the evening out in the wonderful cool temperatures after the sun set.

Mexico City Expats: One of the biggest cities in the northern hemisphere attracts people from all over the world. The English-speaking expat population is giant; there are over 50 expat groups on Facebook broken out by neighborhood, country, language, and even gender. If you want to meet other nomads and expats in Mexico City, you’ll have no problem finding them.

Mexico City Vibe: Although Mexico City is big, it’s just a bunch of small towns all co-existing. People love their little neighborhoods and are very proud of where they live. Everyone knows everyone, yet you can still get yourself lost on the metro or within the giant Chapultapec Park. Gushing with art and music, you can pick a different museum every day for almost a year and never repeat your trip. If you’re a fine arts lover, Mexico City will love you back.

Speak Spanish: Get out of the expat neighborhoods of Roma Norte, etc, and you’ll need your Spanish. The tourist areas have English speakers, but once you leave these areas, Spanish is what you’ll need. Doctors speak English through Mexico City.

Cost of 2-bedroom apartment in Coyoacán: $1000-$1500 (low/high season monthly through an agent)

More about Mexico City: Read this blog post. Watch this video.

Living in Oaxaca

Oaxaca might be my favorite location in Mexico. The mountains invite the best hikes, the locals are warm and friendly, and the food is the best in Mexico. During the holidays such as Dia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) and the annual Guelaguetza, Oaxaca shines, but Mexicans and other tourists flock to Oaxaca year round. I’ve had nothing but positive experiences getting to know the local Zapatecans and their ecotourism network in the Sierra Norte mountains. If you want a vibrant community steeped in culture where the majordomo makes weekly appearances, Oaxaca is for you.

There’s always a fiesta going on in Oaxaca.

Oaxaca Neighborhood: We love the Reforma neighborhood. Close enough to the square with good coffee shops and groceries, but far enough away to avoid some of the tourist noise and traffic.

Oaxaca Expats: There are only about 6-7 expats groups on Facebook. Although many Americans and Canadians visit Oaxaca for vacation or for longer stays, there’s not nearly as many expats here as San Miguel or Ajijic. The expats blend in here.

Oaxaca City Vibe: Slow down, meet some people. Oaxaca is big on family and community, so the more you can relax into that beat, the better. Even if you’re a solo traveler, Oaxaca will embrace you if you slow down. Oaxaca’s vibe is like its homegrown mole sauce–simmer slowly, add lots of flavor, taste it one bite at a time.

Speak Spanish: Although the touristy areas are getting more English-proficient, Spanish goes a long way here, even if your vocabulary is only 10 words.

Cost of 2-bedroom apartment in Reforma: $800-$1200 (low/high season monthly through an agent)

More about Oaxaca: Read this blog post. Watch this video.

Living in Cancun/Akumal/Yucatán Peninsula

Many towns make up the Mexican Yucatán including Mérida, Cancún, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Akumal and Tulum. The new Maya train attempts to connect them, and as the train traffic grows, I’m sure these towns will change with it. I’ll be right up front about the Yucatán in general and Cancún/Cozumel specifically. I don’t like them. Mérida might be the saving grace of the area, as it’s considered the safest town in Mexico. But the heat, rising cost of living, and humidity keep me away.

beach scene of cancun
Whether Cancún as seen here, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, or Akumal, the scene is similar up and down the coast.

As for Cancún, the taxi mafia alone ($50 for a 5-minute ride to the airport) is outrageous, and everywhere a foreigner turns, a scam is waiting to unfold. I have friends that live semi-permanently in Cozumel and love it, as do other friends in Playa del Carmen. If I had to stay in the Yucatán, I’d pick Akumal. It’s not as touristy. If you want to live in a true Mexican vacation destination, any of these towns fits the bill.

Yucatán Neighborhood: While in the Yucatán, we stayed in Akumal. All along the beach from Cancún to Tulum, you can find giant high rises and planned subdivisions, often containing golf courses. There are many timeshares-turned-condos in these locations. You’ll need a car to even leave the neighborhood. If you want a truly authentic experience, live in the downtown area of the old town of Akumal itself, rather than its surroundings.

Yucatán Expats: How high can you count? Up and down the coast and all across the peninsula, expats have arrived. Many live in the apartments and condos overlooking the water, or they drop into their timeshares for their designated two weeks of time. Lots of them rent cars or drive down from the US. You can find easily 50 expat groups across the Yucatan’s geography helping each other navigate the Mexican residency requirements and where to find the local Costco.

Yucatán Vibe: Even though many expats live full-time in this area, the vibe is very transitional and the many tourists make it feel very vacation-oriented. Police patrol the beach on ATVs, and their appearance and guns are prevalent.

Speak Spanish: No need to speak much Spanish. You can get by with English almost everywhere, but of course, speaking Spanish always helps.

Cost of a 2-bedroom apartment in Akumal: $900-1100 (low/high season monthly through an agent)

More about the Yucatán: Read this blog post. Watch this video.

