Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monterrey and Cusco

For one person, living is cheaper in Cusco: $688 a month against $1,607 in Monterrey, rent and utilities included – about $11,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index
33

Cost of Living Index in Cusco
Learn more

Cusco Living Index

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Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,607

/mo nomad

Cusco

🇵🇪 Peru

$688

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Monterrey and in Cusco

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,607 in Monterrey versus $688 in Cusco.

Monterrey $1,607
Cusco $688

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,512 in Monterrey versus $1,096 in Cusco.

Monterrey $2,512
Cusco $1,096

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,417 in Monterrey versus $1,505 in Cusco.

Monterrey $3,417
Cusco $1,505

Living in Monterrey is roughly 134% more expensive than in Cusco, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Monterrey is 20% above, Cusco is 49% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.75 MX$250

$1.99 PEN 6.85

590.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.2 MX$913

$20.55 PEN 70.7

144.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.13 MX$203

$6.70 PEN 23.04

66.12%

Cappuccino

$4.04 MX$73.5

$2.11 PEN 7.24

91.47%

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

$1.70 MX$31.00

$0.78 PEN 2.69

117.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.99 MX$18.00

$0.33 PEN 1.13

200.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 MX$43.80

$1.72 PEN 5.92

40.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 MX$81.6

$4.33 PEN 14.90

3.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 MX$34.98

$1.24 PEN 4.27

54.84%

White Bread (500g)

$2.89 MX$52.6

$2.32 PEN 7.97

24.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$35.34

$1.29 PEN 4.43

50.39%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$45.47

$3.63 PEN 12.48

-31.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.30 MX$224

$4.69 PEN 16.14

162.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.33 MX$170

$4.43 PEN 15.24

110.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.07 MX$238

$7.37 PEN 25.35

77.34%

Apples (1kg)

$3.38 MX$61.5

$2.55 PEN 8.78

32.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.58 MX$28.75

$0.77 PEN 2.63

105.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.20 MX$40.07

$1.47 PEN 5.04

49.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.45 MX$44.48

$0.85 PEN 2.94

188.24%

Potato (1kg)

$2.26 MX$41.09

$1.02 PEN 3.52

121.57%

Onion (1kg)

$2.74 MX$49.89

$1.10 PEN 3.80

149.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 MX$27.83

$0.49 PEN 1.67

212.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 MX$22.94

$0.75 PEN 2.58

68.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.84 MX$88.1

Wine (Bottle)

$13.59 MX$247

$5.93 PEN 20.41

129.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.91 MX$34.69

$1.85 PEN 6.38

3.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.06 MX$55.8

$4.12 PEN 14.16

-25.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.80 MX$14.47

$0.30 PEN 1.04

166.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$31.77 MX$578

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.62 MX$29.50

$1.72 PEN 5.91

-5.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.10 MX$19.99

$1.93 PEN 6.65

-43.01%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.97 MX$199

$2.82 PEN 9.69

289.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$27.68

$1.57 PEN 5.42

-3.18%

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

$21.4K MX$388.7K

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

$25.5K MX$463.3K

$28.9K PEN 99.5K

-11.99%

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

$120 MX$2,178

$29.31 PEN 101

308.46%

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

$27.08 MX$493

$14.31 PEN 49.22

89.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.70 MX$486

$44.13 PEN 152

-39.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.15 MX$567

$28.51 PEN 98.1

9.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.95 MX$399

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$93.5

$4.26 PEN 14.64

20.66%

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

$688 MX$12.5K

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$207.9K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.9 MX$1,308

$37.39 PEN 129

92.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.30 MX$788

$33.43 PEN 115

29.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 MX$2,040

$54.4 PEN 187

106.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 MX$2,216

$72.2 PEN 248

68.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$957 MX$17.4K

$218 PEN 748

339.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$670 MX$12.2K

$191 PEN 657

251.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,887 MX$34.3K

$538 PEN 1,849

251.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,305 MX$23.7K

$416 PEN 1,431

213.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,159 MX$75.7K

$3,249 PEN 11.2K

28.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,437 MX$44.3K

$1,823 PEN 6,270

33.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,133 MX$20.6K

$433 PEN 1,490

161.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.79

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

Last update for Monterrey: October 4, 2026

Last update for Cusco: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Monterrey

$670 41.4%

Cusco

$191 27.8% 71.5% $479

Groceries & Markets

Monterrey

$312 19.3%

Cusco

$187 27.2% 40.3% $126

Eating Out

Monterrey

$224 13.8%

Cusco

$83 12.1% 62.9% $141

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monterrey

$174 10.7%

Cusco

$88 12.8% 49.4% $86

Clothing & Footwear

Monterrey

$157 9.7%

Cusco

$89 12.9% 43.5% $68

Getting Around

Monterrey

$42 2.6%

Cusco

$13 * 1.8% 70% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Monterrey

$41 2.6%

Cusco

$37 5.4% 10.6% $4.4

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 $957 in Monterrey and $218 in Cusco. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Monterrey pays 162% 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: $50.0 in Monterrey vs $21.00 in Cusco for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $312 vs $187 per month, with Cusco cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🇵🇪 Cusco

🕒 Local time

00:15 12:15 AM

01:15 1:15 AM

1 h ahead of Monterrey

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,142,994

428,450

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.5 USD

100 MXN = 4.9 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.19 MXN (100 MXN = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20.4 MXN (100 MXN = 4.9 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.44 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Monterrey Cusco 5,330 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Monterrey
Cusco

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 Cusco: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cusco is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 134% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 162% higher in Monterrey, 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: $957 in Monterrey versus $218 in Cusco. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 67% higher in Monterrey. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Cusco – a meal for two runs $21.00 versus $50.0 in Monterrey. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $688 in Cusco versus $1,607 in Monterrey, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cusco but tight or insufficient in Monterrey. The gap between the two cities makes Cusco the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Cusco is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Monterrey, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Cusco gentler on the wallet – expenses run 134% less than in Monterrey. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.