Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Iowa City, IA and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in Montevideo: $1,771 a month against $2,368 in Iowa City, IA, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Iowa City, IA outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

114

Cost of Living Index in Iowa City, IA
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Iowa City, IA Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
Learn more

Montevideo Living Index

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Iowa City, IA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,368

/mo nomad

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,368 in Iowa City, IA versus $1,771 in Montevideo.

Iowa City, IA $2,368
Montevideo $1,771

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,367 in Iowa City, IA versus $2,740 in Montevideo.

Iowa City, IA $3,367
Montevideo $2,740

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,366 in Iowa City, IA versus $3,708 in Montevideo.

Iowa City, IA $4,366
Montevideo $3,708

Living in Iowa City, IA is roughly 34% more expensive than in Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Iowa City, IA 75% above, Montevideo 31% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.24 $14.24

$15.16 UYU 609

-6.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 $68.1

$69.2 UYU 2,776

-1.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.74 $8.74

$14.65 UYU 588

-40.34%

Cappuccino

$5.78 $5.78

$4.46 UYU 179

29.60%

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

$2.76 $2.76

$2.67 UYU 107

3.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 $2.17

$2.00 UYU 80.4

8.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.90 $4.90

$4.83 UYU 194

1.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.80 $6.80

$3.80 UYU 152

78.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.83 $0.83

$1.36 UYU 54.8

-38.97%

White Bread (500g)

$2.76 $2.76

$2.87 UYU 115

-3.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.02 $2.02

$1.75 UYU 70.2

15.43%

Eggs

$3.60 $3.60

$4.68 UYU 188

-23.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.51 $9.51

$13.88 UYU 557

-31.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.32 $10.32

$11.98 UYU 481

-13.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.56 $20.56

$11.97 UYU 480

71.76%

Apples (1kg)

$3.32 $3.32

$2.78 UYU 111

19.42%

Banana (1kg)

$1.23 $1.23

$2.74 UYU 110

-55.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.75 $2.75

$1.77 UYU 71.2

55.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.86 $4.86

$3.24 UYU 130

50.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.03 $2.03

$1.97 UYU 79.2

3.05%

Onion (1kg)

$2.37 $2.37

$2.07 UYU 83.1

14.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 $1.70

$1.37 UYU 55.1

24.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.43 $2.43

$1.88 UYU 75.3

29.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.79 $8.79

$5.59 UYU 224

57.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.27 $13.27

$8.78 UYU 352

51.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 $1.77

$2.26 UYU 90.9

-21.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.32 $4.32

$2.75 UYU 110

57.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.53 UYU 61.5

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$15.96 $15.96

$74.3 UYU 2,980

-78.51%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.97 $3.97

$1.91 UYU 76.7

107.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.99 $1.99

$0.40 UYU 16.18

397.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$43.23 $43.23

$10.33 UYU 415

318.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.00 $1.00

$2.13 UYU 85.6

-53.05%

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

$36.0K $36.0K

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

32.96%

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

$25.2K $25.2K

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

-30.40%

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

$266 $266

$188 UYU 7,557

41.03%

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

$53.3 $53.3

$20.54 UYU 824

159.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$81.9 $81.9

$44.81 UYU 1,798

82.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.68 $48.68

$54.0 UYU 2,166

-9.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.82 $19.82

$19.75 UYU 793

0.35%

Cinema Ticket

$13.74 $13.74

$11.95 UYU 480

14.98%

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

$1,285 $1,285

$634 UYU 25.5K

102.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.7K $23.7K

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

114.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.3 $64.3

$102 UYU 4,099

-37.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.1 $50.1

$57.5 UYU 2,309

-12.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 $101

$127 UYU 5,079

-20.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 $113

$128 UYU 5,131

-11.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 $1,179

$719 UYU 28.8K

64.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,096 $1,096

$568 UYU 22.8K

92.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,297 $2,297

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

100.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,671 $1,671

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

63.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,825 $3,825

$3,392 UYU 136.1K

12.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,963 $1,963

$1,949 UYU 78.2K

0.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,701 $3,701

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

197.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

5.74

12.37%

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

Last update for Iowa City, IA: 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

Iowa City, IA

$1.1K 46.3%

Montevideo

$568 32.1% 48.2% $528

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Iowa City, IA

$401 16.9%

Montevideo

$254 14.3% 36.7% $147

Groceries & Markets

Iowa City, IA

$350 14.8%

Montevideo

$332 18.7% 5.3% $19

Eating Out

Iowa City, IA

$267 11.3%

Montevideo

$269 15.2% 0.7% $1.9

Clothing & Footwear

Iowa City, IA

$148 6.2%

Montevideo

$186 10.5% 26.3% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Iowa City, IA

$76 3.2%

Montevideo

$78 4.4% 2.2% $1.7

Getting Around

Iowa City, IA

$30 * 1.3%

Montevideo

$84 4.8% 182% $54

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,179 in Iowa City, IA and $719 in Montevideo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Iowa City, IA pays 197% 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: $68.0 in Iowa City, IA vs $69.0 in Montevideo. Groceries flip the comparison at $350 vs $332, with Montevideo cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Iowa City, IA

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🕒 Local time

14:23 2:23 PM

16:23 4:23 PM

2 h ahead of Iowa City, IA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,828

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 19, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 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

Iowa City, IA Montevideo 9,240 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Iowa City, IA
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

Iowa City, IA vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montevideo is cheaper overall, especially in groceries and utilities. The 34% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 197% higher in Iowa City, IA, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,179 in Iowa City, IA versus $719 in Montevideo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Montevideo runs roughly 365% less than in Iowa City, IA. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $1,285 in Iowa City, IA versus $634 in Montevideo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,771 in Montevideo versus $2,368 in Iowa City, IA, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Montevideo but tight or insufficient in Iowa City, IA. The gap between the two cities makes Montevideo the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Safety-wise, Iowa City, IA 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 Montevideo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 34% less than in Iowa City, IA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.