Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and Maldonado

For one person, living is cheaper in Maldonado: $1,371 a month against $2,663 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $15,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

130

Cost of Living Index in Austin, TX
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Austin, TX Living Index
67

Cost of Living Index in Maldonado
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Maldonado Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,663

/mo nomad

Maldonado

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,371

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Austin, TX and in Maldonado

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,663 in Austin, TX versus $1,371 in Maldonado.

Austin, TX $2,663
Maldonado $1,371

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,133 in Austin, TX versus $2,178 in Maldonado.

Austin, TX $4,133
Maldonado $2,178

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,603 in Austin, TX versus $2,985 in Maldonado.

Austin, TX $5,603
Maldonado $2,985

Living in Austin, TX is roughly 94% more expensive than in Maldonado, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Austin, TX 97% above, Maldonado 2% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.77 $20.77

$14.94 UYU 600

39.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 $84.6

$54.8 UYU 2,198

54.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.32 $12.32

$13.58 UYU 545

-9.28%

Cappuccino

$5.63 $5.63

$4.61 UYU 185

22.13%

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

$3.72 $3.72

$2.64 UYU 106

40.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 $2.50

$2.00 UYU 80.3

25.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.05 $8.05

$2.96 UYU 119

171.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.01 $9.01

$3.61 UYU 145

149.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 $1.12

$1.16 UYU 46.70

-3.45%

White Bread (500g)

$3.75 $3.75

$2.74 UYU 110

36.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.26 $3.26

$1.69 UYU 68.0

92.90%

Eggs

$4.17 $4.17

$4.14 UYU 166

0.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.90 $12.90

$14.00 UYU 562

-7.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.16 $14.16

$11.83 UYU 475

19.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.22 $16.22

$11.89 UYU 477

36.42%

Apples (1kg)

$4.33 $4.33

$2.78 UYU 112

55.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 $1.46

$2.15 UYU 86.4

-32.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.51 $4.51

$1.77 UYU 71.1

154.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.34 $4.34

$3.20 UYU 129

35.62%

Potato (1kg)

$2.58 $2.58

$2.02 UYU 81.0

27.72%

Onion (1kg)

$2.35 $2.35

$2.09 UYU 84.1

12.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.78 $1.78

$1.44 UYU 57.8

23.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.22 $2.22

$1.87 UYU 75.2

18.72%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.88 $9.88

$5.56 UYU 223

77.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.08 $15.08

$7.99 UYU 320

88.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.92 $2.92

$2.32 UYU 93.1

25.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.46 $3.46

$2.71 UYU 109

27.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 $1.49

$1.42 UYU 57.0

4.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.72 $41.72

$50.1 UYU 2,011

-16.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.73 $2.73

$3.39 UYU 136

-19.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.66 $1.66

$0.41 UYU 16.27

304.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.30 $35.30

$9.89 UYU 397

256.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 $0.95

$2.14 UYU 85.8

-55.61%

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

$36.0K $36.0K

$26.8K UYU 1.1M

34.28%

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

$27.1K $27.1K

$37.3K UYU 1.5M

-27.32%

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

$229 $229

$113 UYU 4,548

102.07%

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

$59.4 $59.4

$19.05 UYU 765

211.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$69.9 $69.9

$44.11 UYU 1,770

58.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.2 $57.2

$48.11 UYU 1,931

18.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.33 $16.33

$30.02 UYU 1,205

-45.60%

Cinema Ticket

$14.28 $14.28

$12.36 UYU 496

15.53%

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

$1,506 $1,506

$488 UYU 19.6K

208.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K $21.5K

$6,539 UYU 262.4K

228.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.8 $52.8

$90.5 UYU 3,632

-41.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.82 $43.82

$36.90 UYU 1,481

18.75%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.8 $84.8

$123 UYU 4,931

-31.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 $103

$120 UYU 4,796

-13.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,907 $1,907

$423 UYU 17.0K

351.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,274 $1,274

$318 UYU 12.8K

300.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,664 $3,664

$920 UYU 36.9K

298.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,538 $2,538

$590 UYU 23.7K

330.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,614 $7,614

$2,838 UYU 113.9K

168.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,157 $3,157

$1,546 UYU 62.0K

104.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,121 $5,121

$1,005 UYU 40.4K

409.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

35.80%

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

Last update for Austin, TX: October 12, 2026

Last update for Maldonado: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 47.8%

Maldonado

$318 23.2% 75.1% $956

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$405 15.2%

Maldonado

$321 23.4% 20.8% $84

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$358 13.5%

Maldonado

$176 12.9% 50.7% $182

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$354 13.3%

Maldonado

$256 18.7% 27.6% $98

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$128 4.8%

Maldonado

$166 12.1% 30% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$86 3.2%

Maldonado

$73 5.3% 15.1% $13

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$59 2.2%

Maldonado

$61 4.5% 4.3% $2.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,907 in Austin, TX and $423 in Maldonado. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 409% 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: $85.0 in Austin, TX vs $55.0 in Maldonado for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $405 vs $321 per month, with Maldonado cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇺🇾 Maldonado

🕒 Local time

00:25 12:25 AM

02:25 2:25 AM

2 h ahead of Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

62,592

💱 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

Austin, TX Maldonado 8,520 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Austin, TX
Maldonado

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

Austin, TX vs Maldonado: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Maldonado wins on cost – living expenses run 94% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Maldonado the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 409% higher in Austin, TX, 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: $1,907 in Austin, TX versus $423 in Maldonado. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,663 per month in Austin, TX versus $1,371 in Maldonado – a 94% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Maldonado runs roughly 20% less than in Austin, TX. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,371 in Maldonado versus $2,663 in Austin, TX, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Maldonado but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Maldonado 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, Austin, TX and Maldonado 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 Maldonado gentler on the wallet – expenses run 94% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.