Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Acapulco and Monterrey

For one person, living is cheaper in Acapulco: $859 a month against $1,608 in Monterrey, rent and utilities included – about $9,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

42

Cost of Living Index in Acapulco
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Acapulco Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index

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Acapulco

🇲🇽 Mexico

$859

/mo nomad

Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Acapulco and in Monterrey

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Acapulco and in Monterrey actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $859 per month in Acapulco vs $1,608 in Monterrey, rent included.

Acapulco $859
Monterrey $1,608

A couple spends around $1,435 per month in Acapulco vs $2,521 in Monterrey, rent included.

Acapulco $1,435
Monterrey $2,521

A family of three spends $2,012 per month in Acapulco vs $3,433 in Monterrey, rent included.

Acapulco $2,012
Monterrey $3,433

Acapulco is about 47% cheaper than Monterrey, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Acapulco sits 36% below the global median, while Monterrey is 19% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.48 MX$175

$13.85 MX$256

-31.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.64 MX$696

$49.70 MX$918

-24.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.97 MX$221

$11.05 MX$204

8.33%

Cappuccino

$3.76 MX$69.5

$4.09 MX$75.6

-8.07%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 MX$30.10

$1.68 MX$30.97

-2.98%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.66 MX$30.65

$1.03 MX$18.98

61.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.00 MX$55.4

$2.40 MX$44.28

25.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.79 MX$88.4

$4.35 MX$80.3

10.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.59 MX$29.36

$1.92 MX$35.55

-17.19%

White Bread (500g)

$2.89 MX$53.5

$2.94 MX$54.2

-1.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 MX$31.11

$1.88 MX$34.66

-10.64%

Eggs

$1.79 MX$33.06

$2.55 MX$47.06

-29.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.64 MX$123

$11.84 MX$219

-43.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.04 MX$149

$9.36 MX$173

-14.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.78 MX$199

$13.10 MX$242

-17.71%

Apples (1kg)

$4.58 MX$84.7

$3.38 MX$62.5

35.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 MX$30.46

$1.52 MX$28.13

8.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.38 MX$62.5

$2.19 MX$40.51

54.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.13 MX$57.9

$2.36 MX$43.63

32.63%

Potato (1kg)

$3.47 MX$64.2

$2.26 MX$41.76

53.54%

Onion (1kg)

$2.96 MX$54.7

$2.73 MX$50.5

8.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.31 MX$24.12

$1.52 MX$28.17

-13.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.46

$1.24 MX$22.90

-37.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.16 MX$151

$4.75 MX$87.8

71.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.66 MX$123

$13.66 MX$252

-51.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.12 MX$20.74

$1.89 MX$34.95

-40.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.70 MX$49.94

$2.99 MX$55.2

-9.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 MX$16.27

$0.85 MX$15.78

3.53%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.95 MX$572

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.85 MX$89.6

$1.68 MX$30.98

188.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.13 MX$20.87

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.15 MX$206

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.16

$1.56 MX$28.91

-5.77%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$21.1K MX$389.7K

$21.4K MX$395.8K

-1.53%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$24.8K MX$458.4K

$25.1K MX$463.2K

-1.04%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$39.89 MX$737

$119 MX$2,206

-66.59%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$14.81 MX$274

$26.21 MX$484

-43.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.72 MX$401

$26.78 MX$495

-18.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$19.02 MX$351

$31.03 MX$573

-38.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.85 MX$256

$21.43 MX$396

-35.37%

Cinema Ticket

$3.87 MX$71.6

$5.29 MX$97.7

-26.84%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$162 MX$2,994

$691 MX$12.8K

-76.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K MX$212.1K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.4 MX$1,191

$72.3 MX$1,335

-10.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.58 MX$824

$42.72 MX$789

4.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 MX$1,985

$110 MX$2,024

-1.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.2 MX$1,538

$117 MX$2,158

-28.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$519 MX$9,593

$970 MX$17.9K

-46.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$150 MX$2,763

$664 MX$12.3K

-77.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$956 MX$17.7K

$1,857 MX$34.3K

-48.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$331 MX$6,118

$1,287 MX$23.8K

-74.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,162 MX$76.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,349 MX$43.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$449 MX$8,293

$1,146 MX$21.2K

-60.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.6

11.79

-1.61%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Acapulco: October 11, 2026

Last update for Monterrey: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Groceries & Markets

Acapulco

$269 31.3%

Monterrey

$310 19.3% 15.6% $42

Eating Out

Acapulco

$195 22.7%

Monterrey

$225 14% 15.4% $30

Accommodation & Living

Acapulco

$150 17.4%

Monterrey

$664 41.3% 344% $514

Clothing & Footwear

Acapulco

$135 15.7%

Monterrey

$154 9.6% 13.9% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Acapulco

$76 8.9%

Monterrey

$172 10.7% 126% $96

Sport & Entertainment

Acapulco

$27 3.1%

Monterrey

$42 2.6% 55.4% $15

Getting Around

Acapulco

$8.4 * 1%

Monterrey

$42 2.6% 398% $33

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $519 in Acapulco versus $970 in Monterrey. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 155% higher in Monterrey, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $38.00 in Acapulco versus $50.0 in Monterrey. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $269 vs $310 – making Acapulco the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Acapulco

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🕒 Local time

14:30 2:30 PM

Same time as Acapulco

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

658,609

1,142,994

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Acapulco Monterrey 980 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Acapulco
Monterrey

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Acapulco vs Monterrey: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monterrey costs about 87% more than Acapulco, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,288 per month in Acapulco and $2,412 in Monterrey. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Acapulco, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $859 in Acapulco and $1,608 in Monterrey. That's a gap of about 87%.

Kindergarten costs $162 per month in Acapulco and $691 in Monterrey. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Acapulco, where all-in costs run around $859, than in Monterrey at $1,608. In Acapulco it covers expenses comfortably, while in Monterrey it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Acapulco costs $859 versus $1,608 in Monterrey. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Acapulco. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Monterrey makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.