Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Maldonado and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Maldonado: $1,361 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cape Town outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

65

Cost of Living Index in Maldonado
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Maldonado Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Maldonado

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,361

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Maldonado and in Cape Town

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Maldonado and in Cape Town actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,361 per month in Maldonado vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Maldonado $1,361
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $2,165 per month in Maldonado vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Maldonado $2,165
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $2,969 per month in Maldonado vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Maldonado $2,969
Cape Town $3,306

Maldonado is about 11% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.90 UYU 599

$12.01 R 198

24.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.6 UYU 2,237

$42.92 R 707

29.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.91 UYU 559

$6.15 R 101

126.18%

Cappuccino

$4.35 UYU 175

$2.37 R 39.04

83.54%

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

$2.54 UYU 102

$1.27 R 20.96

100.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 UYU 91.7

$0.94 R 15.46

142.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.00 UYU 121

$2.96 R 48.77

1.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.59 UYU 144

$3.69 R 60.8

-2.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 UYU 45.25

$1.32 R 21.73

-14.39%

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 UYU 112

$1.21 R 19.87

129.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 UYU 68.3

$2.20 R 36.26

-22.73%

Eggs

$4.17 UYU 168

$3.10 R 51.1

34.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.99 UYU 563

$8.73 R 144

60.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.17 UYU 449

$6.89 R 114

62.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.64 UYU 468

$9.26 R 153

25.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 UYU 115

$1.83 R 30.08

55.74%

Banana (1kg)

$2.21 UYU 88.9

$1.95 R 32.12

13.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 UYU 65.7

$1.66 R 27.32

-1.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.10 UYU 125

$2.14 R 35.19

44.86%

Potato (1kg)

$1.98 UYU 79.7

$1.58 R 26.01

25.32%

Onion (1kg)

$2.06 UYU 82.9

$1.47 R 24.29

40.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 UYU 54.3

$1.35 R 22.18

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 UYU 75.4

$1.14 R 18.85

64.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.51 UYU 222

$3.58 R 59.0

53.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.10 UYU 326

$6.05 R 99.7

33.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.23 UYU 89.9

$1.39 R 22.95

60.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 UYU 114

$2.18 R 35.90

29.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.41 UYU 56.9

$1.40 R 23.02

0.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$49.19 UYU 1,978

$60.8 R 1,001

-19.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.40 UYU 137

$0.93 R 15.26

265.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.05 UYU 42.09

$0.90 R 14.83

16.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.96 UYU 401

$4.96 R 81.7

100.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 UYU 89.4

$1.54 R 25.37

44.16%

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

$26.7K UYU 1.1M

$35.4K R 582.8K

-24.47%

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

$36.9K UYU 1.5M

$33.4K R 549.9K

10.50%

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

$116 UYU 4,676

$117 R 1,929

-0.68%

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

$19.22 UYU 773

$25.71 R 424

-25.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.58 UYU 1,753

$39.41 R 649

10.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.91 UYU 1,927

$51.6 R 850

-7.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.46 UYU 1,185

$11.35 R 187

159.56%

Cinema Ticket

$12.00 UYU 483

$8.89 R 146

34.98%

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

$504 UYU 20.3K

$308 R 5,069

63.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,552 UYU 263.5K

$8,141 R 134.2K

-19.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.6 UYU 3,604

$57.4 R 946

56.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.84 UYU 1,522

$31.75 R 523

19.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$120 UYU 4,838

$116 R 1,911

3.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 UYU 4,660

$101 R 1,660

15.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$416 UYU 16.7K

$1,047 R 17.2K

-60.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$313 UYU 12.6K

$669 R 11.0K

-53.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$898 UYU 36.1K

$1,861 R 30.7K

-51.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$586 UYU 23.6K

$1,407 R 23.2K

-58.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,759 UYU 111.0K

$2,410 R 39.7K

14.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,552 UYU 62.4K

$1,570 R 25.9K

-1.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$982 UYU 39.5K

$1,630 R 26.9K

-39.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

-54.09%

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

Last update for Maldonado: November 1, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Maldonado

$316 23.2%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 29.3% $93

Accommodation & Living

Maldonado

$313 23%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 114% $357

Eating Out

Maldonado

$255 18.7%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 31.7% $81

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Maldonado

$179 13.2%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 1.7% $3.1

Clothing & Footwear

Maldonado

$164 12%

Cape Town

$138 9% 15.9% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Maldonado

$72 5.3%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 3.5% $2.5

Getting Around

Maldonado

$63 4.7%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 13% $8.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $416 in Maldonado versus $1,047 in Cape Town. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 66% higher in Cape Town. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $56 in Maldonado versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $316 vs $223 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Maldonado

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

04:32 4:32 AM

09:32 9:32 AM

5 h ahead of Maldonado

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

62,592

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.21 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to UYU – Uruguayan Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 40.22 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.17 UYU (100 UYU = 2.21 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.51 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Maldonado Cape Town 6,570 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Maldonado
Cape Town

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

Maldonado vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 12% more than Maldonado, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,042 per month in Maldonado and $2,291 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Maldonado, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $416 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,361 in Maldonado and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Maldonado about 11% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 19% less in Maldonado. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,361 in Maldonado and $1,527 in Cape Town, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,361 in Maldonado to $1,527 in Cape Town. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Maldonado. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cape Town makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.