Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Girardeau, MO and Monterrey

For one person, living is cheaper in Monterrey: $1,608 a month against $2,129 in Cape Girardeau, MO, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

103

Cost of Living Index in Cape Girardeau, MO
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Cape Girardeau, MO Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index

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Cape Girardeau, MO

🇺🇸 United States

$2,129

/mo nomad

Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,129 in Cape Girardeau, MO versus $1,608 in Monterrey.

Cape Girardeau, MO $2,129
Monterrey $1,608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,277 in Cape Girardeau, MO versus $2,521 in Monterrey.

Cape Girardeau, MO $3,277
Monterrey $2,521

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,424 in Cape Girardeau, MO versus $3,433 in Monterrey.

Cape Girardeau, MO $4,424
Monterrey $3,433

Living in Cape Girardeau, MO is roughly 32% more expensive than in Monterrey, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Cape Girardeau, MO 58% above, Monterrey 19% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.76 $17.76

$13.85 MX$256

28.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.6 $58.6

$49.70 MX$918

17.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.12 $7.12

$11.05 MX$204

-35.57%

Cappuccino

$6.02 $6.02

$4.09 MX$75.6

47.19%

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

$2.68 $2.68

$1.68 MX$30.97

59.52%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 $1.87

$1.03 MX$18.98

81.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 $2.99

$2.40 MX$44.28

24.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.71 $7.71

$4.35 MX$80.3

77.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.03 $1.03

$1.92 MX$35.55

-46.35%

White Bread (500g)

$2.23 $2.23

$2.94 MX$54.2

-24.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$7.44 $7.44

$1.88 MX$34.66

295.74%

Eggs

$3.06 $3.06

$2.55 MX$47.06

20.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.14 $15.14

$11.84 MX$219

27.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$18.63 $18.63

$9.36 MX$173

99.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$25.29 $25.29

$13.10 MX$242

93.05%

Apples (1kg)

$3.36 $3.36

$3.38 MX$62.5

-0.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 $1.93

$1.52 MX$28.13

26.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$11.43 $11.43

$2.19 MX$40.51

421.92%

Tomato (1kg)

$8.88 $8.88

$2.36 MX$43.63

276.27%

Potato (1kg)

$2.14 $2.14

$2.26 MX$41.76

-5.31%

Onion (1kg)

$6.00 $6.00

$2.73 MX$50.5

119.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.89 $2.89

$1.52 MX$28.17

90.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.47 $2.47

$1.24 MX$22.90

99.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.34 $7.34

$4.75 MX$87.8

54.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.06 $12.06

$13.66 MX$252

-11.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 $1.77

$1.89 MX$34.95

-6.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.09 $8.09

$2.99 MX$55.2

170.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 MX$15.78

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.95 MX$572

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 MX$30.98

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.13 MX$20.87

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.15 MX$206

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.80 $0.80

$1.56 MX$28.91

-48.72%

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

$30.6K $30.6K

$21.4K MX$395.8K

42.75%

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

$24.8K $24.8K

$25.1K MX$463.2K

-1.13%

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

$201 $201

$119 MX$2,206

68.10%

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

$42.29 $42.29

$26.21 MX$484

61.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$80.7 $80.7

$26.78 MX$495

201.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$20.39 $20.39

$31.03 MX$573

-34.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.43 MX$396

Cinema Ticket

$14.98 $14.98

$5.29 MX$97.7

183.18%

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

$818 $818

$691 MX$12.8K

18.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K MX$212.1K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.40 $45.40

$72.3 MX$1,335

-37.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.35 $39.35

$42.72 MX$789

-7.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.4 $84.4

$110 MX$2,024

-22.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$39.98 $39.98

$117 MX$2,158

-65.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$777 $777

$970 MX$17.9K

-19.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$861 $861

$664 MX$12.3K

29.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,572 $1,572

$1,857 MX$34.3K

-15.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,672 $1,672

$1,287 MX$23.8K

29.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,444 $1,444

$4,162 MX$76.9K

-65.31%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,438 $1,438

$2,349 MX$43.4K

-38.78%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,408 $2,408

$1,146 MX$21.2K

110.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

11.79

-45.29%

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

Last update for Cape Girardeau, MO: October 11, 2026

Last update for Monterrey: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Girardeau, MO

$861 40.4%

Monterrey

$664 41.3% 22.9% $197

Groceries & Markets

Cape Girardeau, MO

$516 24.3%

Monterrey

$310 19.3% 39.9% $206

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Girardeau, MO

$324 15.2%

Monterrey

$172 10.7% 46.7% $151

Eating Out

Cape Girardeau, MO

$284 13.4%

Monterrey

$225 14% 21% $60

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Girardeau, MO

$94 4.4%

Monterrey

$154 9.6% 63.2% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Girardeau, MO

$50 2.4%

Monterrey

$42 2.6% 17.3% $8.7

Getting Around

Cape Girardeau, MO

- * 0%

Monterrey

$42 2.6%

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $777 in Cape Girardeau, MO and $970 in Monterrey. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cape Girardeau, MO pays 110% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $59.0 in Cape Girardeau, MO vs $50.0 in Monterrey for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $516 vs $310 per month, with Monterrey cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Cape Girardeau, MO

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🕒 Local time

23:58 11:58 PM

22:58 10:58 PM

1 h behind Cape Girardeau, MO

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

37,941

1,142,994

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

On the map

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Cape Girardeau, MO Monterrey 1,650 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Cape Girardeau, MO
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

Cape Girardeau, MO vs Monterrey: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monterrey is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. The 32% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 110% higher in Cape Girardeau, MO, 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: $777 in Cape Girardeau, MO versus $970 in Monterrey. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 66% higher in Cape Girardeau, MO. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,129 per month in Cape Girardeau, MO versus $1,608 in Monterrey – a 32% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,608 in Monterrey versus $2,129 in Cape Girardeau, MO, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Monterrey but tight or insufficient in Cape Girardeau, MO. The gap between the two cities makes Monterrey the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Monterrey is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Cape Girardeau, MO, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Monterrey gentler on the wallet – expenses run 32% less than in Cape Girardeau, MO. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.