Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monterrey and Isla Mujeres

For one person, living is cheaper in Isla Mujeres: $1,103 a month against $1,599 in Monterrey, rent and utilities included – about $6,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index
54

Cost of Living Index in Isla Mujeres
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Isla Mujeres Living Index

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Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,599

/mo nomad

Isla Mujeres

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,103

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Monterrey and in Isla Mujeres

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,599 in Monterrey versus $1,103 in Isla Mujeres.

Monterrey $1,599
Isla Mujeres $1,103

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,493 in Monterrey versus $1,760 in Isla Mujeres.

Monterrey $2,493
Isla Mujeres $1,760

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,387 in Monterrey versus $2,416 in Isla Mujeres.

Monterrey $3,387
Isla Mujeres $2,416

Living in Monterrey is roughly 45% more expensive than in Isla Mujeres, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Monterrey is 18% above, Isla Mujeres is 19% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.80 MX$255

$10.59 MX$196

30.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.99 MX$887

$39.10 MX$722

22.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.65 MX$197

$7.70 MX$142

38.31%

Cappuccino

$3.99 MX$73.7

$3.26 MX$60.2

22.39%

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

$1.66 MX$30.76

$1.24 MX$22.93

33.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.99 MX$18.21

$0.98 MX$18.04

1.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 MX$43.64

$2.17 MX$40.08

8.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.43 MX$81.8

$4.00 MX$73.9

10.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 MX$33.58

$1.44 MX$26.58

26.39%

White Bread (500g)

$2.83 MX$52.4

$2.52 MX$46.64

12.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.92 MX$35.44

$1.56 MX$28.75

23.08%

Eggs

$2.48 MX$45.78

$2.33 MX$43.08

6.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.74 MX$217

$7.97 MX$147

47.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.10 MX$168

$8.02 MX$148

13.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.53 MX$232

$10.38 MX$192

20.71%

Apples (1kg)

$3.34 MX$61.6

$2.60 MX$48.09

28.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.57 MX$29.10

$1.41 MX$26.02

11.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.16 MX$39.86

$1.71 MX$31.68

26.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.47 MX$45.65

$1.70 MX$31.45

45.29%

Potato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$42.64

$1.90 MX$35.19

21.58%

Onion (1kg)

$2.68 MX$49.47

$1.93 MX$35.63

38.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 MX$26.90

$1.26 MX$23.35

15.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 MX$22.07

$0.98 MX$18.14

21.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.75 MX$87.8

$4.21 MX$77.7

12.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.58 MX$251

$11.00 MX$203

23.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 MX$35.52

$1.60 MX$29.54

20.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 MX$53.2

$2.77 MX$51.1

3.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.79 MX$14.66

$0.62 MX$11.45

27.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$31.36 MX$579

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.59 MX$29.44

$2.54 MX$46.85

-37.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 MX$19.58

$1.59 MX$29.42

-33.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.80 MX$200

$8.47 MX$157

27.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 MX$28.59

$1.26 MX$23.31

23.02%

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

$24.2K MX$446.4K

$21.4K MX$396.2K

12.68%

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

$24.3K MX$449.4K

$22.1K MX$408.2K

10.08%

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

$117 MX$2,159

$56.3 MX$1,041

107.37%

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

$26.38 MX$488

$22.23 MX$411

18.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.04 MX$481

$27.99 MX$517

-6.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.26 MX$559

$36.29 MX$671

-16.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.25 MX$393

$16.00 MX$296

32.81%

Cinema Ticket

$5.23 MX$96.6

$4.64 MX$85.8

12.72%

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

$673 MX$12.4K

$210 MX$3,888

219.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.1K MX$205.2K

$3,607 MX$66.6K

207.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.1 MX$1,332

$52.0 MX$961

38.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.38 MX$783

$40.19 MX$743

5.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 MX$2,066

$90.8 MX$1,678

23.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 MX$2,200

$80.7 MX$1,492

47.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$949 MX$17.5K

$505 MX$9,338

87.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$666 MX$12.3K

$395 MX$7,304

68.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,821 MX$33.7K

$919 MX$17.0K

98.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,271 MX$23.5K

$770 MX$14.2K

65.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,050 MX$74.8K

$1,779 MX$32.9K

127.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,348 MX$43.4K

$1,176 MX$21.7K

99.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,155 MX$21.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.79

11.48

2.70%

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

Last update for Monterrey: October 18, 2026

Last update for Isla Mujeres: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Monterrey

$666 41.7%

Isla Mujeres

$395 35.9% 40.7% $271

Groceries & Markets

Monterrey

$304 19%

Isla Mujeres

$249 22.6% 18.2% $55

Eating Out

Monterrey

$221 13.9%

Isla Mujeres

$175 15.8% 21.1% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monterrey

$169 10.6%

Isla Mujeres

$107 9.7% 37% $63

Clothing & Footwear

Monterrey

$155 9.7%

Isla Mujeres

$119 10.8% 23.6% $37

Getting Around

Monterrey

$41 2.6%

Isla Mujeres

$13 * 1.2% 68.7% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Monterrey

$41 2.6%

Isla Mujeres

$46 4.1% 11.9% $4.9

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 $949 in Monterrey and $505 in Isla Mujeres. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $48.00 in Monterrey vs $39.00 in Isla Mujeres for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $304 vs $249 per month, with Isla Mujeres cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🇲🇽 Isla Mujeres

🕒 Local time

23:26 11:26 PM

00:26 12:26 AM

1 h ahead of Monterrey

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,142,994

13,174

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Monterrey Isla Mujeres 1,470 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Monterrey
Isla Mujeres

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 Isla Mujeres: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monterrey and Isla Mujeres differ by about 45% in total monthly costs ($1,599 vs $1,103 including rent). Isla Mujeres is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,399 in Monterrey and $1,654 in Isla Mujeres to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $949 in Monterrey versus $505 in Isla Mujeres. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 22% higher in Monterrey. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,599 per month in Monterrey versus $1,103 in Isla Mujeres – a 45% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,103 in Isla Mujeres versus $1,599 in Monterrey, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Isla Mujeres but tight or insufficient in Monterrey. The gap between the two cities makes Isla Mujeres the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Monterrey and Isla Mujeres 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 Isla Mujeres gentler on the wallet – expenses run 45% less than in Monterrey. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.