Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Isabela and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in Isabela: $1,271 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $6,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Isabela
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Isabela Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index

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Isabela

🇵🇷 Puerto Rico

$1,271

/mo nomad

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,271 in Isabela versus $1,771 in Montevideo.

Isabela $1,271
Montevideo $1,771

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,989 in Isabela versus $2,740 in Montevideo.

Isabela $1,989
Montevideo $2,740

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,707 in Isabela versus $3,708 in Montevideo.

Isabela $2,707
Montevideo $3,708

Living in Isabela costs roughly 28% less than in Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Isabela is 6% below, Montevideo is 31% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.06 $19.06

$15.16 UYU 609

25.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$82.1 $82.1

$69.2 UYU 2,776

18.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.24 $9.24

$14.65 UYU 588

-36.93%

Cappuccino

$3.67 $3.67

$4.46 UYU 179

-17.71%

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

$1.89 $1.89

$2.67 UYU 107

-29.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.47 $1.47

$2.00 UYU 80.4

-26.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.09 $3.09

$4.83 UYU 194

-36.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.07 $5.07

$3.80 UYU 152

33.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.94 $1.94

$1.36 UYU 54.8

42.65%

White Bread (500g)

$2.89 $2.89

$2.87 UYU 115

0.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.22 $1.22

$1.75 UYU 70.2

-30.29%

Eggs

$2.95 $2.95

$4.68 UYU 188

-36.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.08 $11.08

$13.88 UYU 557

-20.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.56 $6.56

$11.98 UYU 481

-45.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.14 $13.14

$11.97 UYU 480

9.77%

Apples (1kg)

$4.30 $4.30

$2.78 UYU 111

54.68%

Banana (1kg)

$2.54 $2.54

$2.74 UYU 110

-7.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.00 $5.00

$1.77 UYU 71.2

182.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.89 $4.89

$3.24 UYU 130

50.93%

Potato (1kg)

$3.89 $3.89

$1.97 UYU 79.2

97.46%

Onion (1kg)

$3.94 $3.94

$2.07 UYU 83.1

90.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.37 $3.37

$1.37 UYU 55.1

145.99%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 $1.58

$1.88 UYU 75.3

-15.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.06 $12.06

$5.59 UYU 224

115.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.85 $15.85

$8.78 UYU 352

80.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.14 $3.14

$2.26 UYU 90.9

38.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.98 $3.98

$2.75 UYU 110

44.73%

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)

$2.55 $2.55

$1.91 UYU 76.7

33.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 $1.53

$0.40 UYU 16.18

282.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.80 $41.80

$10.33 UYU 415

304.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 $0.82

$2.13 UYU 85.6

-61.50%

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

$40.2K $40.2K

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

48.13%

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

$27.7K $27.7K

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

-23.49%

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

$326 $326

$188 UYU 7,557

73.09%

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

$68.5 $68.5

$20.54 UYU 824

233.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$70.6 $70.6

$44.81 UYU 1,798

57.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.0 UYU 2,166

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.75 UYU 793

Cinema Ticket

$10.54 $10.54

$11.95 UYU 480

-11.80%

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

$814 $814

$634 UYU 25.5K

28.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.5K $12.5K

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

13.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.2 $57.2

$102 UYU 4,099

-44.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$60.9 $60.9

$57.5 UYU 2,309

5.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 $107

$127 UYU 5,079

-15.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 $115

$128 UYU 5,131

-10.37%

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 %)

6.55

5.74

14.11%

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

Last update for Isabela: October 10, 2026

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Isabela

$465 36.6%

Montevideo

$254 14.3% 45.5% $211

Groceries & Markets

Isabela

$359 28.2%

Montevideo

$332 18.7% 7.6% $27

Eating Out

Isabela

$263 20.7%

Montevideo

$269 15.2% 2.2% $5.9

Clothing & Footwear

Isabela

$153 12%

Montevideo

$186 10.5% 21.8% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Isabela

$21 * 1.7%

Montevideo

$78 4.4% 270% $57

Getting Around

Isabela

$10 * 0.8%

Montevideo

$84 4.8% 726% $74

Accommodation & Living

Isabela

- * 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: $82.0 in Isabela vs $69.0 in Montevideo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $359 vs $332 per month, with Montevideo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇷 Isabela

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🕒 Local time

14:39 2:39 PM

15:39 3:39 PM

1 h ahead of Isabela

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

45,000

1,319,108 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.889 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 17, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.889 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).

UYU to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Isabela Montevideo 6,050 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Isabela
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

Isabela vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Isabela wins on cost – living expenses run 39% lower than in Montevideo. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Isabela the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,907 in Isabela 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 $814 in Isabela 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 Isabela – a meal for two runs $82.0 versus $69.0 in Montevideo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,271 in Isabela versus $1,771 in Montevideo, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Isabela but tight or insufficient in Montevideo. The gap between the two cities makes Isabela the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Isabela delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,271 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Isabela hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Isabela 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 Isabela gentler on the wallet – expenses run 39% less than in Montevideo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.