Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Luis Rio Colorado and Monterrey

For one person, living is cheaper in San Luis Rio Colorado: $1,229 a month against $1,647 in Monterrey, rent and utilities included – about $5,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in San Luis Rio Colorado
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San Luis Rio Colorado Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index

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San Luis Rio Colorado

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,229

/mo nomad

Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,647

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,229 in San Luis Rio Colorado versus $1,647 in Monterrey.

San Luis Rio Colorado $1,229
Monterrey $1,647

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,860 in San Luis Rio Colorado versus $2,591 in Monterrey.

San Luis Rio Colorado $1,860
Monterrey $2,591

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,491 in San Luis Rio Colorado versus $3,536 in Monterrey.

San Luis Rio Colorado $2,491
Monterrey $3,536

Living in San Luis Rio Colorado costs roughly 25% less than in Monterrey, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: San Luis Rio Colorado is 10% below, Monterrey is 21% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.95 MX$223

$13.45 MX$251

-11.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$33.23 MX$621

$48.43 MX$905

-31.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.45 MX$177

$10.90 MX$204

-13.30%

Cappuccino

$4.19 MX$78.4

$3.82 MX$71.3

9.69%

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

$1.42 MX$26.52

$1.67 MX$31.14

-14.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.23 MX$22.99

$0.98 MX$18.37

25.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.16 MX$59.1

$2.35 MX$43.91

34.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.43 MX$120

$4.41 MX$82.4

45.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$32.13

$1.80 MX$33.66

-4.44%

White Bread (500g)

$2.93 MX$54.8

$2.79 MX$52.2

5.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.76 MX$32.88

$1.82 MX$34.10

-3.30%

Eggs

$3.10 MX$57.9

$2.51 MX$46.95

23.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.46 MX$158

$12.09 MX$226

-30.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.24 MX$135

$9.41 MX$176

-23.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.50 MX$215

$12.71 MX$237

-9.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.87 MX$53.7

$3.21 MX$59.9

-10.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 MX$29.78

$1.50 MX$27.99

6.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.66

$2.14 MX$40.07

-8.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 MX$29.20

$2.32 MX$43.38

-32.76%

Potato (1kg)

$1.49 MX$27.76

$2.20 MX$41.14

-32.27%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.92

$2.60 MX$48.55

-30.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 MX$27.11

$1.44 MX$26.92

0.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 MX$19.47

$1.17 MX$21.93

-11.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.39 MX$82.0

$4.79 MX$89.5

-8.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.98 MX$149

$13.22 MX$247

-39.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.21 MX$41.29

$1.94 MX$36.30

13.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.02 MX$75.1

$2.89 MX$53.9

39.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.69 MX$12.82

$0.87 MX$16.30

-20.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$32.51 MX$607

$31.14 MX$582

4.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.75 MX$51.3

$1.66 MX$30.96

65.66%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.20 MX$41.19

$1.09 MX$20.44

101.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.75 MX$201

$10.67 MX$199

0.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 MX$28.04

$1.47 MX$27.53

2.04%

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

$24.2K MX$452.8K

$24.2K MX$453.0K

-0.05%

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

$23.6K MX$441.3K

$23.6K MX$440.1K

0.26%

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

$46.01 MX$860

$118 MX$2,202

-60.97%

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

$32.95 MX$616

$25.55 MX$477

28.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.62 MX$553

$26.43 MX$494

12.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.11 MX$600

$30.77 MX$575

4.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.37 MX$362

$21.07 MX$394

-8.07%

Cinema Ticket

$6.45 MX$120

$5.09 MX$95.1

26.72%

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

$206 MX$3,841

$694 MX$13.0K

-70.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,436 MX$82.9K

$11.3K MX$211.5K

-60.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.5 MX$981

$72.5 MX$1,354

-27.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 MX$855

$41.51 MX$776

10.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 MX$1,921

$110 MX$2,050

-6.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$69.7 MX$1,303

$115 MX$2,148

-39.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$572 MX$10.7K

$1,056 MX$19.7K

-45.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$428 MX$7,995

$721 MX$13.5K

-40.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$893 MX$16.7K

$1,999 MX$37.4K

-55.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$668 MX$12.5K

$1,435 MX$26.8K

-53.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,110 MX$39.4K

$4,219 MX$78.8K

-50.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,092 MX$20.4K

$2,731 MX$51.0K

-60.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,149 MX$21.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.07

11.79

2.37%

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

Last update for San Luis Rio Colorado: October 24, 2026

Last update for Monterrey: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Luis Rio Colorado

$428 34.8%

Monterrey

$721 43.8% 68.6% $293

Groceries & Markets

San Luis Rio Colorado

$263 21.4%

Monterrey

$303 18.4% 15.4% $40

Eating Out

San Luis Rio Colorado

$213 17.4%

Monterrey

$217 13.2% 1.8% $3.8

Clothing & Footwear

San Luis Rio Colorado

$122 9.9%

Monterrey

$152 9.3% 25.1% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Luis Rio Colorado

$109 8.8%

Monterrey

$170 10.3% 56.4% $61

Getting Around

San Luis Rio Colorado

$49 4%

Monterrey

$42 2.5% 14.8% $7.3

Sport & Entertainment

San Luis Rio Colorado

$45 3.7%

Monterrey

$41 2.5% 9% $4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $572 in San Luis Rio Colorado and $1,056 in Monterrey. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $33 in San Luis Rio Colorado vs $48 in Monterrey for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $263 vs $303 per month, with San Luis Rio Colorado cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 San Luis Rio Colorado

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🕒 Local time

02:15 2:15 AM

03:15 3:15 AM

1 h ahead of San Luis Rio Colorado

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

176,685

1,142,994

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

San Luis Rio Colorado Monterrey 1,590 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

San Luis Rio Colorado
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

San Luis Rio Colorado vs Monterrey: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Luis Rio Colorado and Monterrey differ by about 34% in total monthly costs ($1,229 vs $1,647 including rent). San Luis Rio Colorado is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,843 in San Luis Rio Colorado and $2,470 in Monterrey to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $572 in San Luis Rio Colorado versus $1,056 in Monterrey. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in San Luis Rio Colorado – a meal for two runs $33 versus $48 in Monterrey. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,229 per month in San Luis Rio Colorado versus $1,647 in Monterrey – a 34% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

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

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.