Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monterrey and Elgin, IL

For one person, living is cheaper in Elgin, IL: $1,035 a month against $1,607 in Monterrey, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Monterrey outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

79

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index
51

Cost of Living Index in Elgin, IL
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Elgin, IL Living Index

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Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,607

/mo nomad

Elgin, IL

🇺🇸 United States

$1,035

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Monterrey and in Elgin, IL

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,607 in Monterrey versus $1,035 in Elgin, IL.

Monterrey $1,607
Elgin, IL $1,035

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,512 in Monterrey versus $2,614 in Elgin, IL.

Monterrey $2,512
Elgin, IL $2,614

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,417 in Monterrey versus $4,192 in Elgin, IL.

Monterrey $3,417
Elgin, IL $4,192

Living in Monterrey is roughly 55% more expensive than in Elgin, IL, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Monterrey is 20% above, Elgin, IL is 23% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.75 MX$253

$19.93 $19.93

-31.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.2 MX$923

$59.5 $59.5

-15.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.13 MX$205

$10.07 $10.07

10.53%

Cappuccino

$4.04 MX$74.3

$3.90 $3.90

3.59%

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

$1.70 MX$31.33

$3.03 $3.03

-43.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.99 MX$18.19

$2.05 $2.05

-51.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 MX$44.27

$5.96 $5.96

-59.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 MX$82.5

$4.92 $4.92

-8.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 MX$35.36

$0.89 $0.89

115.73%

White Bread (500g)

$2.89 MX$53.2

$3.54 $3.54

-18.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MX$35.72

$4.34 $4.34

-55.30%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$45.97

$3.73 $3.73

-32.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.30 MX$226

$11.35 $11.35

8.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.33 MX$172

$13.45 $13.45

-30.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.07 MX$240

$11.71 $11.71

11.61%

Apples (1kg)

$3.38 MX$62.2

$4.49 $4.49

-24.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.58 MX$29.07

$1.27 $1.27

24.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.20 MX$40.51

$2.57 $2.57

-14.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.45 MX$44.96

$4.22 $4.22

-41.94%

Potato (1kg)

$2.26 MX$41.54

$1.99 $1.99

13.57%

Onion (1kg)

$2.74 MX$50.4

$2.08 $2.08

31.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 MX$28.13

$1.84 $1.84

-16.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 MX$23.19

$2.37 $2.37

-46.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.84 MX$89.0

$10.79 $10.79

-55.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.59 MX$250

$15.56 $15.56

-12.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.91 MX$35.06

$2.62 $2.62

-27.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.06 MX$56.4

$3.49 $3.49

-12.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.80 MX$14.62

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$31.77 MX$584

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.62 MX$29.82

$4.06 $4.06

-60.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.10 MX$20.20

$2.02 $2.02

-45.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.97 MX$202

$28.28 $28.28

-61.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$27.98

$1.04 $1.04

46.15%

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

$21.4K MX$393.0K

$36.5K $36.5K

-41.49%

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

$25.5K MX$468.3K

$24.9K $24.9K

2.15%

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

$120 MX$2,201

$99.4 $99.4

20.49%

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

$27.08 MX$498

$52.2 $52.2

-48.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.70 MX$491

$49.61 $49.61

-46.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.15 MX$573

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.95 MX$404

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$94.5

$14.76 $14.76

-65.18%

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

$688 MX$12.6K

$1,690 $1,690

-59.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K MX$210.1K

$23.2K $23.2K

-50.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.9 MX$1,323

$39.27 $39.27

83.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.30 MX$796

$50.2 $50.2

-13.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 MX$2,062

$100 $100

11.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 MX$2,240

$122 $122

-0.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$957 MX$17.6K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$670 MX$12.3K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,887 MX$34.7K

$2,175 $2,175

-13.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,305 MX$24.0K

$1,811 $1,811

-27.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,159 MX$76.5K

$2,192 $2,192

89.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,437 MX$44.8K

$2,211 $2,211

10.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,133 MX$20.8K

$3,971 $3,971

-71.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.79

6.69

76.23%

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

Last update for Monterrey: October 4, 2026

Last update for Elgin, IL: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Monterrey

$670 41.4%

Elgin, IL

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Monterrey

$312 19.3%

Elgin, IL

$371 35.3% 18.9% $59

Eating Out

Monterrey

$224 13.8%

Elgin, IL

$296 28.1% 32.5% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monterrey

$174 10.7%

Elgin, IL

$201 19.1% 15.9% $28

Clothing & Footwear

Monterrey

$157 9.7%

Elgin, IL

$141 13.3% 10.6% $17

Getting Around

Monterrey

$42 2.6%

Elgin, IL

$14 * 1.4% 66.3% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Monterrey

$41 2.6%

Elgin, IL

$30 * 2.8% 28.8% $12

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

Cost Breakdown

Elgin, IL pays 250% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $50.0 in Monterrey vs $59.0 in Elgin, IL for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $312 vs $371 per month, with Monterrey cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🇺🇸 Elgin, IL

🕒 Local time

19:33 7:33 PM

20:33 8:33 PM

1 h ahead of Monterrey

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,142,994

112,603

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.44 USD

100 MXN = 4.85 EUR

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 11, 2026: 1 USD = 18.39 MXN (100 MXN = 5.44 USD). 1 EUR = 20.61 MXN (100 MXN = 4.85 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 11, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Monterrey Elgin, IL 2,130 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Monterrey
Elgin, IL

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 Elgin, IL: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Elgin, IL is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, transport, and leisure. The 55% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 250% lower in Elgin, IL. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Childcare runs $688 in Monterrey versus $1,690 in Elgin, IL. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Elgin, IL – a meal for two runs $59.0 versus $50.0 in Monterrey. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,035 in Elgin, IL versus $1,607 in Monterrey, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Elgin, IL but tight or insufficient in Monterrey. The gap between the two cities makes Elgin, IL the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Elgin, IL 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.

Safety-wise, Monterrey and Elgin, IL 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 Elgin, IL gentler on the wallet – expenses run 55% less than in Monterrey. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.