Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Aruba

For one person, living is cheaper in Montevideo: $1,813 a month against $2,376 in Aruba, rent and utilities included – about $6,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Aruba outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index
141

Cost of Living Index in Aruba
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Aruba Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,813

/mo nomad

Aruba

🇦🇼 Aruba

$2,376

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Aruba

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,813 in Montevideo versus $2,376 in Aruba.

Montevideo $1,813
Aruba $2,376

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,782 in Montevideo versus $4,248 in Aruba.

Montevideo $2,782
Aruba $4,248

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,750 in Montevideo versus $6,119 in Aruba.

Montevideo $3,750
Aruba $6,119

Living in Montevideo costs roughly 24% less than in Aruba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Montevideo 35% above, Aruba 77% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.26 UYU 613

$14.50 AWG 25.95

5.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.4 UYU 2,711

$90.9 AWG 163

-25.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.37 UYU 578

$10.62 AWG 19.01

35.31%

Cappuccino

$4.64 UYU 187

$5.19 AWG 9.29

-10.60%

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

$2.73 UYU 110

$2.35 AWG 4.21

16.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 UYU 84.0

$2.30 AWG 4.11

-9.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.75 UYU 191

$5.24 AWG 9.38

-9.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 UYU 147

$6.84 AWG 12.25

-46.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 UYU 55.5

$1.67 AWG 2.98

-17.37%

White Bread (500g)

$2.77 UYU 112

$2.88 AWG 5.15

-3.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.69 UYU 67.8

$3.04 AWG 5.44

-44.41%

Eggs

$4.52 UYU 182

$3.80 AWG 6.81

18.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.17 UYU 570

$13.97 AWG 25.00

1.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.07 UYU 485

$4.22 AWG 7.55

186.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.16 UYU 489

Apples (1kg)

$2.87 UYU 116

Banana (1kg)

$2.75 UYU 110

$1.96 AWG 3.51

40.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 UYU 69.5

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.38 UYU 55.4

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 UYU 74.5

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.57 UYU 224

Wine (Bottle)

$8.89 UYU 357

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.29 UYU 92.2

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.70 UYU 109

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 UYU 61.3

$2.49 AWG 4.45

-38.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.7 UYU 2,962

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.82 UYU 73.4

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 UYU 16.05

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.66 UYU 429

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 UYU 89.2

$2.38 AWG 4.26

-6.72%

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

$26.7K UYU 1.1M

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

$36.7K UYU 1.5M

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

$191 UYU 7,674

$233 AWG 418

-18.21%

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

$20.40 UYU 820

$133 AWG 239

-84.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.14 UYU 1,775

$86.6 AWG 155

-49.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 UYU 2,177

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.68 UYU 791

Cinema Ticket

$12.33 UYU 496

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

$613 UYU 24.7K

$302 AWG 541

102.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K UYU 444.3K

$17.9K AWG 32.0K

-38.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$103 UYU 4,134

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.1 UYU 2,255

$64.9 AWG 116

-13.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 UYU 5,000

$118 AWG 212

5.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 UYU 5,214

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$705 UYU 28.4K

$652 AWG 1,167

8.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$575 UYU 23.1K

$1,419 AWG 2,540

-59.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,139 UYU 45.8K

$3,256 AWG 5,828

-65.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,016 UYU 40.8K

$4,034 AWG 7,222

-74.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,349 UYU 134.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,942 UYU 78.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,229 UYU 49.4K

$1,886 AWG 3,377

-34.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 5, 2026

Last update for Aruba: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$575 32.3%

Aruba

$1.4K 59.6% 147% $844

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$332 18.7%

Aruba

$148 * 6.2% 55.6% $185

Eating Out

Montevideo

$271 15.2%

Aruba

$269 11.3% 0.9% $2.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$255 14.3%

Aruba

$453 19% 77.6% $198

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$186 10.4%

Aruba

$82 * 3.5% 55.7% $103

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.7%

Aruba

$10 * 0.4% 88.1% $74

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$79 4.4%

Aruba

- * 0% 100%

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 $705 in Montevideo and $652 in Aruba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Aruba pays 53% 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: $67.0 in Montevideo vs $91.0 in Aruba. Groceries flip the comparison at $332 vs $148, with Aruba cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇦🇼 Aruba

🕒 Local time

08:25 8:25 AM

07:25 7:25 AM

1 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

15,236

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Aruban Florin AWG ƒ

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

1 AWG = 0.559 USD

1 AWG = 0.499 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AWG, USD, EUR to UYU – Uruguayan Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

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).

Aruban Florin exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.79 AWG (1 AWG = 0.559 USD). 1 EUR = 2.01 AWG (1 AWG = 0.499 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Montevideo Aruba 5,470 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Aruba

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

Montevideo vs Aruba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montevideo and Aruba differ by about 31% in total monthly costs ($1,813 vs $2,376 including rent). Montevideo is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 53% lower in Aruba. 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: $705 in Montevideo versus $652 in Aruba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Aruba pay roughly 125% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $1,813 per month in Montevideo versus $2,376 in Aruba – a 31% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,813 in Montevideo versus $2,376 in Aruba, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Montevideo but tight or insufficient in Aruba. The gap between the two cities makes Montevideo 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, Montevideo and Aruba 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 31% less than in Aruba. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.