Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monterrey and Queretaro

For one person, living is cheaper in Queretaro: $1,417 a month against $1,608 in Monterrey, rent and utilities included – about $2,300 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
69

Cost of Living Index in Queretaro
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Queretaro Living Index

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Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Queretaro

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,417

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Monterrey and in Queretaro

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Monterrey versus $1,417 in Queretaro.

Monterrey $1,608
Queretaro $1,417

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,521 in Monterrey versus $2,165 in Queretaro.

Monterrey $2,521
Queretaro $2,165

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,433 in Monterrey versus $2,913 in Queretaro.

Monterrey $3,433
Queretaro $2,913

Living in Monterrey is roughly 13% more expensive than in Queretaro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Monterrey 19% above, Queretaro 5% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.85 MX$256

$11.14 MX$206

24.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.70 MX$918

$62.1 MX$1,148

-19.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.05 MX$204

$9.50 MX$176

16.32%

Cappuccino

$4.09 MX$75.6

$3.66 MX$67.7

11.75%

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

$1.68 MX$30.97

$1.59 MX$29.35

5.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 MX$18.98

$1.08 MX$19.97

-4.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.40 MX$44.28

$3.28 MX$60.6

-26.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$80.3

$5.41 MX$100

-19.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 MX$35.55

$1.96 MX$36.26

-2.04%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 MX$54.2

$2.74 MX$50.5

7.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.88 MX$34.66

$2.01 MX$37.11

-6.47%

Eggs

$2.55 MX$47.06

$2.65 MX$48.95

-3.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.84 MX$219

$8.64 MX$160

37.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.36 MX$173

$8.82 MX$163

6.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.10 MX$242

$13.45 MX$249

-2.60%

Apples (1kg)

$3.38 MX$62.5

$3.46 MX$64.0

-2.31%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 MX$28.13

$1.64 MX$30.31

-7.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 MX$40.51

$2.19 MX$40.45

Tomato (1kg)

$2.36 MX$43.63

$1.97 MX$36.36

19.80%

Potato (1kg)

$2.26 MX$41.76

$1.86 MX$34.30

21.51%

Onion (1kg)

$2.73 MX$50.5

$1.74 MX$32.18

56.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 MX$28.17

$1.48 MX$27.43

2.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$22.90

$1.20 MX$22.09

3.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.75 MX$87.8

$4.45 MX$82.2

6.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.66 MX$252

$17.98 MX$332

-24.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.89 MX$34.95

$2.16 MX$39.99

-12.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.99 MX$55.2

$3.82 MX$70.6

-21.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 MX$15.78

$0.58 MX$10.70

46.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.95 MX$572

$25.87 MX$478

19.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 MX$30.98

$3.20 MX$59.1

-47.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.13 MX$20.87

$2.54 MX$46.95

-55.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.15 MX$206

$10.92 MX$202

2.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.56 MX$28.91

$1.55 MX$28.70

0.65%

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

$21.4K MX$395.8K

$21.5K MX$397.5K

-0.43%

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

$25.1K MX$463.2K

$23.6K MX$436.3K

6.16%

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

$119 MX$2,206

$57.2 MX$1,057

108.80%

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

$26.21 MX$484

$26.92 MX$497

-2.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.78 MX$495

$24.48 MX$452

9.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.03 MX$573

$57.5 MX$1,063

-46.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.43 MX$396

$24.36 MX$450

-12.03%

Cinema Ticket

$5.29 MX$97.7

$7.43 MX$137

-28.80%

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

$691 MX$12.8K

$263 MX$4,869

162.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K MX$212.1K

$5,015 MX$92.7K

128.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.3 MX$1,335

$51.7 MX$956

39.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.72 MX$789

$44.24 MX$818

-3.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 MX$2,024

$99.9 MX$1,847

9.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,158

$99.7 MX$1,843

17.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$970 MX$17.9K

$836 MX$15.4K

16.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$664 MX$12.3K

$554 MX$10.2K

19.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,857 MX$34.3K

$1,463 MX$27.0K

26.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,287 MX$23.8K

$824 MX$15.2K

56.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,162 MX$76.9K

$2,253 MX$41.6K

84.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,349 MX$43.4K

$1,275 MX$23.6K

84.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,146 MX$21.2K

$910 MX$16.8K

26.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.79

11.99

-1.67%

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

Last update for Monterrey: October 10, 2026

Last update for Queretaro: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Monterrey

$664 41.3%

Queretaro

$554 39.1% 16.6% $110

Groceries & Markets

Monterrey

$310 19.3%

Queretaro

$305 21.6% 1.6% $5

Eating Out

Monterrey

$225 14%

Queretaro

$199 14.1% 11.2% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monterrey

$172 10.7%

Queretaro

$109 7.7% 37% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Monterrey

$154 9.6%

Queretaro

$133 9.4% 13.4% $21

Getting Around

Monterrey

$42 2.6%

Queretaro

$44 3.1% 5.8% $2.4

Sport & Entertainment

Monterrey

$42 2.6%

Queretaro

$72 5.1% 73.9% $31

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $970 in Monterrey and $836 in Queretaro. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Monterrey pays 26% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $50.0 in Monterrey vs $62.0 in Queretaro. Groceries flip the comparison at $310 vs $305, with Queretaro cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🇲🇽 Queretaro

🕒 Local time

23:45 11:45 PM

Same time as Monterrey

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,142,994

804,663

💱 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 Queretaro 570 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Monterrey
Queretaro

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 Queretaro: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monterrey and Queretaro differ by about 13% in total monthly costs ($1,608 vs $1,417 including rent). Queretaro is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 26% higher in Monterrey, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $970 in Monterrey versus $836 in Queretaro. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Queretaro – a meal for two runs $62.0 versus $50.0 in Monterrey. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,608 per month in Monterrey versus $1,417 in Queretaro – a 13% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,417 in Queretaro versus $1,608 in Monterrey, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Queretaro but tight or insufficient in Monterrey. The gap between the two cities makes Queretaro 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 Queretaro 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 Queretaro gentler on the wallet – expenses run 13% less than in Monterrey. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.