Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monterrey and San Marcos, TX

For one person, living is cheaper in Monterrey: $1,608 a month against $2,361 in San Marcos, TX, rent and utilities included – about $9,000 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
115

Cost of Living Index in San Marcos, TX
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San Marcos, TX Living Index

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Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

San Marcos, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,361

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Monterrey and in San Marcos, TX

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 San Marcos, TX actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,608 in Monterrey versus $2,361 in San Marcos, TX.

Monterrey $1,608
San Marcos, TX $2,361

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,521 in Monterrey versus $3,510 in San Marcos, TX.

Monterrey $2,521
San Marcos, TX $3,510

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,433 in Monterrey versus $4,658 in San Marcos, TX.

Monterrey $3,433
San Marcos, TX $4,658

Living in Monterrey costs roughly 32% less than in San Marcos, TX, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Monterrey 19% above, San Marcos, TX 75% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.85 MX$256

$14.98 $14.98

-7.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.70 MX$918

$60.5 $60.5

-17.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.05 MX$204

$11.80 $11.80

-6.36%

Cappuccino

$4.09 MX$75.6

$4.72 $4.72

-13.35%

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

$1.68 MX$30.97

$2.90 $2.90

-42.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 MX$18.98

$1.73 $1.73

-40.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.40 MX$44.28

$5.12 $5.12

-53.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$80.3

$6.11 $6.11

-28.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 MX$35.55

$0.76 $0.76

152.63%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 MX$54.2

$3.20 $3.20

-8.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.88 MX$34.66

$3.74 $3.74

-49.73%

Eggs

$2.55 MX$47.06

$2.77 $2.77

-7.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.84 MX$219

$10.06 $10.06

17.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.36 MX$173

$9.81 $9.81

-4.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.10 MX$242

$12.95 $12.95

1.16%

Apples (1kg)

$3.38 MX$62.5

$6.21 $6.21

-45.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 MX$28.13

$1.13 $1.13

34.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 MX$40.51

$6.58 $6.58

-66.72%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.36 MX$43.63

$4.83 $4.83

-51.14%

Potato (1kg)

$2.26 MX$41.76

$3.99 $3.99

-43.36%

Onion (1kg)

$2.73 MX$50.5

$2.92 $2.92

-6.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 MX$28.17

$1.83 $1.83

-16.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$22.90

$1.80 $1.80

-31.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.75 MX$87.8

$8.49 $8.49

-44.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.66 MX$252

$13.93 $13.93

-1.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.89 MX$34.95

$1.77 $1.77

6.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.99 MX$55.2

$3.94 $3.94

-24.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 MX$15.78

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.95 MX$572

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 MX$30.98

$4.57 $4.57

-63.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.13 MX$20.87

$1.82 $1.82

-37.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.15 MX$206

$59.5 $59.5

-81.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.56 MX$28.91

$0.81 $0.81

92.59%

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

$21.4K MX$395.8K

$36.0K $36.0K

-40.58%

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

$25.1K MX$463.2K

$25.0K $25.0K

0.18%

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

$119 MX$2,206

$134 $134

-10.92%

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

$26.21 MX$484

$40.38 $40.38

-35.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.78 MX$495

$55.8 $55.8

-52.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.03 MX$573

$68.9 $68.9

-54.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.43 MX$396

Cinema Ticket

$5.29 MX$97.7

$11.32 $11.32

-53.27%

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

$691 MX$12.8K

$665 $665

3.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K MX$212.1K

$17.7K $17.7K

-35.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.3 MX$1,335

$59.4 $59.4

21.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.72 MX$789

$38.15 $38.15

11.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 MX$2,024

$83.0 $83.0

32.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MX$2,158

$123 $123

-4.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$970 MX$17.9K

$1,350 $1,350

-28.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$664 MX$12.3K

$1,258 $1,258

-47.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,857 MX$34.3K

$2,855 $2,855

-34.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,287 MX$23.8K

$2,205 $2,205

-41.60%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,162 MX$76.9K

$2,463 $2,463

68.94%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,349 MX$43.4K

$1,874 $1,874

25.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,146 MX$21.2K

$3,143 $3,143

-63.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.79

6.45

82.79%

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

Last update for Monterrey: October 10, 2026

Last update for San Marcos, TX: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Monterrey

$664 41.3%

San Marcos, TX

$1.3K 53.3% 89.5% $594

Groceries & Markets

Monterrey

$310 19.3%

San Marcos, TX

$363 15.4% 17% $53

Eating Out

Monterrey

$225 14%

San Marcos, TX

$268 11.4% 19.5% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monterrey

$172 10.7%

San Marcos, TX

$230 9.8% 33.6% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Monterrey

$154 9.6%

San Marcos, TX

$136 5.8% 11.2% $17

Getting Around

Monterrey

$42 2.6%

San Marcos, TX

$14 * 0.6% 67.2% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Monterrey

$42 2.6%

San Marcos, TX

$92 3.9% 120% $50

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 $970 in Monterrey and $1,350 in San Marcos, TX. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

San Marcos, TX pays 174% 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 $60.0 in San Marcos, TX for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $363 per month, with Monterrey cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🇺🇸 San Marcos, TX

🕒 Local time

10:56 10:56 AM

11:56 11:56 AM

1 h ahead of Monterrey

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,142,994

44,894

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 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 October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 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 San Marcos, TX 520 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Monterrey
San Marcos, TX

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 San Marcos, TX: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monterrey and San Marcos, TX differ by about 47% in total monthly costs ($1,608 vs $2,361 including rent). Monterrey is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 174% lower in San Marcos, TX. 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: $970 in Monterrey versus $1,350 in San Marcos, TX. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $691 in Monterrey versus $665 in San Marcos, TX. 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 $50.0 versus $60.0 in San Marcos, TX. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,608 in Monterrey versus $2,361 in San Marcos, TX, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Monterrey but tight or insufficient in San Marcos, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Monterrey 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 Monterrey gentler on the wallet – expenses run 47% less than in San Marcos, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.