Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Manzanillo and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in Manzanillo: $1,230 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $6,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Manzanillo
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Manzanillo Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index

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Manzanillo

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,230

/mo nomad

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,230 in Manzanillo versus $1,771 in Montevideo.

Manzanillo $1,230
Montevideo $1,771

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,152 in Manzanillo versus $2,740 in Montevideo.

Manzanillo $2,152
Montevideo $2,740

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,075 in Manzanillo versus $3,708 in Montevideo.

Manzanillo $3,075
Montevideo $3,708

Living in Manzanillo costs roughly 31% less than in Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Manzanillo is 9% below, Montevideo is 31% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.10 MX$205

$15.16 UYU 609

-26.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.44 MX$599

$69.2 UYU 2,776

-53.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.83 MX$200

$14.65 UYU 588

-26.08%

Cappuccino

$3.58 MX$66.2

$4.46 UYU 179

-19.73%

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

$1.17 MX$21.59

$2.67 UYU 107

-56.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.17 MX$21.54

$2.00 UYU 80.4

-41.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.16 MX$40.00

$4.83 UYU 194

-55.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.39 MX$81.1

$3.80 UYU 152

15.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.40

$1.36 UYU 54.8

8.82%

White Bread (500g)

$2.60 MX$47.96

$2.87 UYU 115

-9.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.20 MX$22.26

$1.75 UYU 70.2

-31.43%

Eggs

$2.09 MX$38.64

$4.68 UYU 188

-55.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.28 MX$153

$13.88 UYU 557

-40.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.41 MX$100

$11.98 UYU 481

-54.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.93 MX$184

$11.97 UYU 480

-17.04%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 MX$54.2

$2.78 UYU 111

5.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.31

$2.74 UYU 110

-48.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.78 MX$32.89

$1.77 UYU 71.2

0.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.52 MX$28.14

$3.24 UYU 130

-53.09%

Potato (1kg)

$2.23 MX$41.12

$1.97 UYU 79.2

13.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.69 MX$31.24

$2.07 UYU 83.1

-18.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.87 MX$34.57

$1.37 UYU 55.1

36.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.10

$1.88 UYU 75.3

-36.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.44 MX$100

$5.59 UYU 224

-2.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.62 MX$122

$8.78 UYU 352

-24.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 MX$33.77

$2.26 UYU 90.9

-19.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 MX$46.60

$2.75 UYU 110

-8.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 MX$13.90

$1.53 UYU 61.5

-50.98%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.3 UYU 2,980

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.41 MX$44.55

$1.91 UYU 76.7

26.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.43 MX$44.84

$0.40 UYU 16.18

507.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.40 MX$174

$10.33 UYU 415

-9.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 MX$25.17

$2.13 UYU 85.6

-36.15%

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

$20.9K MX$386.6K

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

-22.82%

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

$24.4K MX$450.4K

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

-32.78%

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

$65.5 MX$1,211

$188 UYU 7,557

-65.20%

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

$19.83 MX$367

$20.54 UYU 824

-3.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.37 MX$543

$44.81 UYU 1,798

-34.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$65.3 MX$1,206

$54.0 UYU 2,166

20.96%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$33.01 MX$610

$19.75 UYU 793

67.14%

Cinema Ticket

$4.46 MX$82.4

$11.95 UYU 480

-62.68%

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

$163 MX$3,016

$634 UYU 25.5K

-74.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,172 MX$132.5K

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

-35.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.02 MX$795

$102 UYU 4,099

-57.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.85 MX$459

$57.5 UYU 2,309

-56.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.6 MX$1,397

$127 UYU 5,079

-40.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 MX$2,213

$128 UYU 5,131

-6.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$684 MX$12.6K

$719 UYU 28.8K

-4.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$479 MX$8,845

$568 UYU 22.8K

-15.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,519 MX$28.1K

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

32.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,373 MX$25.4K

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

34.20%

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)

$409 MX$7,563

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

-67.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

5.74

96.86%

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

Last update for Manzanillo: October 12, 2026

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Manzanillo

$479 38.9%

Montevideo

$568 32.1% 18.6% $89

Groceries & Markets

Manzanillo

$233 18.9%

Montevideo

$332 18.7% 42.4% $99

Eating Out

Manzanillo

$193 15.7%

Montevideo

$269 15.2% 39.3% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Manzanillo

$118 9.6%

Montevideo

$186 10.5% 57.3% $68

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Manzanillo

$115 9.3%

Montevideo

$254 14.3% 121% $139

Sport & Entertainment

Manzanillo

$74 6%

Montevideo

$78 4.4% 4.9% $3.7

Getting Around

Manzanillo

$18 * 1.4%

Montevideo

$84 4.8% 380% $67

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 $684 in Manzanillo and $719 in Montevideo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Montevideo pays 204% 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: $32.00 in Manzanillo vs $69.0 in Montevideo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $233 vs $332 per month, with Manzanillo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Manzanillo

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🕒 Local time

18:00 6:00 PM

21:00 9:00 PM

3 h ahead of Manzanillo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

159,853

1,319,108 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UYU, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 40.14 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.12 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Manzanillo Montevideo 7,860 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Manzanillo
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

Manzanillo vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Manzanillo and Montevideo differ by about 44% in total monthly costs ($1,230 vs $1,771 including rent). Manzanillo is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 204% 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: $684 in Manzanillo versus $719 in Montevideo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 42% higher in Montevideo. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,230 per month in Manzanillo versus $1,771 in Montevideo – a 44% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,230 in Manzanillo versus $1,771 in Montevideo, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Manzanillo but tight or insufficient in Montevideo. The gap between the two cities makes Manzanillo the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Manzanillo 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 Manzanillo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 44% less than in Montevideo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.