Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Albert Lea, MN and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in Montevideo: $1,784 a month against $1,944 in Albert Lea, MN, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

95

Cost of Living Index in Albert Lea, MN
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Albert Lea, MN Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
Learn more

Montevideo Living Index

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Albert Lea, MN

🇺🇸 United States

$1,944

/mo nomad

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,784

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Albert Lea, MN and in Montevideo

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Albert Lea, MN and in Montevideo actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,944 in Albert Lea, MN versus $1,784 in Montevideo.

Albert Lea, MN $1,944
Montevideo $1,784

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,969 in Albert Lea, MN versus $2,756 in Montevideo.

Albert Lea, MN $2,969
Montevideo $2,756

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,995 in Albert Lea, MN versus $3,728 in Montevideo.

Albert Lea, MN $3,995
Montevideo $3,728

Living in Albert Lea, MN is roughly 9% more expensive than in Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Albert Lea, MN 43% above, Montevideo 32% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.02 $20.02

$14.82 UYU 595

35.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$102 $102

$69.7 UYU 2,797

46.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 $11.92

$14.68 UYU 589

-18.80%

Cappuccino

$6.29 $6.29

$4.65 UYU 186

35.27%

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

$3.06 $3.06

$2.74 UYU 110

11.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.56 $2.56

$2.07 UYU 82.9

23.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.88 $4.88

$4.79 UYU 192

1.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.69 $5.69

$3.63 UYU 146

56.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 $0.92

$1.39 UYU 55.8

-33.81%

White Bread (500g)

$2.93 $2.93

$2.89 UYU 116

1.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.17 $2.17

$1.70 UYU 68.1

27.65%

Eggs

$3.90 $3.90

$4.62 UYU 185

-15.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.84 $8.84

$14.22 UYU 571

-37.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$16.56 $16.56

$11.62 UYU 466

42.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.96 $18.96

$12.23 UYU 491

55.03%

Apples (1kg)

$5.40 $5.40

$2.77 UYU 111

94.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 $1.50

$2.85 UYU 114

-47.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.89 $4.89

$1.81 UYU 72.5

170.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.72 $3.72

$3.20 UYU 129

16.25%

Potato (1kg)

$2.73 $2.73

$1.94 UYU 77.8

40.72%

Onion (1kg)

$2.22 $2.22

$2.16 UYU 86.5

2.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.70 $2.70

$1.43 UYU 57.3

88.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.30 $2.30

$1.94 UYU 77.9

18.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.92 $9.92

$5.47 UYU 219

81.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.24 $15.24

$8.95 UYU 359

70.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 $1.74

$2.26 UYU 90.8

-23.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 $3.39

$2.81 UYU 113

20.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.09 $2.09

$1.56 UYU 62.6

33.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.8 UYU 2,962

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.95 $1.95

$1.90 UYU 76.2

2.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.28 $1.28

$0.43 UYU 17.36

197.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.31 $20.31

$10.59 UYU 425

91.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.94 $0.94

$2.12 UYU 85.2

-55.66%

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

$26.7K $26.7K

$26.8K UYU 1.1M

-0.45%

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

$25.6K $25.6K

$37.0K UYU 1.5M

-30.80%

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

$185 $185

$193 UYU 7,727

-4.09%

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

$53.4 $53.4

$20.91 UYU 839

155.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$79.6 $79.6

$44.89 UYU 1,802

77.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.66 $39.66

$50.8 UYU 2,038

-21.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.73 UYU 792

Cinema Ticket

$9.82 $9.82

$12.30 UYU 494

-20.16%

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

$1,350 $1,350

$629 UYU 25.2K

114.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K $11.9K

$10.9K UYU 437.3K

9.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.76 $45.76

$104 UYU 4,166

-55.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.54 $24.54

$57.4 UYU 2,305

-57.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$50.6 $50.6

$125 UYU 5,010

-59.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.6 $59.6

$132 UYU 5,315

-54.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,030 $1,030

$713 UYU 28.6K

44.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$739 $739

$575 UYU 23.1K

28.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,586 $1,586

$1,164 UYU 46.7K

36.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,188 $1,188

$1,033 UYU 41.5K

14.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,942 $2,942

$3,418 UYU 137.2K

-13.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,028 $2,028

$1,760 UYU 70.6K

15.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,957 $2,957

$1,244 UYU 49.9K

137.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.57

5.74

14.46%

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

Last update for Albert Lea, MN: October 19, 2026

Last update for Montevideo: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Albert Lea, MN

$739 38%

Montevideo

$575 32.2% 22.2% $164

Groceries & Markets

Albert Lea, MN

$400 20.6%

Montevideo

$334 18.7% 16.6% $67

Eating Out

Albert Lea, MN

$330 17%

Montevideo

$269 15.1% 18.4% $61

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Albert Lea, MN

$318 16.3%

Montevideo

$258 14.5% 18.7% $59

Clothing & Footwear

Albert Lea, MN

$81 4.2%

Montevideo

$188 10.6% 132% $107

Sport & Entertainment

Albert Lea, MN

$59 3.1%

Montevideo

$75 4.2% 27.1% $16

Getting Around

Albert Lea, MN

$17 * 0.9%

Montevideo

$84 4.7% 403% $67

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,030 in Albert Lea, MN and $713 in Montevideo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Albert Lea, MN pays 138% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $102 in Albert Lea, MN vs $70.0 in Montevideo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $400 vs $334 per month, with Montevideo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Albert Lea, MN

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🕒 Local time

09:42 9:42 AM

11:42 11:42 AM

2 h ahead of Albert Lea, MN

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

17,758

1,319,108 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UYU, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 40.14 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.12 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

UYU to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Albert Lea, MN Montevideo 9,510 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Albert Lea, MN
Montevideo

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

Albert Lea, MN vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Albert Lea, MN and Montevideo differ by about 9% in total monthly costs ($1,944 vs $1,784 including rent). Montevideo is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 138% higher in Albert Lea, MN, 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: $1,030 in Albert Lea, MN versus $713 in Montevideo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,350 in Albert Lea, MN versus $629 in Montevideo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Montevideo – a meal for two runs $70.0 versus $102 in Albert Lea, MN. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,784 in Montevideo versus $1,944 in Albert Lea, MN, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Montevideo but tight or insufficient in Albert Lea, MN. The gap between the two cities makes Montevideo the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Albert Lea, MN and Montevideo are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Montevideo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 9% less than in Albert Lea, MN. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.