Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Havana and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in Havana: $860 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $10,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

42

Cost of Living Index in Havana
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Havana Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index

Jump to prices

Havana

🇨🇺 Cuba

$860

/mo nomad

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $860 in Havana versus $1,771 in Montevideo.

Havana $860
Montevideo $1,771

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,388 in Havana versus $2,740 in Montevideo.

Havana $1,388
Montevideo $2,740

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,916 in Havana versus $3,708 in Montevideo.

Havana $1,916
Montevideo $3,708

Living in Havana costs roughly 51% less than in Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Havana is 36% below, Montevideo is 31% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.59 CUP 86.3

$15.16 UYU 609

-76.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.63 CUP 663

$69.2 UYU 2,776

-60.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.88 CUP 117

$14.65 UYU 588

-66.69%

Cappuccino

$1.06 CUP 25.42

$4.46 UYU 179

-76.23%

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

$1.51 CUP 36.33

$2.67 UYU 107

-43.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.99 CUP 23.80

$2.00 UYU 80.4

-50.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.24 CUP 29.66

$4.83 UYU 194

-74.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.05 CUP 49.10

$3.80 UYU 152

-46.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.68 CUP 64.3

$1.36 UYU 54.8

97.06%

White Bread (500g)

$1.22 CUP 29.26

$2.87 UYU 115

-57.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.76 CUP 42.35

$1.75 UYU 70.2

0.57%

Eggs

$3.50 CUP 83.9

$4.68 UYU 188

-25.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.52 CUP 108

$13.88 UYU 557

-67.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.66 CUP 112

$11.98 UYU 481

-61.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.56 CUP 205

$11.97 UYU 480

-28.49%

Apples (1kg)

$6.20 CUP 149

$2.78 UYU 111

123.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.02 CUP 24.55

$2.74 UYU 110

-62.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.83 CUP 92.0

$1.77 UYU 71.2

116.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.24 CUP 53.8

$3.24 UYU 130

-30.86%

Potato (1kg)

$2.93 CUP 70.2

$1.97 UYU 79.2

48.73%

Onion (1kg)

$2.74 CUP 65.7

$2.07 UYU 83.1

32.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 CUP 17.33

$1.37 UYU 55.1

-47.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.57 CUP 13.60

$1.88 UYU 75.3

-69.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.61 CUP 38.72

$5.59 UYU 224

-71.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.37 CUP 129

$8.78 UYU 352

-38.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 CUP 42.38

$2.26 UYU 90.9

-21.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.05 CUP 49.30

$2.75 UYU 110

-25.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.63 CUP 15.17

$1.53 UYU 61.5

-58.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.13 CUP 531

$74.3 UYU 2,980

-70.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.63 CUP 63.1

$1.91 UYU 76.7

37.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.33 CUP 7.98

$0.40 UYU 16.18

-17.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.63 CUP 471

$10.33 UYU 415

90.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 CUP 30.50

$2.13 UYU 85.6

-40.38%

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

$60.4K CUP 1.5M

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

122.88%

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

$59.1K CUP 1.4M

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

63.00%

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

$46.62 CUP 1,119

$188 UYU 7,557

-75.24%

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

$39.24 CUP 942

$20.54 UYU 824

91.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$89.3 CUP 2,144

$44.81 UYU 1,798

99.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.35 CUP 392

$54.0 UYU 2,166

-69.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.84 CUP 308

$19.75 UYU 793

-34.99%

Cinema Ticket

$0.83 CUP 19.99

$11.95 UYU 480

-93.05%

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

$156 CUP 3,752

$634 UYU 25.5K

-75.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.5K CUP 298.9K

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

12.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.2 CUP 1,253

$102 UYU 4,099

-48.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.71 CUP 1,001

$57.5 UYU 2,309

-27.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.0 CUP 1,919

$127 UYU 5,079

-36.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$67.6 CUP 1,623

$128 UYU 5,131

-47.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$246 CUP 5,911

$719 UYU 28.8K

-65.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$219 CUP 5,245

$568 UYU 22.8K

-61.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$872 CUP 20.9K

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

-23.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$508 CUP 12.2K

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

-50.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$314 CUP 7,545

$3,392 UYU 136.1K

-90.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$407 CUP 9,762

$1,949 UYU 78.2K

-79.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$29.60 CUP 710

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

-97.62%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.1

5.74

58.54%

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

Last update for Havana: October 10, 2026

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Havana

$234 27.2%

Montevideo

$332 18.7% 41.8% $98

Accommodation & Living

Havana

$219 25.4%

Montevideo

$568 32.1% 160% $349

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Havana

$175 20.4%

Montevideo

$254 14.3% 44.8% $78

Clothing & Footwear

Havana

$109 12.6%

Montevideo

$186 10.5% 71.4% $78

Eating Out

Havana

$76 8.9%

Montevideo

$269 15.2% 252% $193

Getting Around

Havana

$29 3.4%

Montevideo

$84 4.8% 191% $55

Sport & Entertainment

Havana

$18 2.1%

Montevideo

$78 4.4% 332% $60

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $246 in Havana and $719 in Montevideo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Montevideo pays 4105% 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: $28.00 in Havana vs $69.0 in Montevideo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $234 vs $332 per month, with Havana cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇺 Havana

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🕒 Local time

13:21 1:21 PM

14:21 2:21 PM

1 h ahead of Havana

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,141,993 Capital

1,319,108 Capital

💱 Currency

Cuban Peso CUP $

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

100 CUP = 4.17 USD

100 CUP = 3.71 EUR

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UYU, USD, EUR to CUP – Cuban Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇺 Cuban Peso ($)

Cuban Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 24 CUP (100 CUP = 4.17 USD). 1 EUR = 26.98 CUP (100 CUP = 3.71 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 CUP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Havana Montevideo 7,020 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Havana
Montevideo

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated March 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Havana vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Havana and Montevideo differ by about 106% in total monthly costs ($860 vs $1,771 including rent). Havana is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 4105% lower in Montevideo. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $246 in Havana versus $719 in Montevideo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Havana – a meal for two runs $28.00 versus $69.0 in Montevideo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $860 per month in Havana versus $1,771 in Montevideo – a 106% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $860 in Havana versus $1,771 in Montevideo, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Havana but tight or insufficient in Montevideo. The gap between the two cities makes Havana 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, Havana 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 Havana gentler on the wallet – expenses run 106% less than in Montevideo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.