Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ellicott City, MD and Monterrey

For one person, living is cheaper in Monterrey: $1,641 a month against $3,480 in Ellicott City, MD, rent and utilities included – about $22,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

166

Cost of Living Index in Ellicott City, MD
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Ellicott City, MD Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index

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Ellicott City, MD

🇺🇸 United States

$3,480

/mo nomad

Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,641

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,480 per month in Ellicott City, MD vs $1,641 in Monterrey, rent included.

Ellicott City, MD $3,480
Monterrey $1,641

A couple spends around $4,630 per month in Ellicott City, MD vs $2,573 in Monterrey, rent included.

Ellicott City, MD $4,630
Monterrey $2,573

A family of three spends $5,780 per month in Ellicott City, MD vs $3,504 in Monterrey, rent included.

Ellicott City, MD $5,780
Monterrey $3,504

Ellicott City, MD costs about 112% more than Monterrey, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Ellicott City, MD and Monterrey sit above the global median – Ellicott City, MD by 157%, Monterrey by 21%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.08 $18.08

$13.37 MX$250

35.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$96.5 $96.5

$47.95 MX$897

101.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.67 $10.67

$10.79 MX$202

-1.11%

Cappuccino

$5.13 $5.13

$3.77 MX$70.4

36.07%

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

$3.49 $3.49

$1.51 MX$28.26

131.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.68 $2.68

$1.03 MX$19.25

160.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.85 $6.85

$2.48 MX$46.41

176.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.11 $8.11

$4.36 MX$81.5

86.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 $1.21

$1.89 MX$35.43

-35.98%

White Bread (500g)

$3.93 $3.93

$2.85 MX$53.3

37.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.82 $3.82

$1.86 MX$34.71

105.38%

Eggs

$4.49 $4.49

$2.47 MX$46.12

81.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.78 $16.78

$11.81 MX$221

42.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.08 $13.08

$8.97 MX$168

45.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.33 $18.33

$12.57 MX$235

45.82%

Apples (1kg)

$6.17 $6.17

$3.20 MX$59.8

92.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.58 $1.58

$1.50 MX$28.12

5.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.17 $4.17

$2.12 MX$39.74

96.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.15 $4.15

$2.33 MX$43.64

78.11%

Potato (1kg)

$2.22 $2.22

$2.22 MX$41.58

Onion (1kg)

$2.73 $2.73

$2.58 MX$48.34

5.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.39 $2.39

$1.45 MX$27.04

64.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.37 $2.37

$1.22 MX$22.85

94.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.50 $13.50

$4.80 MX$89.7

181.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.66 $15.66

$13.30 MX$249

17.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.67 $2.67

$1.93 MX$36.14

38.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.17 $3.17

$2.86 MX$53.4

10.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.80 MX$14.94

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.94 MX$579

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.85 $1.85

$1.83 MX$34.28

1.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.38 $1.38

$1.06 MX$19.78

30.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.05 $24.05

$10.82 MX$202

122.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 $0.99

$1.47 MX$27.54

-32.65%

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

$23.5K $23.5K

$24.1K MX$450.4K

-2.61%

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

$24.2K $24.2K

$23.5K MX$440.2K

2.93%

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

$204 $204

$115 MX$2,144

77.66%

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

$50.4 $50.4

$26.37 MX$493

91.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$81.1 $81.1

$25.70 MX$481

215.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$112 $112

$30.53 MX$571

267.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.27 MX$398

Cinema Ticket

$14.60 $14.60

$4.96 MX$92.8

194.35%

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

$1,975 $1,975

$679 MX$12.7K

191.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$38.7K $38.7K

$14.2K MX$265.3K

172.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.1 $53.1

$72.2 MX$1,350

-26.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.8 $56.8

$41.94 MX$784

35.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.1 $94.1

$107 MX$2,011

-12.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$110 $110

$119 MX$2,219

-6.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,490 $2,490

$1,018 MX$19.0K

144.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,106 $2,106

$722 MX$13.5K

191.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,041 $3,041

$1,966 MX$36.8K

54.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,677 $2,677

$1,416 MX$26.5K

89.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,203 MX$78.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,641 $2,641

$2,782 MX$52.0K

-5.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,067 $5,067

$1,096 MX$20.5K

362.47%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.9

11.79

-41.48%

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

Last update for Ellicott City, MD: November 1, 2026

Last update for Monterrey: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ellicott City, MD

$2.1K 60.5%

Monterrey

$722 44% 65.7% $1.4K

Groceries & Markets

Ellicott City, MD

$434 12.5%

Monterrey

$302 18.4% 30.4% $132

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ellicott City, MD

$335 9.6%

Monterrey

$167 10.2% 50.3% $168

Eating Out

Ellicott City, MD

$313 9%

Monterrey

$216 13.2% 31.1% $98

Sport & Entertainment

Ellicott City, MD

$141 4.1%

Monterrey

$40 2.5% 71.4% $101

Clothing & Footwear

Ellicott City, MD

$141 4.1%

Monterrey

$153 9.3% 8.2% $12

Getting Around

Ellicott City, MD

$8.8 * 0.3%

Monterrey

$41 2.5% 370% $32

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,490 in Ellicott City, MD versus $1,018 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 in Ellicott City, MD are about 4.6 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $97 in Ellicott City, MD versus $48 in Monterrey. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $434 vs $302 – making Monterrey the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Ellicott City, MD

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🕒 Local time

17:03 5:03 PM

16:03 4:03 PM

1 h behind Ellicott City, MD

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

65,834

1,142,994

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.895 EUR

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 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 November 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.895 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.7 MXN (100 MXN = 5.35 USD). 1 EUR = 20.9 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ellicott City, MD Monterrey 2,660 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Ellicott City, MD
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

Ellicott City, MD vs Monterrey: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Ellicott City, MD is pricier by about 112%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,221 per month in Ellicott City, MD and $2,461 in Monterrey. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Monterrey, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,018 there versus $2,490 in Ellicott City, MD.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,480 in Ellicott City, MD and $1,641 in Monterrey. That makes Monterrey about 53% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $1,975 per month in Ellicott City, MD and $679 in Monterrey. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Monterrey, where all-in costs run around $1,641, than in Ellicott City, MD at $3,480. In Monterrey it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ellicott City, MD it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Monterrey – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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