Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nagoya and Monterrey

For one person, living is cheaper in Nagoya: $1,373 a month against $1,599 in Monterrey, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Monterrey outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

67

Cost of Living Index in Nagoya
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Nagoya Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index

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Nagoya

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,373

/mo nomad

Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,599

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nagoya and in Monterrey

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Nagoya and in Monterrey actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,373 in Nagoya versus $1,599 in Monterrey.

Nagoya $1,373
Monterrey $1,599

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,176 in Nagoya versus $2,493 in Monterrey.

Nagoya $2,176
Monterrey $2,493

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,979 in Nagoya versus $3,387 in Monterrey.

Nagoya $2,979
Monterrey $3,387

Living in Nagoya costs roughly 14% less than in Monterrey, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Nagoya 1% above, Monterrey 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.56 ¥1,353

$13.80 MX$255

-37.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.66 ¥5,001

$47.99 MX$887

-34.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.12 ¥809

$10.65 MX$197

-51.92%

Cappuccino

$2.59 ¥410

$3.99 MX$73.7

-35.09%

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

$1.26 ¥199

$1.66 MX$30.76

-24.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.88 ¥140

$0.99 MX$18.21

-11.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.16 ¥500

$2.36 MX$43.64

33.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 ¥508

$4.43 MX$81.8

-27.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 ¥247

$1.82 MX$33.58

-13.74%

White Bread (500g)

$1.49 ¥236

$2.83 MX$52.4

-47.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.08 ¥645

$1.92 MX$35.44

112.50%

Eggs

$2.19 ¥345

$2.48 MX$45.78

-11.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.51 ¥2,450

$11.74 MX$217

32.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.03 ¥1,110

$9.10 MX$168

-22.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.86 ¥2,664

$12.53 MX$232

34.56%

Apples (1kg)

$8.24 ¥1,302

$3.34 MX$61.6

146.71%

Banana (1kg)

$3.05 ¥482

$1.57 MX$29.10

94.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.10 ¥805

$2.16 MX$39.86

136.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$7.96 ¥1,257

$2.47 MX$45.65

222.27%

Potato (1kg)

$4.11 ¥650

$2.31 MX$42.64

77.92%

Onion (1kg)

$4.65 ¥735

$2.68 MX$49.47

73.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.16 ¥183

$1.46 MX$26.90

-20.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 ¥142

$1.19 MX$22.07

-24.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.95 ¥623

$4.75 MX$87.8

-16.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.24 ¥1,460

$13.58 MX$251

-31.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.51 ¥397

$1.92 MX$35.52

30.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 ¥340

$2.88 MX$53.2

-25.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.48 ¥233

$0.79 MX$14.66

87.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$118 ¥18.6K

$31.36 MX$579

276.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.21 ¥507

$1.59 MX$29.44

101.89%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.83 ¥446

$1.06 MX$19.58

166.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.07 ¥2,539

$10.80 MX$200

48.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ¥173

$1.55 MX$28.59

-29.03%

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

$21.6K ¥3.4M

$24.2K MX$446.4K

-10.50%

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

$15.4K ¥2.4M

$24.3K MX$449.4K

-36.52%

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

$115 ¥18.1K

$117 MX$2,159

-1.83%

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

$23.43 ¥3,702

$26.38 MX$488

-11.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.91 ¥4,883

$26.04 MX$481

18.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.4 ¥7,959

$30.26 MX$559

66.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.78 ¥2,177

$21.25 MX$393

-35.15%

Cinema Ticket

$12.68 ¥2,003

$5.23 MX$96.6

142.45%

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

$573 ¥90.5K

$673 MX$12.4K

-14.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.9K ¥2.4M

$11.1K MX$205.2K

34.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.2 ¥7,922

$72.1 MX$1,332

-30.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.45 ¥5,601

$42.38 MX$783

-16.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$60.4 ¥9,543

$112 MX$2,066

-45.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.1 ¥15.3K

$119 MX$2,200

-18.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$523 ¥82.7K

$949 MX$17.5K

-44.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$352 ¥55.7K

$666 MX$12.3K

-47.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,228 ¥194.0K

$1,821 MX$33.7K

-32.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$744 ¥117.5K

$1,271 MX$23.5K

-41.51%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,026 ¥320.1K

$4,050 MX$74.8K

-49.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,039 ¥164.1K

$2,348 MX$43.4K

-55.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,871 ¥295.6K

$1,155 MX$21.3K

61.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.02

11.79

-82.87%

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

Last update for Nagoya: October 18, 2026

Last update for Monterrey: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Nagoya

$380 27.7%

Monterrey

$304 19% 19.9% $76

Accommodation & Living

Nagoya

$352 25.7%

Monterrey

$666 41.7% 89.2% $314

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nagoya

$169 12.3%

Monterrey

$169 10.6% 0.1% $0.2

Eating Out

Nagoya

$146 10.6%

Monterrey

$221 13.9% 51.9% $76

Getting Around

Nagoya

$141 10.3%

Monterrey

$41 2.6% 70.7% $100

Clothing & Footwear

Nagoya

$109 8%

Monterrey

$155 9.7% 42% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Nagoya

$76 5.5%

Monterrey

$41 2.6% 46.3% $35

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $523 in Nagoya and $949 in Monterrey. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nagoya pays 62% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32.00 in Nagoya vs $48.00 in Monterrey. Groceries flip the comparison at $380 vs $304, with Monterrey cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Nagoya

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🕒 Local time

19:19 7:19 PM

04:19 4:19 AM

15 h behind Nagoya

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,236,000

1,142,994

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Nagoya Monterrey 10,960 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Nagoya
Monterrey

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

Nagoya vs Monterrey: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nagoya and Monterrey differ by about 16% in total monthly costs ($1,373 vs $1,599 including rent). Nagoya is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 62% higher in Nagoya, 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: $523 in Nagoya versus $949 in Monterrey. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Nagoya – a meal for two runs $32.00 versus $48.00 in Monterrey. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,373 per month in Nagoya versus $1,599 in Monterrey – a 16% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,373 in Nagoya versus $1,599 in Monterrey, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Nagoya but tight or insufficient in Monterrey. The gap between the two cities makes Nagoya 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, Nagoya and Monterrey 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 Nagoya gentler on the wallet – expenses run 16% less than in Monterrey. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.