Santa Cruz de la Sierra vs Mérida
In short
Calculated from the figures below, with no overall “who wins” score.
Rent
✓in Santa Cruz cheaper — −50%
Family budget
✓in Santa Cruz cheaper — −62%
Internet
✓in Santa Cruz cheaper — −61%
In numbers
Exchange rate as of the date each figure was checked.
House or apartment rent
per month✓Santa Cruz de la Sierra≈ $342–700BOB 4,100–8,400cheaper by 50%Mérida≈ $828–1,270MX$15k – 22,925Family budget
per month✓Santa Cruz de la Sierra≈ $410BOB 4,917cheaper by 62%Mérida≈ $1,080MX$19,621Internet
per month✓Santa Cruz de la Sierra≈ $19BOB 229cheaper by 61%Mérida≈ $21–77MX$389–1,399Winter
averageSanta Cruz de la Sierra22 °C22 °CMérida17–31 °C17–31 °CPrecipitation
per yearSanta Cruz de la Sierra1,372 mm1,372 mmMérida1,050 mm1,050 mmReady-made house
purchase✓Santa Cruz de la Sierra$87,900 – 180k$87,900 – 180kcheaper by 51%Mérida≈ $221–331kMX$4–6M
By topic
A quick look at each city. Details and sources are on the city page.
Daily life
Santa Cruz de la Sierra
Nothing yet
Mérida
By the 2020 census the municipality of Mérida has 995 thousand residents, the city itself 922 thousand. 19% of residents were born in another Mexican state.
OfficialINEGI: 2020 census, results by locality for Yucatán (ITER) · checked 6 Oct 2026
A two-bedroom in Temozón Norte is mostly 15-17k pesos for 70-100 m², in Altabrisa 32-38k, in Montejo 21-27k, in Cholul and Villas del Sol 11.5-15k.
SpecialistMercado Libre: two-bedroom apartments for rent in Mérida · checked 6 Oct 2026
Housing
Santa Cruz de la Sierra
A three-bedroom house by listings costs 88-180 thousand dollars, median 123 thousand. In Urubó about 228 thousand, in the north of the city about 117 thousand.
SpecialistInfoCasas Bolivia: sale of three-bedroom houses in Santa Cruz · checked 6 Oct 2026
A three-bedroom apartment by listings costs 4100-8400 Bs a month, median about 5500 Bs (about 460 dollars at 11.97). Almost twice as much in Equipetrol.
SpecialistInfoCasas Bolivia: rental of three-bedroom apartments in Santa Cruz · checked 6 Oct 2026
Instead of renting you can give the owner a large sum for a term and live without paying: a three-bedroom apartment in anticrético is about 35-50 thousand dollars.
SpecialistInfoCasas Bolivia: three-bedroom apartments in anticrético in Santa Cruz · checked 6 Oct 2026
Mérida
A two-bedroom apartment in listings is about 16,750 pesos a month, half between 15,000 and 22,900. Of 311 offers, 61 are under 15k and 116 above 20k.
SpecialistMercado Libre: two-bedroom apartments for rent in Mérida · checked 6 Oct 2026
Three-bedroom house: 1034 listings up to 4M pesos, 1355 from 4 to 6M, 1475 above. First-page median 6.65M, about 23k per square meter.
SpecialistMercado Libre: three-bedroom houses for sale in Mérida · checked 6 Oct 2026
Money and prices
Santa Cruz de la Sierra
A family of four in Santa Cruz is considered poor with an income below 4917 Bs a month (about 410 dollars). This is the lowest line among the cities in the INE table.
OfficialINE: poverty line and extreme poverty line per person per month by city, 2016 - December 2025 · checked 6 Oct 2026
The minimum food basket for a family of four in Santa Cruz is about 2490 Bs a month (about 210 dollars) by the INE extreme poverty line for December 2025.
OfficialINE: poverty line and extreme poverty line per person per month by city, 2016 - December 2025 · checked 6 Oct 2026
Mérida
INEGI's urban food basket is 2562.58 pesos per person a month, 10,250 for a family of four (August 2026). A nationwide figure, the food minimum.
OfficialINEGI: income poverty lines, August 2026 (bulletin 592/26) · checked 6 Oct 2026
INEGI's urban poverty line is 4905.33 pesos per person, 19,621 a month for a family of four (August 2026). A floor without rent, not a real budget.
OfficialINEGI: income poverty lines, August 2026 (bulletin 592/26) · checked 6 Oct 2026
Family and kids
Santa Cruz de la Sierra
In 2025 the department of Santa Cruz had 822 thousand students, about 104 thousand (12.6%) in private schools and kindergartens. Private school fees: not found.
OfficialINE with Ministry of Education data: students in public and private schools by department, 2011 - 2025 · checked 6 Oct 2026
Mérida
Micole's estimate for Yucatán: primary school 4000-12,000 pesos a month, kindergarten 3000-8000, international and IB schools 15,000-35,000. Plus an annual fee.
SpecialistMicole: how much a private school costs in Yucatán in 2026 · checked 6 Oct 2026
Healthcare
Santa Cruz de la Sierra
The department of Santa Cruz had 5131 hospital beds in 2024, about 691 inhabitants per bed. This is slightly worse than the national average (669).
OfficialINE with Ministry of Health data: hospital beds and inhabitants per bed by department, 2005 - 2024 · checked 6 Oct 2026
Mérida
According to INEGI, Mérida has 13 private medical facilities with 337 beds (2025). Guadalajara, for comparison, has 76 and 1473. Public hospitals not counted.
