Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monterrey and Piedras Negras

For one person, living is cheaper in Piedras Negras: $1,204 a month against $1,641 in Monterrey, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
Learn more

Monterrey Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Piedras Negras
Learn more

Piedras Negras Living Index

Jump to prices

Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,641

/mo nomad

Piedras Negras

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Monterrey and in Piedras Negras

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,641 in Monterrey versus $1,204 in Piedras Negras.

Monterrey $1,641
Piedras Negras $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,573 in Monterrey versus $1,874 in Piedras Negras.

Monterrey $2,573
Piedras Negras $1,874

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,504 in Monterrey versus $2,544 in Piedras Negras.

Monterrey $3,504
Piedras Negras $2,544

Living in Monterrey is roughly 36% more expensive than in Piedras Negras, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Monterrey is 21% above, Piedras Negras is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.37 MX$248

$10.98 MX$204

21.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.95 MX$890

$42.64 MX$791

12.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.79 MX$200

$8.46 MX$157

27.54%

Cappuccino

$3.77 MX$69.9

$3.58 MX$66.5

5.31%

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

$1.51 MX$28.04

$1.33 MX$24.77

13.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 MX$19.10

$1.04 MX$19.32

-0.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.48 MX$46.05

$2.35 MX$43.57

5.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 MX$80.9

$3.92 MX$72.8

11.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$1.62 MX$30.05

16.67%

White Bread (500g)

$2.85 MX$52.9

$2.61 MX$48.45

9.20%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.86 MX$34.44

$1.64 MX$30.35

13.41%

Eggs

$2.47 MX$45.77

$2.51 MX$46.51

-1.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.81 MX$219

$7.99 MX$148

47.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.97 MX$166

$8.43 MX$156

6.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$233

$11.13 MX$206

12.94%

Apples (1kg)

$3.20 MX$59.3

$2.74 MX$50.9

16.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 MX$27.90

$1.50 MX$27.85

Oranges (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.43

$1.86 MX$34.55

13.98%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.33 MX$43.30

$1.85 MX$34.40

25.95%

Potato (1kg)

$2.22 MX$41.26

$1.96 MX$36.43

13.27%

Onion (1kg)

$2.58 MX$47.97

$1.83 MX$33.89

40.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 MX$26.83

$1.37 MX$25.40

5.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MX$22.67

$1.06 MX$19.70

15.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.80 MX$89.0

$4.39 MX$81.5

9.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.30 MX$247

$10.39 MX$193

28.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.93 MX$35.86

$1.73 MX$32.05

11.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.86 MX$53.0

$3.15 MX$58.5

-9.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.80 MX$14.82

$0.67 MX$12.37

19.40%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.94 MX$574

$29.73 MX$552

4.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.83 MX$34.01

$2.60 MX$48.22

-29.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 MX$19.62

$1.97 MX$36.51

-46.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.82 MX$201

$10.94 MX$203

-1.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.33

$1.31 MX$24.37

12.21%

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

$24.1K MX$446.9K

0.00%

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

$23.5K MX$436.8K

$23.3K MX$433.2K

0.83%

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

$115 MX$2,127

$56.8 MX$1,055

101.71%

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

$26.37 MX$489

$22.71 MX$421

16.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.70 MX$477

$29.38 MX$545

-12.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.53 MX$567

$32.02 MX$594

-4.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.27 MX$395

$20.04 MX$372

6.14%

Cinema Ticket

$4.96 MX$92.0

$5.04 MX$93.5

-1.59%

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

$679 MX$12.6K

$216 MX$4,013

213.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.2K MX$263.2K

$4,504 MX$83.6K

214.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.2 MX$1,340

$54.7 MX$1,015

31.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.94 MX$778

$39.49 MX$733

6.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 MX$1,995

$99.4 MX$1,844

8.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 MX$2,202

$87.8 MX$1,629

35.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,018 MX$18.9K

$605 MX$11.2K

68.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$722 MX$13.4K

$435 MX$8,069

65.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,966 MX$36.5K

$1,007 MX$18.7K

95.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,416 MX$26.3K

$749 MX$13.9K

89.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,203 MX$78.0K

$1,916 MX$35.6K

119.31%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,782 MX$51.6K

$1,103 MX$20.5K

152.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,096 MX$20.3K

$1,638 MX$30.4K

-33.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.79

11.31

4.24%

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

Last update for Monterrey: November 2, 2026

Last update for Piedras Negras: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Monterrey

$722 44%

Piedras Negras

$435 36.1% 39.7% $287

Groceries & Markets

Monterrey

$302 18.4%

Piedras Negras

$261 21.7% 13.5% $41

Eating Out

Monterrey

$216 13.2%

Piedras Negras

$185 15.4% 14.1% $30

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monterrey

$167 10.2%

Piedras Negras

$109 9.1% 34.7% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Monterrey

$153 9.3%

Piedras Negras

$127 10.5% 17.3% $27

Getting Around

Monterrey

$41 2.5%

Piedras Negras

$45 3.7% 8.7% $3.6

Sport & Entertainment

Monterrey

$40 2.5%

Piedras Negras

$42 3.5% 4.1% $1.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,018 in Monterrey and $605 in Piedras Negras. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Piedras Negras pays 49% 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 $43 in Piedras Negras for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $302 vs $261 per month, with Piedras Negras cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🇲🇽 Piedras Negras

🕒 Local time

15:19 3:19 PM

Same time as Monterrey

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,142,994

173,959

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.39 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

100 MXN = 5.39 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Monterrey Piedras Negras 340 km

From you

Monterrey
Piedras Negras

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 Piedras Negras: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,641 in Monterrey and $1,204 in Piedras Negras, so Piedras Negras is about 27% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 33% 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 $605 in Piedras Negras. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Piedras Negras – a meal for two runs $43 versus $48 in Monterrey. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,641 per month in Monterrey versus $1,204 in Piedras Negras – Piedras Negras is about 27% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,204 in Piedras Negras versus $1,641 in Monterrey, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Piedras Negras but tight or insufficient in Monterrey. The gap between the two cities makes Piedras Negras 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.

Expats usually find Piedras Negras gentler on the wallet – expenses run 27% less than in Monterrey. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.