Living in Ajijic/Lake Chapala (Guadajalara)

Nestled just 30 minutes away from the Guadalajara airport is Lake Chapala. Mexico’s second largest freshwater lake fronts several villages including the towns of Lake Chapala and Ajijic. Both harken back to their ranching roots when Mexicans built rancheros along the water and had horses and farms. You’ll see across the lake many white tents where locals grow the strawberries and blueberries of Mexico. On weekends, the caballeros ride their horses into town to socialize with their large extended families. Sadly, all of that agricultural runoff has polluted the lake, and it’s not swimmable. Some boating is allowed.

View of Lake Chapala from the mountains above Ajijic
View of Lake Chapala from the mountains above Ajijic.

Ajijic Neighborhoods: We stayed in Ajijic, but the next time we go, we’ll stay in Lake Chapala. There are essentially three areas to live in Ajijic; on/near the lake, Centro, or across the highway. If you live across the highway, you’ll probably have a car, but it is walkable to downtown. We preferred Centro due to its cobblestone streets, great street art, walkability, access to the lake, parks, and markets.

Lake Chapala/Ajijic Expats: Between these two locations, retired Mexicans and Mexican tourists tend to go to Lake Chapala, and retired Americans and Canadians tend to end up in Ajijic. There is a very active, engaged, and established expat community called the Lake Chapala Society which volunteers, offers Spanish language and culture classes, sponsors skin checks with dermatologists, has social outings, and even participates in beautification projects and animal neutering. The Society is a great place to get introduced to Ajijic. There are just a handful of expat groups on Facebook.

Ajijic Vibe: With the large number of retirees in the area, you’ll see lots of older people who have permanently moved to Ajijic as their final homes. (In contrast, Lake Chapala seems much younger with fewer Americans.) Retiree days fill with socializing and eating, and Ajijic can accommodate them with its many delicious restaurants. The Society has a large garden where you’ll find expats spending their time. The Mexicans are friendly, but there’s not much of a working class in Ajijic beyond those working within the retiree community. You’ll find more working class members in Lake Chapala and beyond.

Speak Spanish: There is lots of English all over Ajijic. When I spoke Spanish, the locals would often respond in English. The Society’s most popular classes are Spanish and the Spanish Culture classes.

2-bedroom apartment in Ajijic (Centro): $700-1000 (low/high season monthly through an agent)

More information about Ajijic: Read this blog post. Watch this video.

Living in San Miguel de Allende vs Living in Guanajuato

I list these two towns together to show the stark difference between them, as people will often look at both of these towns at the same time to make a decision about where to live. Both are vibrant, inviting, and interesting, but if San Miguel de Allende is Barbie, Guanajuato is Raggedy Ann. You’ll love them both, but for very different reasons.

a vibrant town of guanajuato
The mining culture still appears in the tunnels under Guanajuato

San Miguel de Allende might be an expat’s dream. Beautiful, charming, full of things to do, a great library, an engaged expat community, and clean, SMdA’s flash has a tone of warmth underneath. Prices are high, though, and it’s a place where people like to see and be seen. The arts community spins a thread of connection among everyone; you can often find boutiques holding wine tastings and community members inviting anyone to their homes to show off their taste. Everything is properly done at the proper time.

Guanajuato, on the other hand, has its art scene too. Two beautiful theatres set the tone for entertainment and nights out. The giant university brings in woman’s rights, voting reforms, and programming to stimulate locals and foreigners alike. Locals are glad you’re here, and they happily speak Spanish while patiently waiting for you to conjugate verbs correctly. The hilly (much more hilly than SMdA) streets will keep your lungs working and your calves burning.

San Miguel de Allende and Guanajuato Neighborhoods: As usual, we like to be as close to the centro as possible, eliminating the need for a car. In SMdA, you’ll be near the gorgeous pink La Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel and all of the activity it brings to the square. In Guanajuato, the neighborhood we liked best is also Centro, where you’ll have access to the parks downtown and the lovely teatros, Cervantes and Juarez.

San Miguel de Allende vs Guanajuato Expats: SMdA has a giant, thriving, engaged expat community. They even sponsor a daily walk where the proceeds go to local charities. It runs classes in the local library, provides many intra- and intercultural events, and makes a large footprint on the community. There are at least 30 different expat groups in SMdA.

Guanajuato’s expats are more subtle, embracing each other around making life easier in Mexico. There are just a handful of Guanajuato-specific expat groups. The University offers many events and social activities for the community at large.

San Miguel de Allende and Guanajuato Vibes: SMdA is a bougie vibe generated from many expats who are looking for a nicer life than what they can afford in the US. Guanajuato has a similar population of expats, but it’s not as flashy and they more go about living their lives than sharing them.

2 bedroom apartment in San Miguel de Allende and Guanajauto: SMdA $1500-2000 (low/high monthly through an agent.) Guanajuato $700-1000 (low/high monthly through an agent.)

Speak Spanish: You can get around SMdA without knowing a word of Spanish, but in Guanajuato, you’ll need more than just your typical 10 words of Spanish.

More about San Miguel de Allende and Guanajuato: Read these blog posts (SMdA, Guanajuato). Watch this video.

Regardless of which city you choose to live in Mexico, it’s a vibrant country always thriving to the color and beat of Mexico’s culture. From Puerto Vallarta’s lovely Pacific sunsets to Akumal’s sun-drenched tourist spots. you can find the area you’re looking to retire in Mexico. Enjoy!