Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monterrey and Leon, Mexico

For one person, living is cheaper in Leon: $1,191 a month against $1,647 in Monterrey, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 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
57

Cost of Living Index in Leon
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Leon Living Index

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Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,647

/mo nomad

Leon

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,191

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Monterrey and in Leon

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

A single person spends $1,647 per month in Monterrey vs $1,191 in Leon, rent included.

Monterrey $1,647
Leon $1,191

A couple spends around $2,591 per month in Monterrey vs $1,930 in Leon, rent included.

Monterrey $2,591
Leon $1,930

A family of three spends $3,536 per month in Monterrey vs $2,669 in Leon, rent included.

Monterrey $3,536
Leon $2,669

Monterrey costs about 38% more than Leon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Monterrey sits 21% above the global median, while Leon is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.45 MX$251

$10.96 MX$204

22.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.43 MX$903

$53.8 MX$1,003

-9.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.90 MX$203

$8.66 MX$161

25.87%

Cappuccino

$3.82 MX$71.2

$4.01 MX$74.8

-4.74%

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

$1.67 MX$31.06

$1.55 MX$28.88

7.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 MX$18.32

$1.23 MX$22.85

-20.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.35 MX$43.81

$2.92 MX$54.4

-19.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 MX$82.2

$3.86 MX$71.9

14.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.80 MX$33.58

$1.75 MX$32.57

2.86%

White Bread (500g)

$2.79 MX$52.1

$2.72 MX$50.7

2.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.82 MX$34.02

$1.72 MX$32.01

5.81%

Eggs

$2.51 MX$46.84

$3.27 MX$60.9

-23.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.09 MX$225

$6.81 MX$127

77.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.41 MX$175

$7.52 MX$140

25.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.71 MX$237

$10.83 MX$202

17.36%

Apples (1kg)

$3.21 MX$59.8

$2.37 MX$44.23

35.44%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 MX$27.92

$1.37 MX$25.47

9.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.97

$1.78 MX$33.27

20.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.32 MX$43.28

$1.44 MX$26.83

61.11%

Potato (1kg)

$2.20 MX$41.04

$1.97 MX$36.63

11.68%

Onion (1kg)

$2.60 MX$48.43

$2.07 MX$38.64

25.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 MX$26.85

$1.33 MX$24.85

8.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.17 MX$21.88

$0.73 MX$13.58

60.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.79 MX$89.3

$6.71 MX$125

-28.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.22 MX$247

$13.26 MX$247

-0.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.94 MX$36.21

$2.33 MX$43.41

-16.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.89 MX$53.8

$3.58 MX$66.8

-19.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 MX$16.26

$0.78 MX$14.55

11.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$31.14 MX$581

$37.94 MX$707

-17.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.66 MX$30.88

$2.72 MX$50.8

-38.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 MX$20.39

$2.62 MX$48.85

-58.40%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.67 MX$199

$14.76 MX$275

-27.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.47

$1.40 MX$26.06

5.00%

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

$24.2K MX$451.9K

$24.5K MX$457.4K

-1.20%

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

$23.6K MX$439.1K

$23.3K MX$433.6K

1.25%

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

$118 MX$2,197

$21.19 MX$395

456.25%

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

$25.55 MX$476

$39.64 MX$739

-35.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.43 MX$493

$57.5 MX$1,072

-54.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.77 MX$574

$36.72 MX$685

-16.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 MX$393

$33.64 MX$627

-37.37%

Cinema Ticket

$5.09 MX$94.9

$6.48 MX$121

-21.45%

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

$694 MX$12.9K

$178 MX$3,320

289.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K MX$211.0K

$3,783 MX$70.5K

199.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.5 MX$1,351

$55.6 MX$1,036

30.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.51 MX$774

$65.2 MX$1,215

-36.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 MX$2,046

$97.5 MX$1,818

12.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 MX$2,143

$116 MX$2,163

-0.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,056 MX$19.7K

$525 MX$9,783

101.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$721 MX$13.4K

$362 MX$6,746

99.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,999 MX$37.3K

$771 MX$14.4K

159.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,435 MX$26.7K

$678 MX$12.6K

111.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,219 MX$78.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,731 MX$50.9K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,149 MX$21.4K

$528 MX$9,838

117.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.79

11.6

1.64%

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

Last update for Monterrey: October 25, 2026

Last update for Leon: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Monterrey

$721 43.8%

Leon

$362 30.4% 49.8% $359

Groceries & Markets

Monterrey

$303 18.4%

Leon

$259 21.7% 14.7% $45

Eating Out

Monterrey

$217 13.2%

Leon

$195 16.4% 10.2% $22

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monterrey

$170 10.3%

Leon

$118 9.9% 30.3% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Monterrey

$152 9.3%

Leon

$150 12.6% 1.3% $1.9

Getting Around

Monterrey

$42 2.5%

Leon

$57 4.8% 36.2% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Monterrey

$41 2.5%

Leon

$50 4.2% 21.3% $8.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,056 in Monterrey versus $525 in Leon. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Monterrey are about 2.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $48 in Monterrey versus $54 in Leon. Groceries tell a different story – $303 in Monterrey vs $259 in Leon – so Leon wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🇲🇽 Leon

🕒 Local time

15:51 3:51 PM

Same time as Monterrey

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,142,994

1,579,803

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Monterrey Leon 530 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Monterrey
Leon

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 Leon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monterrey costs about 38% more than Leon, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,470 per month in Monterrey and $1,787 in Leon. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Leon, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $525 there versus $1,056 in Monterrey.

Groceries cost about 17% more in Monterrey, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $48 in Monterrey and $54 in Leon. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,647 in Monterrey and $1,191 in Leon. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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

If budget matters most, go with Leon. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Monterrey makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.