Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Saint Joseph, MI and Monterrey

For one person, living is cheaper in Monterrey: $1,641 a month against $1,925 in Saint Joseph, MI, rent and utilities included – about $3,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

92

Cost of Living Index in Saint Joseph, MI
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Saint Joseph, MI Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index

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Saint Joseph, MI

🇺🇸 United States

$1,925

/mo nomad

Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,641

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,925 in Saint Joseph, MI versus $1,641 in Monterrey.

Saint Joseph, MI $1,925
Monterrey $1,641

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,077 in Saint Joseph, MI versus $2,573 in Monterrey.

Saint Joseph, MI $3,077
Monterrey $2,573

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,229 in Saint Joseph, MI versus $3,504 in Monterrey.

Saint Joseph, MI $4,229
Monterrey $3,504

Living in Saint Joseph, MI is roughly 17% more expensive than in Monterrey, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Saint Joseph, MI 42% above, Monterrey 21% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.88 $13.88

$13.37 MX$250

3.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$73.8 $73.8

$47.95 MX$897

53.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.10 $9.10

$10.79 MX$202

-15.66%

Cappuccino

$4.05 $4.05

$3.77 MX$70.4

7.43%

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

$3.00 $3.00

$1.51 MX$28.26

98.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.96 $1.96

$1.03 MX$19.25

90.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.92 $3.92

$2.48 MX$46.41

58.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.09 $5.09

$4.36 MX$81.5

16.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.81 $0.81

$1.89 MX$35.43

-57.14%

White Bread (500g)

$2.74 $2.74

$2.85 MX$53.3

-3.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.86 $2.86

$1.86 MX$34.71

53.76%

Eggs

$3.65 $3.65

$2.47 MX$46.12

47.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.78 $7.78

$11.81 MX$221

-34.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.87 $10.87

$8.97 MX$168

21.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.57 $8.57

$12.57 MX$235

-31.82%

Apples (1kg)

$5.76 $5.76

$3.20 MX$59.8

80.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.72 $1.72

$1.50 MX$28.12

14.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.47 $3.47

$2.12 MX$39.74

63.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.41 $5.41

$2.33 MX$43.64

132.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.70 $1.70

$2.22 MX$41.58

-23.42%

Onion (1kg)

$3.32 $3.32

$2.58 MX$48.34

28.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.61 $1.61

$1.45 MX$27.04

11.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.54 $2.54

$1.22 MX$22.85

108.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.12 $12.12

$4.80 MX$89.7

152.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.10 $8.10

$13.30 MX$249

-39.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 $1.68

$1.93 MX$36.14

-12.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.98 $2.98

$2.86 MX$53.4

4.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.74 $1.74

$0.80 MX$14.94

117.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.3 $61.3

$30.94 MX$579

98.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.64 $3.64

$1.83 MX$34.28

98.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 $1.50

$1.06 MX$19.78

41.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.27 $30.27

$10.82 MX$202

179.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.85 $0.85

$1.47 MX$27.54

-42.18%

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

$24.1K $24.1K

$24.1K MX$450.4K

0.19%

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

$26.0K $26.0K

$23.5K MX$440.2K

10.48%

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

$171 $171

$115 MX$2,144

48.80%

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

$52.8 $52.8

$26.37 MX$493

100.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$50.3 $50.3

$25.70 MX$481

95.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.48 $39.48

$30.53 MX$571

29.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.27 MX$398

Cinema Ticket

$10.64 $10.64

$4.96 MX$92.8

114.52%

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

$1,518 $1,518

$679 MX$12.7K

123.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.2K $22.2K

$14.2K MX$265.3K

56.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$39.63 $39.63

$72.2 MX$1,350

-45.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.78 $49.78

$41.94 MX$784

18.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.7 $73.7

$107 MX$2,011

-31.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.7 $75.7

$119 MX$2,219

-36.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,074 $1,074

$1,018 MX$19.0K

5.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$843 $843

$722 MX$13.5K

16.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,872 $1,872

$1,966 MX$36.8K

-4.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,788 $1,788

$1,416 MX$26.5K

26.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,543 $2,543

$4,203 MX$78.6K

-39.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,551 $2,551

$2,782 MX$52.0K

-8.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,016 $5,016

$1,096 MX$20.5K

357.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.35

11.79

-46.14%

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

Last update for Saint Joseph, MI: November 3, 2026

Last update for Monterrey: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Saint Joseph, MI

$843 43.8%

Monterrey

$722 44% 14.4% $122

Groceries & Markets

Saint Joseph, MI

$324 16.8%

Monterrey

$302 18.4% 6.8% $22

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Saint Joseph, MI

$274 14.2%

Monterrey

$167 10.2% 39.1% $107

Eating Out

Saint Joseph, MI

$237 12.3%

Monterrey

$216 13.2% 8.8% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Saint Joseph, MI

$107 5.6%

Monterrey

$153 9.3% 42.5% $46

Getting Around

Saint Joseph, MI

$79 4.1%

Monterrey

$41 2.5% 48.1% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Saint Joseph, MI

$61 3.2%

Monterrey

$40 2.5% 33.4% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,074 in Saint Joseph, MI and $1,018 in Monterrey. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Saint Joseph, MI pays about 4.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $74 in Saint Joseph, MI vs $48 in Monterrey for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $324 vs $302 per month, with Monterrey cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Saint Joseph, MI

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🕒 Local time

13:13 1:13 PM

12:13 12:13 PM

1 h behind Saint Joseph, MI

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

76,780

1,142,994

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 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 = 0.89 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.7 MXN (100 MXN = 5.35 USD). 1 EUR = 21.01 MXN (100 MXN = 4.76 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Saint Joseph, MI Monterrey 2,220 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Saint Joseph, MI
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

Saint Joseph, MI vs Monterrey: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,925 in Saint Joseph, MI and $1,641 in Monterrey, so Monterrey is about 15% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Saint Joseph, MI is about 4.6 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: $1,074 in Saint Joseph, MI 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 $74 in Saint Joseph, MI. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,925 per month in Saint Joseph, MI versus $1,641 in Monterrey – Monterrey is about 15% 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 15% less than in Saint Joseph, MI. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.