Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between El Viejo and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in El Viejo: $819 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $11,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in El Viejo
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El Viejo Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index

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El Viejo

🇳🇮 Nicaragua

$819

/mo nomad

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $819 in El Viejo versus $1,771 in Montevideo.

El Viejo $819
Montevideo $1,771

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,281 in El Viejo versus $2,740 in Montevideo.

El Viejo $1,281
Montevideo $2,740

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,744 in El Viejo versus $3,708 in Montevideo.

El Viejo $1,744
Montevideo $3,708

Living in El Viejo costs roughly 54% less than in Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: El Viejo is 39% below, Montevideo is 31% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.06 NIO 368

$15.16 UYU 609

-33.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.93 NIO 1,279

$69.2 UYU 2,776

-49.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.49 NIO 274

$14.65 UYU 588

-48.87%

Cappuccino

$2.59 NIO 94.8

$4.46 UYU 179

-41.93%

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

$0.84 NIO 30.75

$2.67 UYU 107

-68.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.68 NIO 24.80

$2.00 UYU 80.4

-66.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.53 NIO 56.0

$4.83 UYU 194

-68.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 NIO 81.7

$3.80 UYU 152

-41.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 NIO 46.47

$1.36 UYU 54.8

-6.62%

White Bread (500g)

$2.42 NIO 88.6

$2.87 UYU 115

-15.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.82 NIO 66.6

$1.75 UYU 70.2

4.00%

Eggs

$2.39 NIO 87.7

$4.68 UYU 188

-48.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.41 NIO 418

$13.88 UYU 557

-17.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.42 NIO 235

$11.98 UYU 481

-46.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.83 NIO 287

$11.97 UYU 480

-34.59%

Apples (1kg)

$4.12 NIO 151

$2.78 UYU 111

48.20%

Banana (1kg)

$0.58 NIO 21.37

$2.74 UYU 110

-78.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.78 NIO 65.3

$1.77 UYU 71.2

0.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.41 NIO 88.2

$3.24 UYU 130

-25.62%

Potato (1kg)

$4.02 NIO 147

$1.97 UYU 79.2

104.06%

Onion (1kg)

$2.17 NIO 79.3

$2.07 UYU 83.1

4.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 NIO 39.59

$1.37 UYU 55.1

-21.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 NIO 38.36

$1.88 UYU 75.3

-44.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.76 NIO 101

$5.59 UYU 224

-50.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.69 NIO 538

$8.78 UYU 352

67.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.47 NIO 53.8

$2.26 UYU 90.9

-34.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.16 NIO 79.0

$2.75 UYU 110

-21.45%

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)

$1.59 NIO 58.1

$1.91 UYU 76.7

-16.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.62 NIO 59.3

$0.40 UYU 16.18

305.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.88 NIO 252

$10.33 UYU 415

-33.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 NIO 48.19

$2.13 UYU 85.6

-38.03%

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

$23.4K NIO 856.7K

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

-13.72%

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

$26.5K NIO 969.5K

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

-27.01%

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

$151 NIO 5,517

$188 UYU 7,557

-20.01%

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

$19.34 NIO 708

$20.54 UYU 824

-5.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.75 NIO 1,199

$44.81 UYU 1,798

-26.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.0 UYU 2,166

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.75 UYU 793

Cinema Ticket

$9.07 NIO 332

$11.95 UYU 480

-24.10%

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

$232 NIO 8,479

$634 UYU 25.5K

-63.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,987 NIO 219.3K

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

-45.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.5 NIO 2,179

$102 UYU 4,099

-41.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$66.2 NIO 2,426

$57.5 UYU 2,309

15.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$120 NIO 4,406

$127 UYU 5,079

-4.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$143 NIO 5,246

$128 UYU 5,131

12.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$719 UYU 28.8K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$568 UYU 22.8K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

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)

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.92

5.74

107.67%

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

Last update for El Viejo: 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

El Viejo

$261 31.9%

Montevideo

$332 18.7% 27% $70

Monthly Utilities & Internet

El Viejo

$203 24.8%

Montevideo

$254 14.3% 25.1% $51

Clothing & Footwear

El Viejo

$175 21.4%

Montevideo

$186 10.5% 6.4% $11

Eating Out

El Viejo

$152 18.6%

Montevideo

$269 15.2% 76.9% $117

Sport & Entertainment

El Viejo

$18 * 2.2%

Montevideo

$78 4.4% 329% $60

Getting Around

El Viejo

$9.7 * 1.2%

Montevideo

$84 4.8% 772% $75

Accommodation & Living

El Viejo

- * 0%

Montevideo

$568 32.1%

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $35.00 in El Viejo vs $69.0 in Montevideo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $261 vs $332 per month, with El Viejo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇮 El Viejo

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🕒 Local time

14:06 2:06 PM

17:06 5:06 PM

3 h ahead of El Viejo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

33,607

1,319,108 Capital

💱 Currency

Nicaraguan Córdoba NIO C$

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

100 NIO = 2.73 USD

100 NIO = 2.43 EUR

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UYU, USD, EUR to NIO – Nicaraguan Córdoba Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇮 Nicaraguan Córdoba (C$)

Nicaraguan Córdoba exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 36.62 NIO (100 NIO = 2.73 USD). 1 EUR = 41.18 NIO (100 NIO = 2.43 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 NIO in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

El Viejo Montevideo 6,220 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

El Viejo
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

El Viejo vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

El Viejo is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 116% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,229 in El Viejo and $2,656 in Montevideo to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $232 in El Viejo versus $634 in Montevideo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in El Viejo – a meal for two runs $35.00 versus $69.0 in Montevideo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $819 in El Viejo versus $1,771 in Montevideo, a $1,500 budget is realistic in El Viejo but tight or insufficient in Montevideo. The gap between the two cities makes El Viejo the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, El Viejo is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Montevideo, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, El Viejo 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 El Viejo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 116% less than in Montevideo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.