Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ottawa and Monterrey

For one person, living is cheaper in Monterrey: $1,641 a month against $2,449 in Ottawa, rent and utilities included – about $9,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

118

Cost of Living Index in Ottawa
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Ottawa Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index

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Ottawa

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,449

/mo nomad

Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,641

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,449 in Ottawa versus $1,641 in Monterrey.

Ottawa $2,449
Monterrey $1,641

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,557 in Ottawa versus $2,573 in Monterrey.

Ottawa $3,557
Monterrey $2,573

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,665 in Ottawa versus $3,504 in Monterrey.

Ottawa $4,665
Monterrey $3,504

Living in Ottawa is roughly 49% more expensive than in Monterrey, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Ottawa 81% above, Monterrey 21% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.60 CA$24.67

$13.37 MX$251

31.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.2 CA$110

$47.95 MX$900

63.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.54 CA$14.77

$10.79 MX$203

-2.32%

Cappuccino

$4.23 CA$5.92

$3.77 MX$70.7

12.20%

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

$2.03 CA$2.84

$1.51 MX$28.37

34.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 CA$2.45

$1.03 MX$19.33

69.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.57 CA$7.81

$2.48 MX$46.60

124.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.37 CA$8.93

$4.36 MX$81.8

46.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.37 CA$3.33

$1.89 MX$35.58

25.40%

White Bread (500g)

$3.06 CA$4.30

$2.85 MX$53.5

7.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.03 CA$4.25

$1.86 MX$34.86

62.90%

Eggs

$3.20 CA$4.48

$2.47 MX$46.31

29.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.55 CA$16.19

$11.81 MX$222

-2.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.33 CA$17.28

$8.97 MX$168

37.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.81 CA$26.37

$12.57 MX$236

49.64%

Apples (1kg)

$3.88 CA$5.44

$3.20 MX$60.0

21.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.28 CA$1.79

$1.50 MX$28.23

-14.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.96 CA$5.55

$2.12 MX$39.90

86.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.55 CA$4.98

$2.33 MX$43.82

52.36%

Potato (1kg)

$2.72 CA$3.81

$2.22 MX$41.75

22.52%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 CA$3.42

$2.58 MX$48.54

-5.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.69 CA$3.77

$1.45 MX$27.15

85.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 CA$2.17

$1.22 MX$22.94

27.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.64 CA$20.52

$4.80 MX$90.1

205.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.53 CA$17.56

$13.30 MX$250

-5.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 CA$3.73

$1.93 MX$36.28

37.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.00 CA$4.21

$2.86 MX$53.6

4.90%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.90 CA$4.07

$0.80 MX$15.00

262.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$98.2 CA$138

$30.94 MX$581

217.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.76 CA$3.88

$1.83 MX$34.42

50.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.46 CA$2.05

$1.06 MX$19.86

37.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.28 CA$27.03

$10.82 MX$203

78.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.20 CA$1.69

$1.47 MX$27.65

-18.37%

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

$27.9K CA$39.1K

$24.1K MX$452.3K

15.73%

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

$22.2K CA$31.2K

$23.5K MX$442.0K

-5.48%

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

$137 CA$192

$115 MX$2,152

19.69%

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

$36.79 CA$51.6

$26.37 MX$495

39.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.56 CA$66.7

$25.70 MX$483

85.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.86 CA$65.7

$30.53 MX$573

53.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.83 CA$39.02

$21.27 MX$400

30.84%

Cinema Ticket

$12.66 CA$17.74

$4.96 MX$93.1

155.24%

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

$817 CA$1,145

$679 MX$12.7K

20.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.5K CA$28.7K

$14.2K MX$266.4K

44.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.1 CA$84.2

$72.2 MX$1,356

-16.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.13 CA$54.9

$41.94 MX$788

-6.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 CA$148

$107 MX$2,019

-1.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 CA$142

$119 MX$2,228

-14.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,447 CA$2,028

$1,018 MX$19.1K

42.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,240 CA$1,738

$722 MX$13.6K

71.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,214 CA$3,103

$1,966 MX$36.9K

12.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,856 CA$2,601

$1,416 MX$26.6K

31.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,570 CA$6,406

$4,203 MX$78.9K

8.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,419 CA$6,195

$2,782 MX$52.2K

58.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,670 CA$5,145

$1,096 MX$20.6K

234.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.14

11.79

-64.89%

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

Last update for Ottawa: 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

Ottawa

$1.2K 50.6%

Monterrey

$722 44% 41.8% $518

Groceries & Markets

Ottawa

$379 15.5%

Monterrey

$302 18.4% 20.4% $77

Eating Out

Ottawa

$279 11.4%

Monterrey

$216 13.2% 22.6% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ottawa

$222 9%

Monterrey

$167 10.2% 24.8% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Ottawa

$138 5.6%

Monterrey

$153 9.3% 11.3% $16

Getting Around

Ottawa

$120 4.9%

Monterrey

$41 2.5% 65.6% $79

Sport & Entertainment

Ottawa

$72 3%

Monterrey

$40 2.5% 44% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,447 in Ottawa and $1,018 in Monterrey. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ottawa pays about 3.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $78 in Ottawa vs $48 in Monterrey for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $379 vs $302 per month, with Monterrey cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Ottawa

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🕒 Local time

06:44 6:44 AM

05:44 5:44 AM

1 h behind Ottawa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,000,000 Capital

1,142,994

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.713 USD

1 CAD = 0.635 EUR

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.713 USD). 1 EUR = 1.57 CAD (1 CAD = 0.635 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.78 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 21.09 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ottawa Monterrey 3,100 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Ottawa
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

Ottawa vs Monterrey: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,449 in Ottawa and $1,641 in Monterrey, so Monterrey is about 33% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Ottawa is about 3.3 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: $1,447 in Ottawa 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 $78 in Ottawa. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,449 per month in Ottawa versus $1,641 in Monterrey – Monterrey is about 33% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Monterrey gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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 33% less than in Ottawa. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.