Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cuajimalpa and Monterrey

For one person, living is cheaper in Cuajimalpa: $1,141 a month against $1,599 in Monterrey, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Cuajimalpa
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Cuajimalpa Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index

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Cuajimalpa

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,141

/mo nomad

Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,599

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,141 in Cuajimalpa versus $1,599 in Monterrey.

Cuajimalpa $1,141
Monterrey $1,599

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,827 in Cuajimalpa versus $2,493 in Monterrey.

Cuajimalpa $1,827
Monterrey $2,493

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,514 in Cuajimalpa versus $3,387 in Monterrey.

Cuajimalpa $2,514
Monterrey $3,387

Living in Cuajimalpa costs roughly 29% less than in Monterrey, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cuajimalpa is 16% below, Monterrey is 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.81 MX$200

$13.80 MX$255

-21.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.13 MX$797

$47.99 MX$887

-10.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.35 MX$154

$10.65 MX$197

-21.60%

Cappuccino

$3.60 MX$66.6

$3.99 MX$73.7

-9.77%

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

$1.40 MX$25.87

$1.66 MX$30.76

-15.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.06 MX$19.50

$0.99 MX$18.21

7.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.52 MX$46.60

$2.36 MX$43.64

6.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.96 MX$73.2

$4.43 MX$81.8

-10.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 MX$29.16

$1.82 MX$33.58

-13.19%

White Bread (500g)

$2.64 MX$48.81

$2.83 MX$52.4

-6.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 MX$31.34

$1.92 MX$35.44

-11.46%

Eggs

$2.46 MX$45.39

$2.48 MX$45.78

-0.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.08 MX$149

$11.74 MX$217

-31.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.10 MX$150

$9.10 MX$168

-10.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.30 MX$209

$12.53 MX$232

-9.82%

Apples (1kg)

$2.79 MX$51.5

$3.34 MX$61.6

-16.47%

Banana (1kg)

$1.51 MX$27.83

$1.57 MX$29.10

-3.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 MX$34.44

$2.16 MX$39.86

-13.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.81 MX$33.42

$2.47 MX$45.65

-26.72%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 MX$36.89

$2.31 MX$42.64

-13.42%

Onion (1kg)

$1.91 MX$35.21

$2.68 MX$49.47

-28.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.43 MX$26.42

$1.46 MX$26.90

-2.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.12 MX$20.79

$1.19 MX$22.07

-5.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.44 MX$82.1

$4.75 MX$87.8

-6.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.50 MX$194

$13.58 MX$251

-22.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 MX$33.13

$1.92 MX$35.52

-6.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 MX$58.8

$2.88 MX$53.2

10.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.69 MX$12.73

$0.79 MX$14.66

-12.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$31.36 MX$579

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.62 MX$48.32

$1.59 MX$29.44

64.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.01 MX$37.15

$1.06 MX$19.58

89.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.91 MX$202

$10.80 MX$200

1.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.64

$1.55 MX$28.59

-7.10%

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

$20.9K MX$386.5K

$24.2K MX$446.4K

-13.42%

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

$24.3K MX$448.9K

$24.3K MX$449.4K

-0.10%

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

$57.5 MX$1,063

$117 MX$2,159

-50.77%

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

$22.78 MX$421

$26.38 MX$488

-13.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.83 MX$551

$26.04 MX$481

14.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.34 MX$635

$30.26 MX$559

13.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.21 MX$373

$21.25 MX$393

-4.89%

Cinema Ticket

$5.31 MX$98.1

$5.23 MX$96.6

1.53%

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

$223 MX$4,122

$673 MX$12.4K

-66.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,649 MX$85.9K

$11.1K MX$205.2K

-58.13%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.5 MX$1,008

$72.1 MX$1,332

-24.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.13 MX$760

$42.38 MX$783

-2.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 MX$1,863

$112 MX$2,066

-9.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 MX$1,636

$119 MX$2,200

-25.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$600 MX$11.1K

$949 MX$17.5K

-36.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$395 MX$7,290

$666 MX$12.3K

-40.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 MX$18.9K

$1,821 MX$33.7K

-43.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$764 MX$14.1K

$1,271 MX$23.5K

-39.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,905 MX$35.2K

$4,050 MX$74.8K

-52.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,154 MX$21.3K

$2,348 MX$43.4K

-50.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,155 MX$21.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

11.79

-4.16%

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

Last update for Cuajimalpa: October 18, 2026

Last update for Monterrey: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cuajimalpa

$395 34.6%

Monterrey

$666 41.7% 68.9% $272

Groceries & Markets

Cuajimalpa

$262 23%

Monterrey

$304 19% 16.1% $42

Eating Out

Cuajimalpa

$185 16.2%

Monterrey

$221 13.9% 19.6% $36

Clothing & Footwear

Cuajimalpa

$128 11.2%

Monterrey

$155 9.7% 21.1% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cuajimalpa

$110 9.7%

Monterrey

$169 10.6% 53.7% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Cuajimalpa

$45 3.9%

Monterrey

$41 2.6% 9.5% $4.3

Getting Around

Cuajimalpa

$15 * 1.4%

Monterrey

$41 2.6% 169% $26

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 $600 in Cuajimalpa and $949 in Monterrey. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $43.00 in Cuajimalpa vs $48.00 in Monterrey for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $262 vs $304 per month, with Cuajimalpa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Cuajimalpa

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🕒 Local time

06:53 6:53 AM

Same time as Cuajimalpa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

217,686

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

Cuajimalpa Monterrey 710 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Cuajimalpa
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

Cuajimalpa vs Monterrey: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cuajimalpa is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 40% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,711 in Cuajimalpa and $2,399 in Monterrey to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $600 in Cuajimalpa versus $949 in Monterrey. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $223 in Cuajimalpa versus $673 in Monterrey. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Cuajimalpa – a meal for two runs $43.00 versus $48.00 in Monterrey. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,141 in Cuajimalpa versus $1,599 in Monterrey, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cuajimalpa but tight or insufficient in Monterrey. The gap between the two cities makes Cuajimalpa the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Safety-wise, Cuajimalpa and Monterrey are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Cuajimalpa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 40% less than in Monterrey. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.