Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arlington, WA and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in Montevideo: $1,771 a month against $2,803 in Arlington, WA, rent and utilities included – about $12,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

136

Cost of Living Index in Arlington, WA
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Arlington, WA Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index

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Arlington, WA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,803

/mo nomad

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Arlington, WA 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 Arlington, WA and in Montevideo actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,803 in Arlington, WA versus $1,771 in Montevideo.

Arlington, WA $2,803
Montevideo $1,771

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,283 in Arlington, WA versus $2,740 in Montevideo.

Arlington, WA $4,283
Montevideo $2,740

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,763 in Arlington, WA versus $3,708 in Montevideo.

Arlington, WA $5,763
Montevideo $3,708

Living in Arlington, WA is roughly 58% more expensive than in Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Arlington, WA 108% above, Montevideo 31% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.98 $24.98

$15.16 UYU 609

64.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$101 $101

$69.2 UYU 2,776

45.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.24 $14.24

$14.65 UYU 588

-2.80%

Cappuccino

$5.88 $5.88

$4.46 UYU 179

31.84%

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

$3.04 $3.04

$2.67 UYU 107

13.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.03 $3.03

$2.00 UYU 80.4

51.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.16 $7.16

$4.83 UYU 194

48.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.81 $6.81

$3.80 UYU 152

79.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.03 $1.03

$1.36 UYU 54.8

-24.26%

White Bread (500g)

$3.66 $3.66

$2.87 UYU 115

27.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.19 $4.19

$1.75 UYU 70.2

139.43%

Eggs

$3.94 $3.94

$4.68 UYU 188

-15.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.98 $13.98

$13.88 UYU 557

0.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.33 $13.33

$11.98 UYU 481

11.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$23.00 $23.00

$11.97 UYU 480

92.15%

Apples (1kg)

$5.30 $5.30

$2.78 UYU 111

90.65%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 $1.90

$2.74 UYU 110

-30.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.21 $4.21

$1.77 UYU 71.2

137.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.92 $4.92

$3.24 UYU 130

51.85%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 $2.02

$1.97 UYU 79.2

2.54%

Onion (1kg)

$2.40 $2.40

$2.07 UYU 83.1

15.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.77 $2.77

$1.37 UYU 55.1

102.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.50 $2.50

$1.88 UYU 75.3

32.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.72 $12.72

$5.59 UYU 224

127.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.77 $14.77

$8.78 UYU 352

68.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 $1.98

$2.26 UYU 90.9

-12.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.39 $4.39

$2.75 UYU 110

59.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.53 UYU 61.5

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.3 UYU 2,980

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.62 $2.62

$1.91 UYU 76.7

37.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.71 $1.71

$0.40 UYU 16.18

327.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.78 $29.78

$10.33 UYU 415

188.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 $1.36

$2.13 UYU 85.6

-36.15%

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

$36.1K $36.1K

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

33.11%

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

$25.2K $25.2K

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

-30.55%

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

$293 $293

$188 UYU 7,557

55.42%

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

$69.9 $69.9

$20.54 UYU 824

240.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$89.2 $89.2

$44.81 UYU 1,798

98.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.54 $33.54

$54.0 UYU 2,166

-37.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.75 UYU 793

Cinema Ticket

$16.84 $16.84

$11.95 UYU 480

40.92%

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

$2,983 $2,983

$634 UYU 25.5K

370.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.9K $30.9K

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

179.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.9 $50.9

$102 UYU 4,099

-50.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.5 $54.5

$57.5 UYU 2,309

-5.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 $100

$127 UYU 5,079

-20.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$135 $135

$128 UYU 5,131

5.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,522 $1,522

$719 UYU 28.8K

111.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,297 $1,297

$568 UYU 22.8K

128.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,826 $2,826

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

146.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,454 $2,454

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

139.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,392 UYU 136.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,949 UYU 78.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,858 $5,858

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

370.64%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.81

5.74

18.64%

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

Last update for Arlington, WA: October 12, 2026

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Arlington, WA

$1.3K 46.3%

Montevideo

$568 32.1% 56.2% $729

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arlington, WA

$452 16.1%

Montevideo

$254 14.3% 43.8% $198

Groceries & Markets

Arlington, WA

$436 15.6%

Montevideo

$332 18.7% 24% $105

Eating Out

Arlington, WA

$387 13.8%

Montevideo

$269 15.2% 30.4% $118

Clothing & Footwear

Arlington, WA

$153 5.5%

Montevideo

$186 10.5% 21.7% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Arlington, WA

$67 2.4%

Montevideo

$78 4.4% 15.8% $11

Getting Around

Arlington, WA

$11 * 0.4%

Montevideo

$84 4.8% 656% $73

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 $1,522 in Arlington, WA and $719 in Montevideo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Arlington, WA pays 371% 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: $101 in Arlington, WA vs $69.0 in Montevideo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $436 vs $332 per month, with Montevideo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Arlington, WA

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🕒 Local time

15:30 3:30 PM

19:30 7:30 PM

4 h ahead of Arlington, WA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

365,438

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 19, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 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

Arlington, WA Montevideo 11,310 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Arlington, WA
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

Arlington, WA vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Arlington, WA and Montevideo differ by about 58% in total monthly costs ($2,803 vs $1,771 including rent). Montevideo is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 371% higher in Arlington, WA, 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: $1,522 in Arlington, WA versus $719 in Montevideo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 32% higher in Arlington, WA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,803 per month in Arlington, WA versus $1,771 in Montevideo – a 58% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,771 in Montevideo versus $2,803 in Arlington, WA, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Montevideo but tight or insufficient in Arlington, WA. 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, Arlington, WA 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 58% less than in Arlington, WA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.