Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kearney, NE and Monterrey

For one person, living is cheaper in Monterrey: $1,599 a month against $2,083 in Kearney, NE, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

101

Cost of Living Index in Kearney, NE
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Kearney, NE Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index

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Kearney, NE

🇺🇸 United States

$2,083

/mo nomad

Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,599

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,083 in Kearney, NE versus $1,599 in Monterrey.

Kearney, NE $2,083
Monterrey $1,599

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,931 in Kearney, NE versus $2,493 in Monterrey.

Kearney, NE $2,931
Monterrey $2,493

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,780 in Kearney, NE versus $3,387 in Monterrey.

Kearney, NE $3,780
Monterrey $3,387

Living in Kearney, NE is roughly 30% more expensive than in Monterrey, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Kearney, NE 54% above, Monterrey 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.29 $15.29

$13.80 MX$255

10.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.0 $61.0

$47.99 MX$887

27.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.87 $11.87

$10.65 MX$197

11.46%

Cappuccino

$5.12 $5.12

$3.99 MX$73.7

28.32%

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

$2.11 $2.11

$1.66 MX$30.76

27.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 $1.85

$0.99 MX$18.21

86.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.05 $4.05

$2.36 MX$43.64

71.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.10 $5.10

$4.43 MX$81.8

15.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.87 $0.87

$1.82 MX$33.58

-52.20%

White Bread (500g)

$1.69 $1.69

$2.83 MX$52.4

-40.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.68 $3.68

$1.92 MX$35.44

91.67%

Eggs

$3.69 $3.69

$2.48 MX$45.78

48.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.79 $8.79

$11.74 MX$217

-25.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.52 $6.52

$9.10 MX$168

-28.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.41 $15.41

$12.53 MX$232

22.98%

Apples (1kg)

$5.43 $5.43

$3.34 MX$61.6

62.57%

Banana (1kg)

$2.13 $2.13

$1.57 MX$29.10

35.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.72 $4.72

$2.16 MX$39.86

118.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.29 $4.29

$2.47 MX$45.65

73.68%

Potato (1kg)

$1.89 $1.89

$2.31 MX$42.64

-18.18%

Onion (1kg)

$2.99 $2.99

$2.68 MX$49.47

11.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.01 $2.01

$1.46 MX$26.90

37.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.93 $2.93

$1.19 MX$22.07

146.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.02 $9.02

$4.75 MX$87.8

89.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.12 $15.12

$13.58 MX$251

11.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 $1.82

$1.92 MX$35.52

-5.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.98 $1.98

$2.88 MX$53.2

-31.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.79 MX$14.66

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$31.36 MX$579

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 $2.99

$1.59 MX$29.44

88.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.34 $1.34

$1.06 MX$19.58

26.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.73 $24.73

$10.80 MX$200

128.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.02 $1.02

$1.55 MX$28.59

-34.19%

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

$24.3K $24.3K

$24.2K MX$446.4K

0.54%

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

$27.1K $27.1K

$24.3K MX$449.4K

11.52%

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

$273 $273

$117 MX$2,159

133.80%

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

$62.3 $62.3

$26.38 MX$488

136.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$73.5 $73.5

$26.04 MX$481

182.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.1 $56.1

$30.26 MX$559

85.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.94 $5.94

$21.25 MX$393

-72.05%

Cinema Ticket

$12.42 $12.42

$5.23 MX$96.6

137.48%

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

$992 $992

$673 MX$12.4K

47.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.2K $19.2K

$11.1K MX$205.2K

72.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$29.42 $29.42

$72.1 MX$1,332

-59.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.22 $39.22

$42.38 MX$783

-7.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.6 $95.6

$112 MX$2,066

-14.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 $122

$119 MX$2,200

2.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,018 $1,018

$949 MX$17.5K

7.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$850 $850

$666 MX$12.3K

27.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,497 $1,497

$1,821 MX$33.7K

-17.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,224 $1,224

$1,271 MX$23.5K

-3.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,619 $1,619

$4,050 MX$74.8K

-60.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,585 $1,585

$2,348 MX$43.4K

-32.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$7,554 $7,554

$1,155 MX$21.3K

553.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.57

11.79

-44.27%

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

Last update for Kearney, NE: October 17, 2026

Last update for Monterrey: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kearney, NE

$850 40.8%

Monterrey

$666 41.7% 21.6% $184

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kearney, NE

$409 19.6%

Monterrey

$169 10.6% 58.6% $240

Groceries & Markets

Kearney, NE

$339 16.3%

Monterrey

$304 19% 10.1% $34

Eating Out

Kearney, NE

$266 12.8%

Monterrey

$221 13.9% 16.6% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Kearney, NE

$129 6.2%

Monterrey

$155 9.7% 20.5% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Kearney, NE

$81 3.9%

Monterrey

$41 2.6% 49.7% $40

Getting Around

Kearney, NE

$9.7 * 0.5%

Monterrey

$41 2.6% 327% $32

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 $1,018 in Kearney, NE and $949 in Monterrey. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kearney, NE pays 554% 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: $61.0 in Kearney, NE vs $48.00 in Monterrey for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $339 vs $304 per month, with Monterrey cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Kearney, NE

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🕒 Local time

13:38 1:38 PM

12:38 12:38 PM

1 h behind Kearney, NE

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

29,385

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 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 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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Between locations

Kearney, NE Monterrey 1,670 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Kearney, NE
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

Kearney, NE vs Monterrey: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kearney, NE and Monterrey differ by about 30% in total monthly costs ($2,083 vs $1,599 including rent). Monterrey is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 554% higher in Kearney, NE, 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: $1,018 in Kearney, NE versus $949 in Monterrey. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 11% higher in Kearney, NE. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,083 per month in Kearney, NE versus $1,599 in Monterrey – a 30% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,599 in Monterrey versus $2,083 in Kearney, NE, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Monterrey but tight or insufficient in Kearney, NE. The gap between the two cities makes Monterrey the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Kearney, NE 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 Monterrey gentler on the wallet – expenses run 30% less than in Kearney, NE. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.