Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Virginia Beach, VA and Monterrey

For one person, living is cheaper in Monterrey: $1,641 a month against $2,847 in Virginia Beach, VA, rent and utilities included – about $14,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

137

Cost of Living Index in Virginia Beach, VA
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Virginia Beach, VA Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index

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Virginia Beach, VA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,847

/mo nomad

Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,641

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,847 in Virginia Beach, VA versus $1,641 in Monterrey.

Virginia Beach, VA $2,847
Monterrey $1,641

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,018 in Virginia Beach, VA versus $2,573 in Monterrey.

Virginia Beach, VA $4,018
Monterrey $2,573

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,188 in Virginia Beach, VA versus $3,504 in Monterrey.

Virginia Beach, VA $5,188
Monterrey $3,504

Living in Virginia Beach, VA is roughly 73% more expensive than in Monterrey, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Virginia Beach, VA 111% above, Monterrey 21% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.07 $18.07

$13.37 MX$251

35.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$89.3 $89.3

$47.95 MX$900

86.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 $11.79

$10.79 MX$203

9.27%

Cappuccino

$5.82 $5.82

$3.77 MX$70.7

54.38%

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

$2.81 $2.81

$1.51 MX$28.37

86.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 $2.17

$1.03 MX$19.33

110.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.85 $5.85

$2.48 MX$46.60

135.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.94 $6.94

$4.36 MX$81.8

59.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.04 $1.04

$1.89 MX$35.58

-44.97%

White Bread (500g)

$3.18 $3.18

$2.85 MX$53.5

11.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.31 $5.31

$1.86 MX$34.86

185.48%

Eggs

$4.69 $4.69

$2.47 MX$46.31

89.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.20 $10.20

$11.81 MX$222

-13.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.09 $10.09

$8.97 MX$168

12.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.95 $17.95

$12.57 MX$236

42.80%

Apples (1kg)

$2.48 $2.48

$3.20 MX$60.0

-22.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 $1.54

$1.50 MX$28.23

2.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.17 $5.17

$2.12 MX$39.90

143.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.81 $5.81

$2.33 MX$43.82

149.36%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 $2.36

$2.22 MX$41.75

6.31%

Onion (1kg)

$4.40 $4.40

$2.58 MX$48.54

70.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.65 $2.65

$1.45 MX$27.15

82.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.35 $2.35

$1.22 MX$22.94

92.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.66 $9.66

$4.80 MX$90.1

101.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.89 $11.89

$13.30 MX$250

-10.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.93 MX$36.28

-8.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 $2.11

$2.86 MX$53.6

-26.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.04 $2.04

$0.80 MX$15.00

155.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$70.1 $70.1

$30.94 MX$581

126.54%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.14 $6.14

$1.83 MX$34.42

235.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.47 $1.47

$1.06 MX$19.86

38.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.16 $20.16

$10.82 MX$203

86.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.00 $1.00

$1.47 MX$27.65

-31.97%

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

$27.3K $27.3K

$24.1K MX$452.3K

13.28%

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

$26.4K $26.4K

$23.5K MX$442.0K

12.26%

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

$208 $208

$115 MX$2,152

81.64%

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

$59.5 $59.5

$26.37 MX$495

125.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$67.1 $67.1

$25.70 MX$483

161.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$23.62 $23.62

$30.53 MX$573

-22.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.42 $35.42

$21.27 MX$400

66.53%

Cinema Ticket

$9.20 $9.20

$4.96 MX$93.1

85.48%

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

$1,606 $1,606

$679 MX$12.7K

136.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.9K $23.9K

$14.2K MX$266.4K

68.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 $62.4

$72.2 MX$1,356

-13.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.77 $47.77

$41.94 MX$788

13.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$119 $119

$107 MX$2,019

10.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 $114

$119 MX$2,228

-4.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,968 $1,968

$1,018 MX$19.1K

93.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,531 $1,531

$722 MX$13.6K

112.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,848 $2,848

$1,966 MX$36.9K

44.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,193 $2,193

$1,416 MX$26.6K

54.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,765 $2,765

$4,203 MX$78.9K

-34.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,294 $2,294

$2,782 MX$52.2K

-17.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,366 $4,366

$1,096 MX$20.6K

298.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.57

11.79

-44.27%

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

Last update for Virginia Beach, VA: November 2, 2026

Last update for Monterrey: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Virginia Beach, VA

$1.5K 53.8%

Monterrey

$722 44% 52.9% $810

Groceries & Markets

Virginia Beach, VA

$380 13.4%

Monterrey

$302 18.4% 20.5% $78

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Virginia Beach, VA

$335 11.8%

Monterrey

$167 10.2% 50.2% $168

Eating Out

Virginia Beach, VA

$313 11%

Monterrey

$216 13.2% 31% $97

Clothing & Footwear

Virginia Beach, VA

$154 5.4%

Monterrey

$153 9.3% 0.7% $1

Getting Around

Virginia Beach, VA

$92 3.2%

Monterrey

$41 2.5% 55% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Virginia Beach, VA

$42 1.5%

Monterrey

$40 2.5% 3.7% $1.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,968 in Virginia Beach, VA and $1,018 in Monterrey. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Virginia Beach, VA pays about 4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $89 in Virginia Beach, VA vs $48 in Monterrey for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $380 vs $302 per month, with Monterrey cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Virginia Beach, VA

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🕒 Local time

20:59 8:59 PM

19:59 7:59 PM

1 h behind Virginia Beach, VA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

459,470

1,142,994

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.891 EUR

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 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 = 0.891 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.78 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 21.08 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Virginia Beach, VA Monterrey 2,610 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Virginia Beach, VA
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

Virginia Beach, VA vs Monterrey: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,847 in Virginia Beach, VA and $1,641 in Monterrey, so Monterrey is about 42% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Virginia Beach, VA is about 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: $1,968 in Virginia Beach, VA 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 $89 in Virginia Beach, VA. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,847 per month in Virginia Beach, VA versus $1,641 in Monterrey – Monterrey is about 42% 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 42% less than in Virginia Beach, VA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.