Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ibarra and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in Ibarra: $681 a month against $1,784 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $13,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

33

Cost of Living Index in Ibarra
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Ibarra Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index

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Ibarra

🇪🇨 Ecuador

$681

/mo nomad

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,784

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $681 in Ibarra versus $1,784 in Montevideo.

Ibarra $681
Montevideo $1,784

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,128 in Ibarra versus $2,756 in Montevideo.

Ibarra $1,128
Montevideo $2,756

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,576 in Ibarra versus $3,728 in Montevideo.

Ibarra $1,576
Montevideo $3,728

Living in Ibarra costs roughly 62% less than in Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Ibarra is 50% below, Montevideo is 32% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.55 $2.55

$14.82 UYU 595

-82.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$25.47 $25.47

$69.7 UYU 2,797

-63.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.77 $5.77

$14.68 UYU 589

-60.69%

Cappuccino

$2.19 $2.19

$4.65 UYU 186

-52.90%

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

$1.08 $1.08

$2.74 UYU 110

-60.58%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 $0.54

$2.07 UYU 82.9

-73.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.98 $1.98

$4.79 UYU 192

-58.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 $2.19

$3.63 UYU 146

-39.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.00 $1.00

$1.39 UYU 55.8

-28.06%

White Bread (500g)

$1.01 $1.01

$2.89 UYU 116

-65.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.49 $1.49

$1.70 UYU 68.1

-12.35%

Eggs

$2.08 $2.08

$4.62 UYU 185

-54.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.83 $3.83

$14.22 UYU 571

-73.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.59 $5.59

$11.62 UYU 466

-51.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.69 $7.69

$12.23 UYU 491

-37.12%

Apples (1kg)

$2.03 $2.03

$2.77 UYU 111

-26.71%

Banana (1kg)

$1.24 $1.24

$2.85 UYU 114

-56.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.27 $1.27

$1.81 UYU 72.5

-29.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.86 $0.86

$3.20 UYU 129

-73.13%

Potato (1kg)

$0.52 $0.52

$1.94 UYU 77.8

-73.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 $1.03

$2.16 UYU 86.5

-52.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.69 $0.69

$1.43 UYU 57.3

-51.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 $0.99

$1.94 UYU 77.9

-48.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.91 $2.91

$5.47 UYU 219

-46.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.84 $9.84

$8.95 UYU 359

9.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 $1.58

$2.26 UYU 90.8

-30.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.19 $3.19

$2.81 UYU 113

13.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.36 $0.36

$1.56 UYU 62.6

-76.92%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$17.86 $17.86

$73.8 UYU 2,962

-75.80%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.47 $1.47

$1.90 UYU 76.2

-22.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.54 $1.54

$0.43 UYU 17.36

258.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.90 $9.90

$10.59 UYU 425

-6.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.68 $0.68

$2.12 UYU 85.2

-67.92%

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

$20.7K $20.7K

$26.8K UYU 1.1M

-22.78%

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

$28.8K $28.8K

$37.0K UYU 1.5M

-22.25%

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

$28.49 $28.49

$193 UYU 7,727

-85.20%

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

$15.03 $15.03

$20.91 UYU 839

-28.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.15 $18.15

$44.89 UYU 1,802

-59.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.39 $30.39

$50.8 UYU 2,038

-40.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.34 $16.34

$19.73 UYU 792

-17.18%

Cinema Ticket

$6.21 $6.21

$12.30 UYU 494

-49.51%

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

$112 $112

$629 UYU 25.2K

-82.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,951 $8,951

$10.9K UYU 437.3K

-17.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.1 $59.1

$104 UYU 4,166

-43.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.78 $44.78

$57.4 UYU 2,305

-22.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 $91.5

$125 UYU 5,010

-26.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$49.31 $49.31

$132 UYU 5,315

-62.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$223 $223

$713 UYU 28.6K

-68.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$177 $177

$575 UYU 23.1K

-69.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$733 $733

$1,164 UYU 46.7K

-37.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$409 $409

$1,033 UYU 41.5K

-60.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,199 $1,199

$3,418 UYU 137.2K

-64.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$770 $770

$1,760 UYU 70.6K

-56.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$612 $612

$1,244 UYU 49.9K

-50.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.12

5.74

76.31%

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

Last update for Ibarra: October 18, 2026

Last update for Montevideo: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ibarra

$177 26%

Montevideo

$575 32.2% 226% $399

Groceries & Markets

Ibarra

$176 25.9%

Montevideo

$334 18.7% 89.5% $158

Clothing & Footwear

Ibarra

$110 16.2%

Montevideo

$188 10.6% 71% $78

Eating Out

Ibarra

$85 12.5%

Montevideo

$269 15.1% 217% $184

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ibarra

$62 9.1%

Montevideo

$258 14.5% 319% $197

Sport & Entertainment

Ibarra

$43 6.3%

Montevideo

$75 4.2% 76.1% $33

Getting Around

Ibarra

$29 4.2%

Montevideo

$84 4.7% 195% $56

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $223 in Ibarra and $713 in Montevideo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Montevideo pays 103% 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: $25.00 in Ibarra vs $70.0 in Montevideo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $176 vs $334 per month, with Ibarra cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇨 Ibarra

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🕒 Local time

13:27 1:27 PM

15:27 3:27 PM

2 h ahead of Ibarra

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

108,666

1,319,108 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UYU, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 40.14 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.12 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

UYU to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ibarra Montevideo 4,530 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Ibarra
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

Ibarra vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ibarra wins on cost – living expenses run 162% lower than in Montevideo. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Ibarra the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 103% 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: $223 in Ibarra versus $713 in Montevideo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 90% higher in Montevideo. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Ibarra – a meal for two runs $25.00 versus $70.0 in Montevideo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $681 in Ibarra versus $1,784 in Montevideo, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Ibarra but tight or insufficient in Montevideo. The gap between the two cities makes Ibarra the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Ibarra delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $681 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Ibarra hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Ibarra 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 Ibarra gentler on the wallet – expenses run 162% less than in Montevideo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.