Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monterrey and Cartagena

For one person, living is cheaper in Cartagena: $1,292 a month against $1,608 in Monterrey, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index
54

Cost of Living Index in Cartagena
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Cartagena Living Index

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Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Cartagena

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,292

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Monterrey and in Cartagena

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 Cartagena actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,608 per month in Monterrey vs $1,292 in Cartagena, rent included.

Monterrey $1,608
Cartagena $1,292

A couple spends around $2,521 per month in Monterrey vs $2,165 in Cartagena, rent included.

Monterrey $2,521
Cartagena $2,165

A family of three spends $3,433 per month in Monterrey vs $3,039 in Cartagena, rent included.

Monterrey $3,433
Cartagena $3,039

Monterrey costs about 24% more than Cartagena, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Monterrey sits 19% above the global median, while Cartagena is 4% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.85 MX$256

$5.87 COP 18.6K

135.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.70 MX$918

$143 COP 453.5K

-65.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.05 MX$204

$10.37 COP 32.9K

6.56%

Cappuccino

$4.09 MX$75.6

$4.26 COP 13.5K

-3.99%

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

$1.68 MX$30.97

$2.54 COP 8,063

-33.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 MX$18.98

$2.36 COP 7,478

-56.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.40 MX$44.28

$3.26 COP 10.3K

-26.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$80.3

$4.96 COP 15.7K

-12.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 MX$35.55

$1.91 COP 6,053

0.52%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 MX$54.2

$2.74 COP 8,692

7.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.88 MX$34.66

$1.45 COP 4,610

29.66%

Eggs

$2.55 MX$47.06

$5.06 COP 16.0K

-49.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.84 MX$219

$13.13 COP 41.6K

-9.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.36 MX$173

$17.37 COP 55.1K

-46.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.10 MX$242

Apples (1kg)

$3.38 MX$62.5

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 MX$28.13

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 MX$40.51

Tomato (1kg)

$2.36 MX$43.63

Potato (1kg)

$2.26 MX$41.76

Onion (1kg)

$2.73 MX$50.5

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 MX$28.17

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$22.90

$1.99 COP 6,304

-37.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.75 MX$87.8

Wine (Bottle)

$13.66 MX$252

$14.64 COP 46.4K

-6.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.89 MX$34.95

$1.40 COP 4,436

35.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.99 MX$55.2

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 MX$15.78

$1.25 COP 3,972

-32.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.95 MX$572

$58.4 COP 185.2K

-47.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 MX$30.98

$4.74 COP 15.0K

-64.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.13 MX$20.87

$3.68 COP 11.7K

-69.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.15 MX$206

$9.49 COP 30.1K

17.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.56 MX$28.91

$1.34 COP 4,251

16.42%

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

$21.4K MX$395.8K

$23.4K COP 74.1M

-8.35%

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

$25.1K MX$463.2K

$34.4K COP 109.2M

-27.22%

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

$119 MX$2,206

$78.4 COP 248.6K

52.24%

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

$26.21 MX$484

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.78 MX$495

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.03 MX$573

$91.7 COP 290.8K

-66.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.43 MX$396

Cinema Ticket

$5.29 MX$97.7

$8.02 COP 25.4K

-34.04%

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

$691 MX$12.8K

$630 COP 2.0M

9.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K MX$212.1K

$5,818 COP 18.4M

97.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.3 MX$1,335

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.72 MX$789

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 MX$2,024

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,158

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$970 MX$17.9K

$1,035 COP 3.3M

-6.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$664 MX$12.3K

$585 COP 1.9M

13.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,857 MX$34.3K

$2,287 COP 7.3M

-18.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,287 MX$23.8K

$944 COP 3.0M

36.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,162 MX$76.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,349 MX$43.4K

$924 COP 2.9M

154.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,146 MX$21.2K

$467 COP 1.5M

145.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.79

-21.40%

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

Last update for Monterrey: October 10, 2026

Last update for Cartagena: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Monterrey

$664 41.3%

Cartagena

$585 45.3% 11.8% $79

Groceries & Markets

Monterrey

$310 19.3%

Cartagena

$259 * 20% 16.6% $52

Eating Out

Monterrey

$225 14%

Cartagena

$175 13.5% 22.1% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monterrey

$172 10.7%

Cartagena

$78 * 6.1% 54.5% $94

Clothing & Footwear

Monterrey

$154 9.6%

Cartagena

- * 0% 100%

Getting Around

Monterrey

$42 2.6%

Cartagena

$87 6.7% 108% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Monterrey

$42 2.6%

Cartagena

$108 8.3% 159% $66

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $970 in Monterrey versus $1,035 in Cartagena. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 146% higher in Monterrey, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50.0 in Monterrey versus $143 in Cartagena. Groceries tell a different story – $310 in Monterrey vs $259 in Cartagena – so Cartagena wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🇨🇴 Cartagena

🕒 Local time

07:10 7:10 AM

08:10 8:10 AM

1 h ahead of Monterrey

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,142,994

1,028,736

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.78 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Monterrey Cartagena 3,110 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Monterrey
Cartagena

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 Cartagena: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monterrey costs about 24% more than Cartagena, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,412 per month in Monterrey and $1,938 in Cartagena. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cartagena, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $691 per month in Monterrey and $630 in Cartagena. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 20% more in Monterrey, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cartagena, where all-in costs run around $1,292, than in Monterrey at $1,608. In Cartagena it covers expenses comfortably, while in Monterrey it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cartagena costs $1,292 versus $1,608 in Monterrey. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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