Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monterrey and Ubud, Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Ubud, Bali: $1,349 a month against $1,647 in Monterrey, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Ubud, Bali
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Ubud, Bali Living Index

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Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,647

/mo nomad

Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,349

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Monterrey and in Ubud, Bali

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,647 in Monterrey versus $1,349 in Ubud, Bali.

Monterrey $1,647
Ubud, Bali $1,349

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,591 in Monterrey versus $2,305 in Ubud, Bali.

Monterrey $2,591
Ubud, Bali $2,305

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,536 in Monterrey versus $3,261 in Ubud, Bali.

Monterrey $3,536
Ubud, Bali $3,261

Living in Monterrey is roughly 22% more expensive than in Ubud, Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.45 MX$251

$3.32 Rp 59.9K

305.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.43 MX$905

$35.64 Rp 642.4K

35.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.90 MX$204

$5.53 Rp 99.7K

97.11%

Cappuccino

$3.82 MX$71.3

$2.72 Rp 49.0K

40.44%

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

$1.67 MX$31.14

$1.70 Rp 30.7K

-1.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 MX$18.37

$0.76 Rp 13.7K

28.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.35 MX$43.91

$2.65 Rp 47.8K

-11.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 MX$82.4

$4.38 Rp 79.0K

0.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.80 MX$33.66

$1.49 Rp 26.9K

20.81%

White Bread (500g)

$2.79 MX$52.2

$2.28 Rp 41.0K

22.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.82 MX$34.10

$1.19 Rp 21.5K

52.94%

Eggs

$2.51 MX$46.95

$2.04 Rp 36.7K

23.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.09 MX$226

$17.70 Rp 319.1K

-31.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.41 MX$176

$3.96 Rp 71.4K

137.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.71 MX$237

$12.19 Rp 219.7K

4.27%

Apples (1kg)

$3.21 MX$59.9

$3.66 Rp 65.9K

-12.30%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 MX$27.99

$1.52 Rp 27.4K

-1.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.14 MX$40.07

$2.23 Rp 40.2K

-4.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.32 MX$43.38

$1.97 Rp 35.6K

17.77%

Potato (1kg)

$2.20 MX$41.14

$1.85 Rp 33.3K

18.92%

Onion (1kg)

$2.60 MX$48.55

$2.42 Rp 43.7K

7.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$0.99 Rp 17.8K

45.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.17 MX$21.93

$0.51 Rp 9,255

129.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.79 MX$89.5

$2.22 Rp 40.0K

115.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.22 MX$247

$22.24 Rp 400.9K

-40.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.94 MX$36.30

$2.26 Rp 40.7K

-14.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.89 MX$53.9

$2.97 Rp 53.5K

-2.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 MX$16.30

$0.25 Rp 4,525

248.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$31.14 MX$582

$7.82 Rp 141.0K

298.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.66 MX$30.96

$0.44 Rp 7,923

277.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 MX$20.44

$0.43 Rp 7,753

153.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.67 MX$199

$5.41 Rp 97.5K

97.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.53

$0.82 Rp 14.9K

79.27%

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

$24.2K MX$453.0K

$23.8K Rp 429.7M

1.69%

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

$23.6K MX$440.1K

$31.7K Rp 572.3M

-25.81%

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

$118 MX$2,202

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

49.09%

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

$25.55 MX$477

$6.45 Rp 116.2K

296.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.43 MX$494

$18.58 Rp 334.9K

42.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.77 MX$575

$49.48 Rp 892.0K

-37.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 MX$394

$17.65 Rp 318.1K

19.38%

Cinema Ticket

$5.09 MX$95.1

$4.27 Rp 77.0K

19.20%

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

$694 MX$13.0K

$491 Rp 8.8M

41.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K MX$211.5K

$5,674 Rp 102.3M

99.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.5 MX$1,354

$44.64 Rp 804.7K

62.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.51 MX$776

$34.95 Rp 630.1K

18.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 MX$2,050

$79.9 Rp 1.4M

37.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 MX$2,148

$79.4 Rp 1.4M

44.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,056 MX$19.7K

$1,125 Rp 20.3M

-6.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$721 MX$13.5K

$671 Rp 12.1M

7.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,999 MX$37.4K

$3,565 Rp 64.3M

-43.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,435 MX$26.8K

$1,723 Rp 31.1M

-16.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,219 MX$78.8K

$2,732 Rp 49.2M

54.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,731 MX$51.0K

$2,284 Rp 41.2M

19.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,149 MX$21.5K

$164 Rp 3.0M

601.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.79

13.78

-14.44%

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

Last update for Monterrey: October 25, 2026

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Monterrey

$721 43.8%

Ubud, Bali

$672 49.8% 6.9% $50

Groceries & Markets

Monterrey

$303 18.4%

Ubud, Bali

$288 21.4% 4.9% $15

Eating Out

Monterrey

$217 13.2%

Ubud, Bali

$108 8% 50.4% $110

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monterrey

$170 10.3%

Ubud, Bali

$104 7.7% 38.7% $66

Clothing & Footwear

Monterrey

$152 9.3%

Ubud, Bali

$108 8% 29.5% $45

Getting Around

Monterrey

$42 2.5%

Ubud, Bali

$11 0.9% 72.7% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Monterrey

$41 2.5%

Ubud, Bali

$58 4.3% 41.7% $17

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,056 in Monterrey and $1,125 in Ubud, Bali. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Monterrey pays about 7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $48 in Monterrey vs $36 in Ubud, Bali for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $303 vs $288 per month, with Ubud, Bali cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🕒 Local time

04:22 4:22 AM

18:22 6:22 PM

14 h ahead of Monterrey

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,142,994

74,800

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.55 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.69 MXN (100 MXN = 5.35 USD). 1 EUR = 20.8 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18,025 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.55 USD). 1 EUR = 20,061 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.98 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Monterrey Ubud, Bali 15,800 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Monterrey
Ubud, Bali

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 Ubud, Bali: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monterrey and Ubud, Bali differ by about 22% in total monthly costs ($1,647 vs $1,349 including rent). Ubud, Bali is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Monterrey is about 7 times higher, 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: $1,056 in Monterrey versus $1,125 in Ubud, Bali. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Ubud, Bali – a meal for two runs $36 versus $48 in Monterrey. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,647 per month in Monterrey versus $1,349 in Ubud, Bali – a 22% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Ubud, Bali is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both work as nomad bases, but Ubud, Bali delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,349 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Ubud, Bali hard to pass up.

It comes down to priorities – Ubud, Bali wins on affordability, Monterrey on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.