Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monterrey and Cartago

For one person, living is cheaper in Cartago: $1,281 a month against $1,608 in Monterrey, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Cartago
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Cartago Living Index

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Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Cartago

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,281

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Monterrey and in Cartago

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

A single person spends $1,608 per month in Monterrey vs $1,281 in Cartago, rent included.

Monterrey $1,608
Cartago $1,281

A couple spends around $2,521 per month in Monterrey vs $1,972 in Cartago, rent included.

Monterrey $2,521
Cartago $1,972

A family of three spends $3,433 per month in Monterrey vs $2,663 in Cartago, rent included.

Monterrey $3,433
Cartago $2,663

Monterrey costs about 26% more than Cartago, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Monterrey sits 19% above the global median, while Cartago is 5% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.85 MX$256

$7.58 COP 24.1K

82.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.70 MX$918

$37.20 COP 118.3K

33.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.05 MX$204

$8.47 COP 26.9K

30.46%

Cappuccino

$4.09 MX$75.5

$1.54 COP 4,884

165.58%

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

$1.68 MX$30.94

$1.28 COP 4,063

31.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 MX$18.96

$0.83 COP 2,634

24.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.40 MX$44.23

$3.10 COP 9,869

-22.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$80.3

$3.66 COP 11.7K

18.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 MX$35.51

$1.60 COP 5,088

20.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 MX$54.2

$1.88 COP 5,973

56.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.88 MX$34.63

$1.49 COP 4,751

26.17%

Eggs

$2.55 MX$47.01

$2.93 COP 9,334

-12.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.84 MX$219

$6.58 COP 20.9K

79.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.36 MX$173

$7.11 COP 22.6K

31.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.10 MX$242

$9.93 COP 31.6K

31.92%

Apples (1kg)

$3.38 MX$62.4

$3.57 COP 11.4K

-5.32%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 MX$28.10

$1.32 COP 4,200

15.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 MX$40.47

$1.74 COP 5,530

25.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.36 MX$43.58

$1.63 COP 5,184

44.79%

Potato (1kg)

$2.26 MX$41.72

$1.42 COP 4,522

59.15%

Onion (1kg)

$2.73 MX$50.5

$1.50 COP 4,758

82.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 MX$28.14

$1.08 COP 3,443

40.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$22.88

$1.03 COP 3,261

20.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.75 MX$87.8

$3.69 COP 11.7K

28.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.66 MX$252

$13.12 COP 41.7K

4.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.89 MX$34.92

$1.50 COP 4,756

26.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.99 MX$55.1

$2.45 COP 7,794

22.04%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 MX$15.76

$1.02 COP 3,244

-16.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.95 MX$571

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 MX$30.95

$0.79 COP 2,524

112.66%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.13 MX$20.85

$2.27 COP 7,230

-50.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.15 MX$206

$8.40 COP 26.7K

32.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.56 MX$28.88

$1.32 COP 4,211

18.18%

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

$21.4K MX$395.4K

$28.0K COP 89.1M

-23.58%

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

$25.1K MX$462.7K

$34.6K COP 110.2M

-27.65%

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

$119 MX$2,204

$110 COP 349.3K

8.69%

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

$26.21 MX$484

$13.23 COP 42.1K

98.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.78 MX$494

$30.26 COP 96.2K

-11.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.03 MX$573

$42.32 COP 134.6K

-26.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.43 MX$396

Cinema Ticket

$5.29 MX$97.6

$8.24 COP 26.2K

-35.80%

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

$691 MX$12.8K

$701 COP 2.2M

-1.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K MX$211.9K

$6,430 COP 20.5M

78.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.3 MX$1,334

$77.8 COP 247.3K

-7.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.72 MX$789

$55.1 COP 175.4K

-22.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 MX$2,022

$127 COP 403.0K

-13.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,156

$111 COP 351.7K

5.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$970 MX$17.9K

$645 COP 2.1M

50.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$664 MX$12.3K

$509 COP 1.6M

30.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,857 MX$34.3K

$1,041 COP 3.3M

78.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,287 MX$23.8K

$970 COP 3.1M

32.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,162 MX$76.8K

$1,999 COP 6.4M

108.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,349 MX$43.4K

$1,803 COP 5.7M

30.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,146 MX$21.2K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.79

11.58

1.81%

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

Last update for Monterrey: October 10, 2026

Last update for Cartago: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Monterrey

$664 41.3%

Cartago

$509 39.7% 23.3% $155

Groceries & Markets

Monterrey

$310 19.3%

Cartago

$241 18.8% 22.4% $70

Eating Out

Monterrey

$225 14%

Cartago

$136 10.6% 39.6% $89

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monterrey

$172 10.7%

Cartago

$153 12% 11.1% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Monterrey

$154 9.6%

Cartago

$167 13% 8.5% $13

Getting Around

Monterrey

$42 2.6%

Cartago

$16 * 1.3% 61% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Monterrey

$42 2.6%

Cartago

$59 4.6% 41.3% $17

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 $645 in Cartago. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50.0 in Monterrey versus $37.00 in Cartago. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $310 vs $241 – making Cartago the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🇨🇴 Cartago

🕒 Local time

04:21 4:21 AM

05:21 5:21 AM

1 h ahead of Monterrey

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,142,994

135,365

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.42 USD

100 MXN = 4.84 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.14 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 15, 2026: 1 USD = 18.46 MXN (100 MXN = 5.42 USD). 1 EUR = 20.67 MXN (100 MXN = 4.84 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 3,181 COP (10,000 COP = 3.14 USD). 1 EUR = 3,562 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Monterrey Cartago 3,490 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Monterrey
Cartago

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 Cartago: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Monterrey is pricier by about 26%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,412 per month in Monterrey and $1,921 in Cartago. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,608 in Monterrey and $1,281 in Cartago. That's a gap of about 26%.

Kindergarten costs $691 per month in Monterrey and $701 in Cartago. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Cartago, where all-in costs run around $1,281, than in Monterrey at $1,608. In Cartago it covers expenses comfortably, while in Monterrey it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Cartago. 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.