OfficialINEGI: statistics of private health facilities (ESEP) 2025, report 28/26 · checked 6 Oct 2026
Transport
Santa Cruz de la Sierra
INE names Viru Viru near Santa Cruz one of the three key international airports; the city also has El Trompillo. A highway runs to Cochabamba and La Paz.
OfficialINE: geographic information on Bolivia (roads and international airports) · checked 6 Oct 2026
Mérida
The airport is 7 km from the main square, about 9 minutes without traffic. In August 2026: 374 thousand passengers, almost all domestic, 35 thousand international.
OfficialASUR: airport passenger traffic for August 2026 (filing on the BMV stock exchange) · checked 6 Oct 2026
Climate
Santa Cruz de la Sierra
About 1370 mm of precipitation a year, from 980 to 1740 mm in different years. The rainiest are December and January (about 180 mm), the driest is July (about 26 mm).
OfficialINE with SENAMHI data: mean temperature and precipitation by city by month, 1990 - 2026; annual tables by weather station, 2005 - 2024 · checked 6 Oct 2026
Winter is warm: the mean temperature in June-August is about 21.7 degrees. But the yearly absolute minimum at the city weather station is 2-9 degrees.
OfficialINE with SENAMHI data: mean temperature and precipitation by city by month, 1990 - 2026; annual tables by weather station, 2005 - 2024 · checked 6 Oct 2026
Mérida
The hottest month is May: on average 36.1 degrees by day and 21.3 at night. From April to September the mean maximum is 34-36 degrees.
OfficialWMO World Weather Information Service: climate normals for Mérida · checked 6 Oct 2026
About 1050 mm a year, 71% of it from June to October, 120-175 mm a month. March and April are the driest, about 25 mm.
OfficialWMO World Weather Information Service: climate normals for Mérida · checked 6 Oct 2026
The coolest month is January: on average 31.3 degrees by day and 17 at night. There is no winter as such; it is the mildest time of the year.
OfficialWMO World Weather Information Service: climate normals for Mérida · checked 6 Oct 2026
Safety
Santa Cruz de la Sierra
In 2024 police in the department of Santa Cruz got 15.6 thousand crime reports, 5.1 thousand on robberies. Homicide reports in 2023: 228, three times La Paz.
OfficialINE with police data: crime reports in the department of Santa Cruz by type, 2007 - 2024 · checked 6 Oct 2026
Mérida
The last strong hit was Isidore in September 2002: it made landfall as a category 3 near Telchac, and its eyewall passed over Mérida. Milton in 2024 passed by at sea.
OfficialNHC: Tropical Cyclone Report, Hurricane Isidore (AL102002) · checked 6 Oct 2026
In June 2026, 38.2% of adults in Mérida felt unsafe versus 59.8% nationwide. Homicides in 2024: 33, about 3 per 100,000 residents.
OfficialINEGI: ENSU, perceived safety by city, June 2026 (report 27/26) · checked 6 Oct 2026
Internet and phone
Santa Cruz de la Sierra
The state operator Entel sells home fiber at 200 Mbps for 229 Bs a month, 1000 Mbps for 450 Bs. Installation is 200 Bs, subject to an address check.
SpecialistEntel: home fiber internet, Simple plans · checked 6 Oct 2026
Mérida
Telmex: from 389 pesos for 120 Mbps to 1399 for a gigabit. Totalplay 100 Mbps for 390, Megacable 1000 Mbps for 1000 pesos on promotion. Prices are nationwide.
SpecialistExpansión: Telmex, Totalplay, Megacable and Izzi internet packages, September 2026 · checked 6 Oct 2026
Services
Santa Cruz de la Sierra
Liquefied gas at a regulated price of 2.25 Bs per kg, a 10 kg cylinder is 22.50 Bs (under 2 dollars). We did not find the piped gas tariff.
OfficialANH: regulated prices of petroleum products on the domestic market, including liquefied gas (GLP) · checked 6 Oct 2026
The average residential tariff of the CRE cooperative in 2024 was 11 US cents per kWh without VAT, about 0.77 Bs. 300 kWh a month is about 230 Bs before tax.
OfficialAETN: statistical yearbook 2024, average tariff for the final consumer by category (CRE, Área Integrada) · checked 6 Oct 2026
The SAGUAPAC water utility received on average about 7 Bs per billed m³ in 2025. Only two thirds of residents in its area have sewerage.
OfficialSAGUAPAC: annual report (Memoria) for 2025 · checked 6 Oct 2026
Mérida
JAPAY water from 1 Feb 2026: up to 20 m³ a flat charge by city zone, 67-107 pesos. 15 m³ costs 99-104 pesos, with sewerage (plus 50%) 149-156.
OfficialJAPAY: water and sewerage tariffs from 1 February 2026 · checked 6 Oct 2026
LP gas price cap in Mérida for 27 Sep - 3 Oct 2026: 20.66 pesos per kg, 11.16 per liter. A 20 kg cylinder at the cap is about 413 pesos.
OfficialComisión Nacional de Energía: maximum LP gas prices from 27 September to 3 October 2026 · checked 6 Oct 2026
Yucatán has the hot-climate CFE tariffs 1C and 1D: cheap kWh up to 850-1000 a month, summer relief until 31 October. 1000 kWh over two months on 1D costs 2255 pesos.
SpecialistRiviera Maya News: a proposal to move Yucatán to CFE tariff 1F · checked 6 Oct 2026