Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monterrey and Islip, NY

For one person, living is cheaper in Islip, NY: $1,258 a month against $1,641 in Monterrey, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Monterrey outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

78

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Islip, NY
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Islip, NY Living Index

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Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,641

/mo nomad

Islip, NY

🇺🇸 United States

$1,258

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Monterrey and in Islip, NY

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,641 in Monterrey versus $1,258 in Islip, NY.

Monterrey $1,641
Islip, NY $1,258

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,573 in Monterrey versus $2,199 in Islip, NY.

Monterrey $2,573
Islip, NY $2,199

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,504 in Monterrey versus $3,140 in Islip, NY.

Monterrey $3,504
Islip, NY $3,140

Living in Monterrey is roughly 30% more expensive than in Islip, NY, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Monterrey is 21% above, Islip, NY is 7% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.37 MX$250

$26.10 $26.10

-48.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.95 MX$897

$119 $119

-59.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.79 MX$202

$13.94 $13.94

-22.60%

Cappuccino

$3.77 MX$70.4

$5.02 $5.02

-24.90%

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

$1.51 MX$28.26

$2.94 $2.94

-48.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 MX$19.25

$2.25 $2.25

-54.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.48 MX$46.41

$7.90 $7.90

-68.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 MX$81.5

$9.95 $9.95

-56.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.89 MX$35.43

$1.30 $1.30

45.38%

White Bread (500g)

$2.85 MX$53.3

$4.36 $4.36

-34.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.86 MX$34.71

$4.21 $4.21

-55.82%

Eggs

$2.47 MX$46.12

$5.27 $5.27

-53.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.81 MX$221

$19.73 $19.73

-40.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.97 MX$168

$18.21 $18.21

-50.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$235

$16.38 $16.38

-23.26%

Apples (1kg)

$3.20 MX$59.8

$4.36 $4.36

-26.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 MX$28.12

$1.27 $1.27

18.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.74

$2.26 $2.26

-6.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.33 MX$43.64

$2.86 $2.86

-18.53%

Potato (1kg)

$2.22 MX$41.58

$1.70 $1.70

30.59%

Onion (1kg)

$2.58 MX$48.34

$2.26 $2.26

14.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 MX$27.04

$1.56 $1.56

-7.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MX$22.85

$1.11 $1.11

9.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.80 MX$89.7

$14.93 $14.93

-67.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.30 MX$249

$12.87 $12.87

3.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.93 MX$36.14

$2.33 $2.33

-17.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.86 MX$53.4

$4.02 $4.02

-28.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.80 MX$14.94

$4.39 $4.39

-81.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.94 MX$579

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.83 MX$34.28

$2.98 $2.98

-38.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 MX$19.78

$2.19 $2.19

-51.60%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.82 MX$202

$41.68 $41.68

-74.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.54

$1.13 $1.13

30.09%

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

$24.1K MX$450.4K

$27.2K $27.2K

-11.36%

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

$23.5K MX$440.2K

$26.4K $26.4K

-10.96%

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

$115 MX$2,144

$78.1 $78.1

46.71%

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

$26.37 MX$493

$68.7 $68.7

-61.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.70 MX$481

$69.3 $69.3

-62.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.53 MX$571

$60.1 $60.1

-49.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.27 MX$398

Cinema Ticket

$4.96 MX$92.8

$15.81 $15.81

-68.63%

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

$679 MX$12.7K

$3,515 $3,515

-80.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.2K MX$265.3K

$47.8K $47.8K

-70.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.2 MX$1,350

$45.53 $45.53

58.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.94 MX$784

$27.39 $27.39

53.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 MX$2,011

$75.5 $75.5

42.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 MX$2,219

$89.3 $89.3

32.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,018 MX$19.0K

$2,015 $2,015

-49.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$722 MX$13.5K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,966 MX$36.8K

$3,377 $3,377

-41.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,416 MX$26.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,203 MX$78.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,782 MX$52.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,096 MX$20.5K

$4,003 $4,003

-72.62%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.79

6.63

77.83%

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

Last update for Monterrey: November 2, 2026

Last update for Islip, NY: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Monterrey

$722 44%

Islip, NY

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Monterrey

$302 18.4%

Islip, NY

$421 33.5% 39.4% $119

Eating Out

Monterrey

$216 13.2%

Islip, NY

$391 31.1% 81.2% $175

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monterrey

$167 10.2%

Islip, NY

$216 17.2% 29.7% $49

Clothing & Footwear

Monterrey

$153 9.3%

Islip, NY

$107 8.5% 30.2% $46

Getting Around

Monterrey

$41 2.5%

Islip, NY

$32 * 2.5% 23.6% $9.8

Sport & Entertainment

Monterrey

$40 2.5%

Islip, NY

$92 7.3% 127% $51

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 $1,018 in Monterrey and $2,015 in Islip, NY. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Islip, NY pays about 3.7 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $48 in Monterrey vs $119 in Islip, NY for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $302 vs $421 per month, with Monterrey cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🇺🇸 Islip, NY

🕒 Local time

11:12 11:12 AM

12:12 12:12 PM

1 h ahead of Monterrey

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,142,994

339,938

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 EUR

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.7 MXN (100 MXN = 5.35 USD). 1 EUR = 21.01 MXN (100 MXN = 4.76 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Monterrey Islip, NY 3,010 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Monterrey
Islip, NY

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 Islip, NY: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Islip, NY is about 23% cheaper overall, especially in clothing and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 73% lower in Monterrey. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,018 in Monterrey versus $2,015 in Islip, NY. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $679 in Monterrey versus $3,515 in Islip, NY. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Monterrey – a meal for two runs $48 versus $119 in Islip, NY. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,258 in Islip, NY versus $1,641 in Monterrey, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Islip, NY but tight or insufficient in Monterrey. The gap between the two cities makes Islip, NY 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.