Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Jersey City, NJ and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in Montevideo: $1,813 a month against $3,853 in Jersey City, NJ, rent and utilities included – about $24,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

186

Cost of Living Index in Jersey City, NJ
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Jersey City, NJ Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index

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Jersey City, NJ

🇺🇸 United States

$3,853

/mo nomad

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,813

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,853 in Jersey City, NJ versus $1,813 in Montevideo.

Jersey City, NJ $3,853
Montevideo $1,813

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,294 in Jersey City, NJ versus $2,782 in Montevideo.

Jersey City, NJ $5,294
Montevideo $2,782

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,736 in Jersey City, NJ versus $3,750 in Montevideo.

Jersey City, NJ $6,736
Montevideo $3,750

Living in Jersey City, NJ is roughly 112% more expensive than in Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Jersey City, NJ 188% above, Montevideo 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.71 $24.71

$15.26 UYU 613

61.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.5 $98.5

$67.4 UYU 2,711

46.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.81 $10.81

$14.37 UYU 578

-24.77%

Cappuccino

$5.44 $5.44

$4.64 UYU 187

17.24%

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

$2.15 $2.15

$2.73 UYU 110

-21.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.53 $1.53

$2.09 UYU 84.0

-26.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.24 $8.24

$4.75 UYU 191

73.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.03 $8.03

$3.67 UYU 147

118.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 $1.32

$1.38 UYU 55.5

-4.35%

White Bread (500g)

$4.16 $4.16

$2.77 UYU 112

50.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$7.38 $7.38

$1.69 UYU 67.8

336.69%

Eggs

$5.77 $5.77

$4.52 UYU 182

27.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.64 $12.64

$14.17 UYU 570

-10.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.78 $11.78

$12.07 UYU 485

-2.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.24 $17.24

$12.16 UYU 489

41.78%

Apples (1kg)

$5.46 $5.46

$2.87 UYU 116

90.24%

Banana (1kg)

$1.79 $1.79

$2.75 UYU 110

-34.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.22 $6.22

$1.73 UYU 69.5

259.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.08 $6.08

$3.24 UYU 130

87.65%

Potato (1kg)

$5.66 $5.66

$2.07 UYU 83.1

173.43%

Onion (1kg)

$3.77 $3.77

$2.07 UYU 83.1

82.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.84 $2.84

$1.38 UYU 55.4

105.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.81 $2.81

$1.85 UYU 74.5

51.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.61 $11.61

$5.57 UYU 224

108.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$24.79 $24.79

$8.89 UYU 357

178.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 $1.77

$2.29 UYU 92.2

-22.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.53 $5.53

$2.70 UYU 109

104.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.94 $2.94

$1.52 UYU 61.3

93.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$106 $106

$73.7 UYU 2,962

43.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.98 $2.98

$1.82 UYU 73.4

63.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.10 $2.10

$0.40 UYU 16.05

425.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.65 $23.65

$10.66 UYU 429

121.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 $1.06

$2.22 UYU 89.2

-52.25%

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

$36.5K $36.5K

$26.7K UYU 1.1M

36.29%

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

$25.4K $25.4K

$36.7K UYU 1.5M

-30.74%

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

$212 $212

$191 UYU 7,674

11.21%

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

$73.1 $73.1

$20.40 UYU 820

258.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$66.0 $66.0

$44.14 UYU 1,775

49.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.4 $57.4

$54.1 UYU 2,177

5.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$42.80 $42.80

$19.68 UYU 791

117.48%

Cinema Ticket

$14.67 $14.67

$12.33 UYU 496

18.98%

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

$2,209 $2,209

$613 UYU 24.7K

260.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.7K $23.7K

$11.0K UYU 444.3K

114.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.79 $40.79

$103 UYU 4,134

-60.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.8 $56.8

$56.1 UYU 2,255

1.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.7 $75.7

$124 UYU 5,000

-39.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 $159

$130 UYU 5,214

22.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,536 $3,536

$705 UYU 28.4K

401.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,272 $2,272

$575 UYU 23.1K

294.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,505 $5,505

$1,139 UYU 45.8K

383.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,255 $3,255

$1,016 UYU 40.8K

220.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,925 $7,925

$3,349 UYU 134.6K

136.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,476 $5,476

$1,942 UYU 78.1K

182.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,281 $6,281

$1,229 UYU 49.4K

410.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

5.74

17.60%

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

Last update for Jersey City, NJ: October 4, 2026

Last update for Montevideo: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Jersey City, NJ

$2.3K 59.1%

Montevideo

$575 32.3% 74.7% $1.7K

Groceries & Markets

Jersey City, NJ

$488 12.7%

Montevideo

$332 18.7% 31.9% $156

Eating Out

Jersey City, NJ

$367 9.6%

Montevideo

$271 15.2% 26.2% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Jersey City, NJ

$351 9.1%

Montevideo

$255 14.3% 27.3% $96

Clothing & Footwear

Jersey City, NJ

$150 3.9%

Montevideo

$186 10.4% 24.3% $36

Getting Around

Jersey City, NJ

$131 3.4%

Montevideo

$84 4.7% 36.2% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Jersey City, NJ

$87 2.3%

Montevideo

$79 4.4% 9.1% $7.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $3,536 in Jersey City, NJ and $705 in Montevideo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Jersey City, NJ pays 411% 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: $98.0 in Jersey City, NJ vs $67.0 in Montevideo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $488 vs $332 per month, with Montevideo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Jersey City, NJ

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🕒 Local time

07:36 7:36 AM

08:36 8:36 AM

1 h ahead of Jersey City, NJ

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

292,449

1,319,108 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 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 10, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 40.21 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.06 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

UYU to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Jersey City, NJ Montevideo 8,610 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Jersey City, NJ
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

Jersey City, NJ vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montevideo is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. The 112% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 411% higher in Jersey City, NJ, 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: $3,536 in Jersey City, NJ versus $705 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 43% less than in Jersey City, NJ. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $2,209 in Jersey City, NJ versus $613 in Montevideo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,813 in Montevideo versus $3,853 in Jersey City, NJ, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Montevideo but tight or insufficient in Jersey City, NJ. 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 Jersey City, NJ, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Jersey City, NJ 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 112% less than in Jersey City, NJ. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.