Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ecatepec and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in Ecatepec: $961 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $9,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

47

Cost of Living Index in Ecatepec
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Ecatepec Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index

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Ecatepec

🇲🇽 Mexico

$961

/mo nomad

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $961 per month in Ecatepec vs $1,771 in Montevideo, rent included.

Ecatepec $961
Montevideo $1,771

A couple spends around $1,670 per month in Ecatepec vs $2,740 in Montevideo, rent included.

Ecatepec $1,670
Montevideo $2,740

A family of three spends $2,380 per month in Ecatepec vs $3,708 in Montevideo, rent included.

Ecatepec $2,380
Montevideo $3,708

Ecatepec is about 46% cheaper than Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Ecatepec sits 29% below the global median, while Montevideo is 31% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.14 MX$206

$15.16 UYU 609

-26.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.1 MX$926

$69.2 UYU 2,776

-27.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.57 MX$177

$14.65 UYU 588

-34.68%

Cappuccino

$3.71 MX$68.6

$4.46 UYU 179

-16.82%

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

$1.62 MX$30.02

$2.67 UYU 107

-39.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.09 MX$20.09

$2.00 UYU 80.4

-45.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.38 MX$62.5

$4.83 UYU 194

-30.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.59 MX$103

$3.80 UYU 152

47.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$31.71

$1.36 UYU 54.8

26.47%

White Bread (500g)

$2.66 MX$49.12

$2.87 UYU 115

-7.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.17

$1.75 UYU 70.2

12.00%

Eggs

$2.75 MX$50.9

$4.68 UYU 188

-41.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.82 MX$163

$13.88 UYU 557

-36.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 MX$168

$11.98 UYU 481

-23.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.47 MX$249

$11.97 UYU 480

12.53%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 MX$58.0

$2.78 UYU 111

12.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.66 MX$30.74

$2.74 UYU 110

-39.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.65

$1.77 UYU 71.2

15.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.12

$3.24 UYU 130

-41.36%

Potato (1kg)

$1.79 MX$33.16

$1.97 UYU 79.2

-9.14%

Onion (1kg)

$1.75 MX$32.42

$2.07 UYU 83.1

-15.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.49 MX$27.48

$1.37 UYU 55.1

8.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 MX$21.95

$1.88 UYU 75.3

-36.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.59 MX$84.9

$5.59 UYU 224

-17.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.62 MX$307

$8.78 UYU 352

89.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 MX$35.43

$2.26 UYU 90.9

-15.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 MX$70.7

$2.75 UYU 110

39.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.63 MX$11.72

$1.53 UYU 61.5

-58.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$31.01 MX$573

$74.3 UYU 2,980

-58.24%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.99 MX$36.81

$1.91 UYU 76.7

4.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.52 MX$9.68

$0.40 UYU 16.18

30.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.32 MX$98.3

$10.33 UYU 415

-48.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 MX$28.48

$2.13 UYU 85.6

-27.70%

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

$21.5K MX$397.7K

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

-20.62%

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

$23.5K MX$434.5K

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

-35.17%

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

$57.7 MX$1,067

$188 UYU 7,557

-69.34%

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

$27.01 MX$499

$20.54 UYU 824

31.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.74 MX$457

$44.81 UYU 1,798

-44.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.37 MX$487

$54.0 UYU 2,166

-51.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.00 MX$203

$19.75 UYU 793

-44.30%

Cinema Ticket

$6.47 MX$120

$11.95 UYU 480

-45.86%

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

$270 MX$4,996

$634 UYU 25.5K

-57.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,048 MX$93.3K

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

-54.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.1 MX$1,092

$102 UYU 4,099

-42.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.94 MX$830

$57.5 UYU 2,309

-21.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 MX$1,855

$127 UYU 5,079

-20.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 MX$1,826

$128 UYU 5,131

-22.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$243 MX$4,487

$719 UYU 28.8K

-66.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$138 MX$2,550

$568 UYU 22.8K

-75.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$683 MX$12.6K

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

-40.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$444 MX$8,205

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

-56.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$755 MX$14.0K

$3,392 UYU 136.1K

-77.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$755 MX$13.9K

$1,949 UYU 78.2K

-61.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$553 MX$10.2K

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

-55.56%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

5.74

96.86%

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

Last update for Ecatepec: October 11, 2026

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Ecatepec

$298 31%

Montevideo

$332 18.7% 11.3% $34

Eating Out

Ecatepec

$201 21%

Montevideo

$269 15.2% 33.7% $68

Accommodation & Living

Ecatepec

$138 14.4%

Montevideo

$568 32.1% 312% $430

Clothing & Footwear

Ecatepec

$136 14.2%

Montevideo

$186 10.5% 36.6% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ecatepec

$109 11.4%

Montevideo

$254 14.3% 132% $144

Sport & Entertainment

Ecatepec

$39 4.1%

Montevideo

$78 4.4% 98.1% $39

Getting Around

Ecatepec

$38 4%

Montevideo

$84 4.8% 121% $46

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $243 in Ecatepec 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 125% 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 $50.0 in Ecatepec versus $69.0 in Montevideo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $298 vs $332 – making Ecatepec the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Ecatepec

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🕒 Local time

02:01 2:01 AM

05:01 5:01 AM

3 h ahead of Ecatepec

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,645,352

1,319,108 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UYU, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 40.14 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.12 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ecatepec Montevideo 7,560 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Ecatepec
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

Ecatepec vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $961 in Ecatepec, $1,771 in Montevideo – roughly 84% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,441 per month in Ecatepec 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 Ecatepec, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50.0 in Ecatepec and $69.0 in Montevideo. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $961 in Ecatepec and $1,771 in Montevideo. That's a gap of about 84%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Ecatepec, where all-in costs run around $961, than in Montevideo at $1,771. In Ecatepec it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montevideo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Montevideo has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $961 in Ecatepec to $1,771 in Montevideo. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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 Ecatepec. 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.