Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cartago and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in Cartago: $1,281 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Cartago
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Cartago Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index

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Cartago

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,281

/mo nomad

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,281 per month in Cartago vs $1,771 in Montevideo, rent included.

Cartago $1,281
Montevideo $1,771

A couple spends around $1,972 per month in Cartago vs $2,740 in Montevideo, rent included.

Cartago $1,972
Montevideo $2,740

A family of three spends $2,663 per month in Cartago vs $3,708 in Montevideo, rent included.

Cartago $2,663
Montevideo $3,708

Cartago is about 28% cheaper than Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Cartago sits 5% below the global median, while Montevideo is 31% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.58 COP 24.1K

$15.16 UYU 609

-50.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.20 COP 118.3K

$69.2 UYU 2,779

-46.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.47 COP 26.9K

$14.65 UYU 589

-42.18%

Cappuccino

$1.54 COP 4,884

$4.46 UYU 179

-65.47%

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

$1.28 COP 4,063

$2.67 UYU 107

-52.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 COP 2,634

$2.00 UYU 80.5

-58.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.10 COP 9,869

$4.83 UYU 194

-35.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 COP 11.7K

$3.80 UYU 153

-3.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.60 COP 5,088

$1.36 UYU 54.8

17.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.88 COP 5,973

$2.87 UYU 115

-34.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.49 COP 4,751

$1.75 UYU 70.3

-14.86%

Eggs

$2.93 COP 9,335

$4.68 UYU 188

-37.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.58 COP 20.9K

$13.88 UYU 558

-52.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.11 COP 22.6K

$11.98 UYU 481

-40.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.93 COP 31.6K

$11.97 UYU 481

-17.04%

Apples (1kg)

$3.57 COP 11.4K

$2.78 UYU 112

28.42%

Banana (1kg)

$1.32 COP 4,200

$2.74 UYU 110

-51.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.74 COP 5,530

$1.77 UYU 71.3

-1.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.63 COP 5,184

$3.24 UYU 130

-49.69%

Potato (1kg)

$1.42 COP 4,522

$1.97 UYU 79.3

-27.92%

Onion (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,758

$2.07 UYU 83.2

-27.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 COP 3,443

$1.37 UYU 55.2

-21.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.03 COP 3,261

$1.88 UYU 75.4

-45.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.69 COP 11.7K

$5.59 UYU 225

-33.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.12 COP 41.7K

$8.78 UYU 353

49.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 COP 4,756

$2.26 UYU 91.0

-33.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 COP 7,794

$2.75 UYU 110

-10.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.02 COP 3,244

$1.53 UYU 61.5

-33.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.3 UYU 2,984

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.79 COP 2,524

$1.91 UYU 76.8

-58.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.27 COP 7,230

$0.40 UYU 16.20

467.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.40 COP 26.7K

$10.33 UYU 415

-18.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 COP 4,211

$2.13 UYU 85.7

-38.03%

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

$28.0K COP 89.1M

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

3.39%

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

$34.6K COP 110.2M

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

-4.46%

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

$110 COP 349.3K

$188 UYU 7,567

-41.67%

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

$13.23 COP 42.1K

$20.54 UYU 825

-35.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.26 COP 96.2K

$44.81 UYU 1,801

-32.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.32 COP 134.6K

$54.0 UYU 2,169

-21.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.75 UYU 794

Cinema Ticket

$8.24 COP 26.2K

$11.95 UYU 480

-31.05%

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

$701 COP 2.2M

$634 UYU 25.5K

10.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,430 COP 20.5M

$11.1K UYU 444.1K

-41.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$77.8 COP 247.3K

$102 UYU 4,104

-23.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.1 COP 175.4K

$57.5 UYU 2,312

-4.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 COP 403.0K

$127 UYU 5,086

0.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 COP 351.7K

$128 UYU 5,137

-13.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$645 COP 2.1M

$719 UYU 28.9K

-10.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$509 COP 1.6M

$568 UYU 22.8K

-10.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,041 COP 3.3M

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

-9.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$970 COP 3.1M

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

-5.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,999 COP 6.4M

$3,392 UYU 136.3K

-41.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,803 COP 5.7M

$1,949 UYU 78.3K

-7.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.58

5.74

101.74%

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

Last update for Cartago: 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

Cartago

$509 39.7%

Montevideo

$568 32.1% 11.6% $59

Groceries & Markets

Cartago

$241 18.8%

Montevideo

$332 18.7% 37.6% $91

Clothing & Footwear

Cartago

$167 13%

Montevideo

$186 10.5% 11.8% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cartago

$153 12%

Montevideo

$254 14.3% 65.4% $100

Eating Out

Cartago

$136 10.6%

Montevideo

$269 15.2% 98.3% $133

Sport & Entertainment

Cartago

$59 4.6%

Montevideo

$78 4.4% 32.4% $19

Getting Around

Cartago

$16 * 1.3%

Montevideo

$84 4.8% 419% $68

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $645 in Cartago 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $37.00 in Cartago versus $69.0 in Montevideo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $241 vs $332 – making Cartago the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Cartago

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🕒 Local time

03:19 3:19 AM

05:19 5:19 AM

2 h ahead of Cartago

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

135,365

1,319,108 Capital

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.14 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 15, 2026: 1 USD = 3,181 COP (10,000 COP = 3.14 USD). 1 EUR = 3,561 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 40.18 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 44.99 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cartago Montevideo 4,870 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Cartago
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

Cartago vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Montevideo is pricier by about 38%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,921 per month in Cartago 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 Cartago, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,281 in Cartago and $1,771 in Montevideo. That's a gap of about 38%.

Kindergarten costs $701 per month in Cartago and $634 in Montevideo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Cartago, where all-in costs run around $1,281, than in Montevideo at $1,771. In Cartago it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montevideo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Cartago – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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 Cartago. 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.