Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cartagena and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in Cartagena: $1,292 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

54

Cost of Living Index in Cartagena
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Cartagena Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index

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Cartagena

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,292

/mo nomad

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,292 per month in Cartagena vs $1,771 in Montevideo, rent included.

Cartagena $1,292
Montevideo $1,771

A couple spends around $2,165 per month in Cartagena vs $2,740 in Montevideo, rent included.

Cartagena $2,165
Montevideo $2,740

A family of three spends $3,039 per month in Cartagena vs $3,708 in Montevideo, rent included.

Cartagena $3,039
Montevideo $3,708

Cartagena is about 27% cheaper than Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Cartagena sits 4% below the global median, while Montevideo is 31% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.87 COP 18.6K

$15.16 UYU 609

-61.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$143 COP 453.5K

$69.2 UYU 2,776

106.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.37 COP 32.9K

$14.65 UYU 588

-29.22%

Cappuccino

$4.26 COP 13.5K

$4.46 UYU 179

-4.48%

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

$2.54 COP 8,063

$2.67 UYU 107

-4.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.36 COP 7,478

$2.00 UYU 80.4

18.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.26 COP 10.3K

$4.83 UYU 194

-32.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.96 COP 15.7K

$3.80 UYU 152

30.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.91 COP 6,053

$1.36 UYU 54.8

40.44%

White Bread (500g)

$2.74 COP 8,692

$2.87 UYU 115

-4.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.45 COP 4,610

$1.75 UYU 70.2

-17.14%

Eggs

$5.06 COP 16.0K

$4.68 UYU 188

8.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.13 COP 41.6K

$13.88 UYU 557

-5.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$17.37 COP 55.1K

$11.98 UYU 481

44.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.97 UYU 480

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 UYU 111

Banana (1kg)

$2.74 UYU 110

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 UYU 71.2

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 UYU 79.2

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 UYU 55.1

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.99 COP 6,304

$1.88 UYU 75.3

5.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.59 UYU 224

Wine (Bottle)

$14.64 COP 46.4K

$8.78 UYU 352

66.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.40 COP 4,436

$2.26 UYU 90.9

-38.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 UYU 110

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.25 COP 3,972

$1.53 UYU 61.5

-18.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$58.4 COP 185.2K

$74.3 UYU 2,980

-21.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.74 COP 15.0K

$1.91 UYU 76.7

148.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.68 COP 11.7K

$0.40 UYU 16.18

820.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.49 COP 30.1K

$10.33 UYU 415

-8.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 COP 4,251

$2.13 UYU 85.6

-37.09%

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

$23.4K COP 74.1M

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

-13.79%

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

$34.4K COP 109.2M

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

-5.03%

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

$78.4 COP 248.6K

$188 UYU 7,557

-58.35%

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

$20.54 UYU 824

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.81 UYU 1,798

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$91.7 COP 290.8K

$54.0 UYU 2,166

69.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.75 UYU 793

Cinema Ticket

$8.02 COP 25.4K

$11.95 UYU 480

-32.89%

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

$630 COP 2.0M

$634 UYU 25.5K

-0.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,818 COP 18.4M

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

-47.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 UYU 4,099

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.5 UYU 2,309

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 UYU 5,079

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 UYU 5,131

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,035 COP 3.3M

$719 UYU 28.8K

44.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$585 COP 1.9M

$568 UYU 22.8K

3.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,287 COP 7.3M

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

99.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$944 COP 3.0M

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

-7.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,392 UYU 136.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$924 COP 2.9M

$1,949 UYU 78.2K

-52.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$467 COP 1.5M

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

-62.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

161.32%

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

Last update for Cartagena: October 11, 2026

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cartagena

$585 45.3%

Montevideo

$568 32.1% 3% $17

Groceries & Markets

Cartagena

$259 * 20%

Montevideo

$332 18.7% 28.1% $73

Eating Out

Cartagena

$175 13.5%

Montevideo

$269 15.2% 53.9% $94

Sport & Entertainment

Cartagena

$108 8.3%

Montevideo

$78 4.4% 27.7% $30

Getting Around

Cartagena

$87 6.7%

Montevideo

$84 4.8% 2.6% $2.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cartagena

$78 * 6.1%

Montevideo

$254 14.3% 224% $175

Clothing & Footwear

Cartagena

- * 0%

Montevideo

$186 10.5%

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,035 in Cartagena versus $719 in Montevideo. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 167% higher in Montevideo, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $143 in Cartagena versus $69.0 in Montevideo. Groceries tell a different story – $259 in Cartagena vs $332 in Montevideo – so Cartagena wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Cartagena

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🕒 Local time

13:11 1:11 PM

15:11 3:11 PM

2 h ahead of Cartagena

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,028,736

1,319,108 Capital

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UYU, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 40.14 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.13 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cartagena Montevideo 5,440 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Cartagena
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

Cartagena vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montevideo costs about 37% more than Cartagena, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,938 per month in Cartagena and $2,656 in Montevideo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cartagena, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $630 per month in Cartagena and $634 in Montevideo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 28% more in Montevideo, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cartagena, where all-in costs run around $1,292, than in Montevideo at $1,771. In Cartagena it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montevideo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cartagena costs $1,292 versus $1,771 in Montevideo. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Cartagena. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Montevideo makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.