Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barrie and Monterrey

For one person, living is cheaper in Monterrey: $1,641 a month against $2,542 in Barrie, rent and utilities included – about $10,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

122

Cost of Living Index in Barrie
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Barrie Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index

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Barrie

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,542

/mo nomad

Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,641

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barrie 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 Barrie and in Monterrey actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,542 in Barrie versus $1,641 in Monterrey.

Barrie $2,542
Monterrey $1,641

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,455 in Barrie versus $2,573 in Monterrey.

Barrie $3,455
Monterrey $2,573

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,368 in Barrie versus $3,504 in Monterrey.

Barrie $4,368
Monterrey $3,504

Living in Barrie is roughly 55% more expensive than in Monterrey, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barrie 88% above, Monterrey 21% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.47 CA$20.28

$13.37 MX$251

8.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.8 CA$81.0

$47.95 MX$900

20.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.61 CA$16.27

$10.79 MX$203

7.60%

Cappuccino

$3.59 CA$5.03

$3.77 MX$70.7

-4.77%

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

$1.92 CA$2.69

$1.51 MX$28.37

27.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.49 CA$2.09

$1.03 MX$19.33

44.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.95 CA$6.95

$2.48 MX$46.60

99.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.74 CA$8.04

$4.36 MX$81.8

31.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.15 CA$3.01

$1.89 MX$35.58

13.76%

White Bread (500g)

$2.58 CA$3.62

$2.85 MX$53.5

-9.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.72 CA$3.81

$1.86 MX$34.86

46.24%

Eggs

$3.14 CA$4.41

$2.47 MX$46.31

27.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.96 CA$13.96

$11.81 MX$222

-15.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.12 CA$19.79

$8.97 MX$168

57.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.50 CA$31.54

$12.57 MX$236

79.00%

Apples (1kg)

$4.00 CA$5.61

$3.20 MX$60.0

25.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.13 CA$1.58

$1.50 MX$28.23

-24.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.18 CA$4.46

$2.12 MX$39.90

50.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.89 CA$5.45

$2.33 MX$43.82

66.95%

Potato (1kg)

$1.16 CA$1.62

$2.22 MX$41.75

-47.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 CA$1.94

$2.58 MX$48.54

-46.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.10 CA$2.94

$1.45 MX$27.15

44.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 CA$2.38

$1.22 MX$22.94

39.34%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.38 CA$15.95

$4.80 MX$90.1

137.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.54 CA$14.78

$13.30 MX$250

-20.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.47 CA$3.47

$1.93 MX$36.28

27.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.24 CA$3.14

$2.86 MX$53.6

-21.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.57 CA$3.60

$0.80 MX$15.00

221.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.4 CA$91.7

$30.94 MX$581

111.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.60 CA$5.05

$1.83 MX$34.42

96.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.05 CA$1.47

$1.06 MX$19.86

-0.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.82 MX$203

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 CA$1.75

$1.47 MX$27.65

-14.97%

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

$26.2K CA$36.7K

$24.1K MX$452.3K

8.69%

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

$22.3K CA$31.3K

$23.5K MX$442.0K

-5.23%

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

$243 CA$341

$115 MX$2,152

111.94%

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

$36.27 CA$50.8

$26.37 MX$495

37.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$77.9 CA$109

$25.70 MX$483

203.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.39 CA$42.60

$30.53 MX$573

-0.46%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$36.24 CA$50.8

$21.27 MX$400

70.38%

Cinema Ticket

$12.88 CA$18.06

$4.96 MX$93.1

159.68%

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

$1,404 CA$1,967

$679 MX$12.7K

106.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.2K MX$266.4K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.8 CA$90.8

$72.2 MX$1,356

-10.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.44 CA$63.7

$41.94 MX$788

8.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$150 CA$210

$107 MX$2,019

39.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.0 CA$121

$119 MX$2,228

-27.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,502 CA$2,105

$1,018 MX$19.1K

47.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,274 CA$1,787

$722 MX$13.6K

76.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,000 CA$2,804

$1,966 MX$36.9K

1.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,669 CA$2,340

$1,416 MX$26.6K

17.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,226 CA$7,325

$4,203 MX$78.9K

24.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,973 CA$5,569

$2,782 MX$52.2K

42.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,099 CA$4,345

$1,096 MX$20.6K

182.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.68

11.79

-60.31%

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

Last update for Barrie: November 2, 2026

Last update for Monterrey: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barrie

$1.3K 50.1%

Monterrey

$722 44% 43.4% $553

Groceries & Markets

Barrie

$371 14.6%

Monterrey

$302 18.4% 18.5% $68

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barrie

$357 14.1%

Monterrey

$167 10.2% 53.3% $190

Eating Out

Barrie

$244 9.6%

Monterrey

$216 13.2% 11.4% $28

Clothing & Footwear

Barrie

$156 6.1%

Monterrey

$153 9.3% 1.6% $2.5

Getting Around

Barrie

$85 3.3%

Monterrey

$41 2.5% 51.2% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Barrie

$56 2.2%

Monterrey

$40 2.5% 28% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,502 in Barrie and $1,018 in Monterrey. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barrie pays about 2.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $58 in Barrie vs $48 in Monterrey for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $371 vs $302 per month, with Monterrey cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Barrie

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🕒 Local time

12:40 12:40 PM

11:40 11:40 AM

1 h behind Barrie

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

141,434

1,142,994

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.713 USD

1 CAD = 0.635 EUR

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.713 USD). 1 EUR = 1.57 CAD (1 CAD = 0.635 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.78 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 21.09 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Barrie Monterrey 2,790 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Barrie
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

Barrie vs Monterrey: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,542 in Barrie and $1,641 in Monterrey, so Monterrey is about 35% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Barrie is about 2.8 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,502 in Barrie versus $1,018 in Monterrey. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Monterrey runs roughly 53% less than in Barrie. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $1,404 in Barrie versus $679 in Monterrey. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Monterrey gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Monterrey gentler on the wallet – expenses run 35% less than in Barrie. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.