Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between North Charleston, SC and Monterrey

For one person, living is cheaper in Monterrey: $1,641 a month against $2,964 in North Charleston, SC, rent and utilities included – about $15,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

141

Cost of Living Index in North Charleston, SC
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North Charleston, SC Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index

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North Charleston, SC

🇺🇸 United States

$2,964

/mo nomad

Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,641

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in North Charleston, SC 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 North Charleston, SC and in Monterrey actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,964 in North Charleston, SC versus $1,641 in Monterrey.

North Charleston, SC $2,964
Monterrey $1,641

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,247 in North Charleston, SC versus $2,573 in Monterrey.

North Charleston, SC $4,247
Monterrey $2,573

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,530 in North Charleston, SC versus $3,504 in Monterrey.

North Charleston, SC $5,530
Monterrey $3,504

Living in North Charleston, SC is roughly 81% more expensive than in Monterrey, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: North Charleston, SC 119% above, Monterrey 21% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.99 $19.99

$13.37 MX$250

49.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.6 $90.6

$47.95 MX$897

88.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.77 $11.77

$10.79 MX$202

9.08%

Cappuccino

$5.85 $5.85

$3.77 MX$70.4

55.17%

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

$2.92 $2.92

$1.51 MX$28.26

93.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.48 $2.48

$1.03 MX$19.25

140.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.86 $5.86

$2.48 MX$46.41

136.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.03 $8.03

$4.36 MX$81.5

84.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.99 $0.99

$1.89 MX$35.43

-47.62%

White Bread (500g)

$3.74 $3.74

$2.85 MX$53.3

31.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.52 $4.52

$1.86 MX$34.71

143.01%

Eggs

$4.94 $4.94

$2.47 MX$46.12

100.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.98 $6.98

$11.81 MX$221

-40.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.80 $14.80

$8.97 MX$168

64.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 $20.65

$12.57 MX$235

64.28%

Apples (1kg)

$7.99 $7.99

$3.20 MX$59.8

149.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.77 $1.77

$1.50 MX$28.12

18.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.03 $5.03

$2.12 MX$39.74

137.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.17 $6.17

$2.33 MX$43.64

164.81%

Potato (1kg)

$4.24 $4.24

$2.22 MX$41.58

90.99%

Onion (1kg)

$3.25 $3.25

$2.58 MX$48.34

25.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.69 $2.69

$1.45 MX$27.04

85.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.97 $1.97

$1.22 MX$22.85

61.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.07 $9.07

$4.80 MX$89.7

88.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.52 $15.52

$13.30 MX$249

16.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.11 $2.11

$1.93 MX$36.14

9.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.98 $2.98

$2.86 MX$53.4

4.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.47 $2.47

$0.80 MX$14.94

208.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.1 $50.1

$30.94 MX$579

61.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.94 $2.94

$1.83 MX$34.28

60.66%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.22 $1.22

$1.06 MX$19.78

15.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$25.47 $25.47

$10.82 MX$202

135.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.01 $1.01

$1.47 MX$27.54

-31.29%

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

$26.7K $26.7K

$24.1K MX$450.4K

11.03%

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

$25.1K $25.1K

$23.5K MX$440.2K

6.55%

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

$233 $233

$115 MX$2,144

103.11%

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

$74.5 $74.5

$26.37 MX$493

182.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$84.9 $84.9

$25.70 MX$481

230.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$17.26 $17.26

$30.53 MX$571

-43.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.27 MX$398

Cinema Ticket

$14.28 $14.28

$4.96 MX$92.8

187.90%

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

$933 $933

$679 MX$12.7K

37.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.4K $18.4K

$14.2K MX$265.3K

29.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.8 $55.8

$72.2 MX$1,350

-22.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.75 $43.75

$41.94 MX$784

4.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$115 $115

$107 MX$2,011

6.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 $129

$119 MX$2,219

8.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,000 $2,000

$1,018 MX$19.0K

96.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,525 $1,525

$722 MX$13.5K

111.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,474 $2,474

$1,966 MX$36.8K

25.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,330 $2,330

$1,416 MX$26.5K

64.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,861 $2,861

$4,203 MX$78.6K

-31.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,816 $2,816

$2,782 MX$52.0K

1.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,763 $3,763

$1,096 MX$20.5K

243.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.61

11.79

-43.94%

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

Last update for North Charleston, SC: October 31, 2026

Last update for Monterrey: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

North Charleston, SC

$1.5K 51.5%

Monterrey

$722 44% 52.7% $804

Groceries & Markets

North Charleston, SC

$445 15%

Monterrey

$302 18.4% 32.1% $143

Monthly Utilities & Internet

North Charleston, SC

$392 13.2%

Monterrey

$167 10.2% 57.5% $226

Eating Out

North Charleston, SC

$332 11.2%

Monterrey

$216 13.2% 35.1% $117

Clothing & Footwear

North Charleston, SC

$155 5.2%

Monterrey

$153 9.3% 0.9% $1.4

Getting Around

North Charleston, SC

$69 2.3%

Monterrey

$41 2.5% 40.2% $28

Sport & Entertainment

North Charleston, SC

$46 1.6%

Monterrey

$40 2.5% 11.7% $5.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,000 in North Charleston, SC and $1,018 in Monterrey. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

North Charleston, SC pays about 3.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $91 in North Charleston, SC vs $48 in Monterrey for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $445 vs $302 per month, with Monterrey cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 North Charleston, SC

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🕒 Local time

17:28 5:28 PM

16:28 4:28 PM

1 h behind North Charleston, SC

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

97,471

1,142,994

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.895 EUR

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.895 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.7 MXN (100 MXN = 5.35 USD). 1 EUR = 20.9 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

North Charleston, SC Monterrey 2,120 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

North Charleston, SC
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

North Charleston, SC vs Monterrey: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,964 in North Charleston, SC and $1,641 in Monterrey, so Monterrey is about 45% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in North Charleston, SC is about 3.4 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: $2,000 in North Charleston, SC versus $1,018 in Monterrey. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Monterrey – a meal for two runs $48 versus $91 in North Charleston, SC. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,964 per month in North Charleston, SC versus $1,641 in Monterrey – Monterrey is about 45% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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 45% less than in North Charleston, SC. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.