Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Merida and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in Merida: $814 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $11,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Merida
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Merida Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index

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Merida

🇻🇪 Venezuela

$814

/mo nomad

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $814 per month in Merida vs $1,771 in Montevideo, rent included.

Merida $814
Montevideo $1,771

A couple spends around $1,418 per month in Merida vs $2,740 in Montevideo, rent included.

Merida $1,418
Montevideo $2,740

A family of three spends $2,021 per month in Merida vs $3,708 in Montevideo, rent included.

Merida $2,021
Montevideo $3,708

Merida is about 54% cheaper than Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Merida sits 40% below the global median, while Montevideo is 31% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.90 VES 10.4K

$15.16 UYU 609

-21.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.9 VES 53.4K

$69.2 UYU 2,776

-12.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.82 VES 9,500

$14.65 UYU 588

-26.14%

Cappuccino

$2.54 VES 2,226

$4.46 UYU 179

-43.05%

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

$2.13 VES 1,867

$2.67 UYU 107

-20.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.36 VES 1,195

$2.00 UYU 80.4

-32.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.97 VES 1,727

$4.83 UYU 194

-59.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.01 VES 2,644

$3.80 UYU 152

-20.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.04 VES 1,788

$1.36 UYU 54.8

50.00%

White Bread (500g)

$3.32 VES 2,913

$2.87 UYU 115

15.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.00 VES 1,759

$1.75 UYU 70.2

14.29%

Eggs

$2.51 VES 2,201

$4.68 UYU 188

-46.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.79 VES 5,965

$13.88 UYU 557

-51.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.87 VES 6,912

$11.98 UYU 481

-34.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.31 VES 6,421

$11.97 UYU 480

-38.93%

Apples (1kg)

$5.11 VES 4,488

$2.78 UYU 111

83.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 VES 1,267

$2.74 UYU 110

-47.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.76 VES 2,426

$1.77 UYU 71.2

55.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.36 VES 2,070

$3.24 UYU 130

-27.16%

Potato (1kg)

$1.98 VES 1,735

$1.97 UYU 79.2

0.51%

Onion (1kg)

$1.36 VES 1,194

$2.07 UYU 83.1

-34.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.49 VES 1,307

$1.37 UYU 55.1

8.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.53 VES 2,217

$1.88 UYU 75.3

34.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 VES 3,258

$5.59 UYU 224

-33.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.18 VES 9,812

$8.78 UYU 352

27.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.40 VES 1,233

$2.26 UYU 90.9

-38.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.21 VES 1,944

$2.75 UYU 110

-19.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 VES 253

$1.53 UYU 61.5

-81.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.3 UYU 2,980

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.95 VES 3,469

$1.91 UYU 76.7

106.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 VES 1,300

$0.40 UYU 16.18

270.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.86 VES 5,144

$10.33 UYU 415

-43.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.72 VES 629

$2.13 UYU 85.6

-66.20%

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

$45.7K VES 40.1M

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

68.67%

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

$50.5K VES 44.3M

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

39.24%

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

$12.37 VES 10.9K

$188 UYU 7,557

-93.43%

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

$10.13 VES 8,894

$20.54 UYU 824

-50.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.49 VES 25.9K

$44.81 UYU 1,798

-34.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.41 VES 25.8K

$54.0 UYU 2,166

-45.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.79 VES 13.0K

$19.75 UYU 793

-25.11%

Cinema Ticket

$4.93 VES 4,325

$11.95 UYU 480

-58.74%

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

$88.5 VES 77.7K

$634 UYU 25.5K

-86.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,399 VES 2.1M

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

-78.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.6 VES 63.7K

$102 UYU 4,099

-28.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.37 VES 37.2K

$57.5 UYU 2,309

-26.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$97.4 VES 85.5K

$127 UYU 5,079

-23.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.3 VES 86.3K

$128 UYU 5,131

-23.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$132 VES 116.2K

$719 UYU 28.8K

-81.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$93.6 VES 82.1K

$568 UYU 22.8K

-83.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$224 VES 196.9K

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

-80.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$193 VES 169.8K

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

-81.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,184 VES 1.0M

$3,392 UYU 136.1K

-65.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,211 VES 1.1M

$1,949 UYU 78.2K

-37.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$290 VES 254.9K

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

-76.67%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

335.54%

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

Last update for Merida: October 11, 2026

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Merida

$289 35.5%

Montevideo

$332 18.7% 14.7% $43

Eating Out

Merida

$188 23.1%

Montevideo

$269 15.2% 43.2% $81

Clothing & Footwear

Merida

$140 17.2%

Montevideo

$186 10.5% 33.3% $47

Accommodation & Living

Merida

$94 11.5%

Montevideo

$568 32.1% 507% $474

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Merida

$52 6.4%

Montevideo

$254 14.3% 388% $202

Sport & Entertainment

Merida

$39 4.8%

Montevideo

$78 4.4% 98.3% $39

Getting Around

Merida

$13 * 1.5%

Montevideo

$84 4.8% 574% $72

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $132 in Merida versus $719 in Montevideo. 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 329% higher in Montevideo, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61.0 in Merida versus $69.0 in Montevideo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $289 vs $332 – making Merida the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇻🇪 Merida

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🕒 Local time

22:06 10:06 PM

23:06 11:06 PM

1 h ahead of Merida

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

250,303

1,319,108 Capital

💱 Currency

Venezuelan Bolívar VES Bs.S

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 VES = 1.14 USD

1,000 VES = 1.01 EUR

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UYU, USD, EUR to VES – Venezuelan Bolívar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇻🇪 Venezuelan Bolívar (Bs.S)

Venezuelan Bolívar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 878 VES (1,000 VES = 1.14 USD). 1 EUR = 987 VES (1,000 VES = 1.01 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).

USD to VES in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Merida Montevideo 5,090 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Merida
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

Merida vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montevideo costs about 118% more than Merida, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,221 per month in Merida and $2,656 in Montevideo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Merida, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $814 in Merida and $1,771 in Montevideo. That's a gap of about 118%.

Kindergarten costs $88.5 per month in Merida and $634 in Montevideo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Merida, where all-in costs run around $814, than in Montevideo at $1,771. In Merida it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montevideo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Merida costs $814 versus $1,771 in Montevideo. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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