Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monterrey and Atlantic City, NJ

For one person, living is cheaper in Monterrey: $1,641 a month against $2,815 in Atlantic City, NJ, rent and utilities included – about $14,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
Learn more

Monterrey Living Index
134

Cost of Living Index in Atlantic City, NJ
Learn more

Atlantic City, NJ Living Index

Jump to prices

Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,641

/mo nomad

Atlantic City, NJ

🇺🇸 United States

$2,815

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Monterrey and in Atlantic City, NJ

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Monterrey and in Atlantic City, NJ actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,641 in Monterrey versus $2,815 in Atlantic City, NJ.

Monterrey $1,641
Atlantic City, NJ $2,815

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,573 in Monterrey versus $4,199 in Atlantic City, NJ.

Monterrey $2,573
Atlantic City, NJ $4,199

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,504 in Monterrey versus $5,583 in Atlantic City, NJ.

Monterrey $3,504
Atlantic City, NJ $5,583

Living in Monterrey costs roughly 42% less than in Atlantic City, NJ, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Monterrey 21% above, Atlantic City, NJ 108% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.37 MX$250

$19.66 $19.66

-31.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.95 MX$897

$99.2 $99.2

-51.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.79 MX$202

$11.30 $11.30

-4.51%

Cappuccino

$3.77 MX$70.4

$5.70 $5.70

-33.86%

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

$1.51 MX$28.26

$2.26 $2.26

-33.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 MX$19.25

$1.92 $1.92

-46.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.48 MX$46.41

$5.83 $5.83

-57.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 MX$81.5

$8.94 $8.94

-51.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.89 MX$35.43

$1.20 $1.20

57.50%

White Bread (500g)

$2.85 MX$53.3

$3.41 $3.41

-16.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.86 MX$34.71

$7.17 $7.17

-74.06%

Eggs

$2.47 MX$46.12

$4.34 $4.34

-43.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.81 MX$221

$11.03 $11.03

7.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.97 MX$168

$16.78 $16.78

-46.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$235

$20.36 $20.36

-38.26%

Apples (1kg)

$3.20 MX$59.8

$7.74 $7.74

-58.66%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 MX$28.12

$3.81 $3.81

-60.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.74

$5.44 $5.44

-61.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.33 MX$43.64

$6.11 $6.11

-61.87%

Potato (1kg)

$2.22 MX$41.58

$3.92 $3.92

-43.37%

Onion (1kg)

$2.58 MX$48.34

$4.69 $4.69

-44.99%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 MX$27.04

$2.62 $2.62

-44.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MX$22.85

$2.43 $2.43

-49.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.80 MX$89.7

$14.24 $14.24

-66.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.30 MX$249

$13.36 $13.36

-0.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.93 MX$36.14

$2.75 $2.75

-29.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.86 MX$53.4

$3.25 $3.25

-12.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.80 MX$14.94

$2.95 $2.95

-72.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.94 MX$579

$90.0 $90.0

-65.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.83 MX$34.28

$2.94 $2.94

-37.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 MX$19.78

$2.22 $2.22

-52.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.82 MX$202

$41.74 $41.74

-74.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.54

$0.89 $0.89

65.17%

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

$24.1K MX$450.4K

$20.3K $20.3K

18.74%

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

$23.5K MX$440.2K

$24.7K $24.7K

-4.58%

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

$115 MX$2,144

$223 $223

-48.51%

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

$26.37 MX$493

$61.6 $61.6

-57.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.70 MX$481

$61.2 $61.2

-57.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.53 MX$571

$29.58 $29.58

3.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.27 MX$398

$50.8 $50.8

-58.15%

Cinema Ticket

$4.96 MX$92.8

$16.85 $16.85

-70.56%

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

$679 MX$12.7K

$494 $494

37.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.2K MX$265.3K

$7,073 $7,073

100.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.2 MX$1,350

$69.9 $69.9

3.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.94 MX$784

$31.16 $31.16

34.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 MX$2,011

$117 $117

-8.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 MX$2,219

$120 $120

-1.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,018 MX$19.0K

$1,762 $1,762

-42.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$722 MX$13.5K

$1,323 $1,323

-45.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,966 MX$36.8K

$2,377 $2,377

-17.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,416 MX$26.5K

$2,132 $2,132

-33.60%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,203 MX$78.6K

$4,349 $4,349

-3.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,782 MX$52.0K

$4,265 $4,265

-34.78%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,096 MX$20.5K

$4,006 $4,006

-72.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.79

6.78

73.89%

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

Last update for Monterrey: November 2, 2026

Last update for Atlantic City, NJ: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Monterrey

$722 44%

Atlantic City, NJ

$1.3K 47% 83.4% $602

Groceries & Markets

Monterrey

$302 18.4%

Atlantic City, NJ

$492 17.5% 62.8% $190

Eating Out

Monterrey

$216 13.2%

Atlantic City, NJ

$323 11.5% 49.8% $108

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monterrey

$167 10.2%

Atlantic City, NJ

$345 12.3% 107% $179

Clothing & Footwear

Monterrey

$153 9.3%

Atlantic City, NJ

$152 5.4% 0.5% $0.8

Getting Around

Monterrey

$41 2.5%

Atlantic City, NJ

$116 4.1% 181% $75

Sport & Entertainment

Monterrey

$40 2.5%

Atlantic City, NJ

$63 2.3% 56.4% $23

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,018 in Monterrey and $1,762 in Atlantic City, NJ. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Atlantic City, NJ pays about 3.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $48 in Monterrey vs $99 in Atlantic City, NJ for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $302 vs $492 per month, with Monterrey cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🇺🇸 Atlantic City, NJ

🕒 Local time

15:46 3:46 PM

16:46 4:46 PM

1 h ahead of Monterrey

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,142,994

39,958

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 EUR

1 USD = 0.895 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

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).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.895 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Monterrey Atlantic City, NJ 2,850 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Monterrey
Atlantic City, NJ

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

Monterrey vs Atlantic City, NJ: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,641 in Monterrey and $2,815 in Atlantic City, NJ, so Monterrey is about 42% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 73% lower in Monterrey. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,018 in Monterrey versus $1,762 in Atlantic City, NJ. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 63% higher in Atlantic City, NJ. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Monterrey – a meal for two runs $48 versus $99 in Atlantic City, NJ. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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 42% less than in Atlantic City, NJ. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.