Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Barquisimeto

For one person, living is cheaper in Barquisimeto: $796 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $11,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in Barquisimeto
Learn more

Barquisimeto Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Barquisimeto

🇻🇪 Venezuela

$796

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Barquisimeto

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 Barquisimeto actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,771 in Montevideo versus $796 in Barquisimeto.

Montevideo $1,771
Barquisimeto $796

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,740 in Montevideo versus $1,366 in Barquisimeto.

Montevideo $2,740
Barquisimeto $1,366

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,708 in Montevideo versus $1,936 in Barquisimeto.

Montevideo $3,708
Barquisimeto $1,936

Living in Montevideo is roughly 123% more expensive than in Barquisimeto, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Montevideo is 31% above, Barquisimeto is 41% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.16 UYU 609

$10.20 VES 8,953

48.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.2 UYU 2,776

$50.7 VES 44.5K

36.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.65 UYU 588

$11.67 VES 10.2K

25.54%

Cappuccino

$4.46 UYU 179

$1.74 VES 1,525

156.32%

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

$2.67 UYU 107

$1.46 VES 1,282

82.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 UYU 80.4

$1.11 VES 974

80.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.83 UYU 194

$1.28 VES 1,128

277.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 UYU 152

$3.23 VES 2,839

17.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.36 UYU 54.8

$2.14 VES 1,882

-36.45%

White Bread (500g)

$2.87 UYU 115

$1.36 VES 1,192

111.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 UYU 70.2

$1.34 VES 1,172

30.60%

Eggs

$4.68 UYU 188

$2.22 VES 1,950

110.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.88 UYU 557

$6.41 VES 5,630

116.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.98 UYU 481

$6.79 VES 5,963

76.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.97 UYU 480

$7.41 VES 6,503

61.54%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 UYU 111

$4.62 VES 4,058

-39.83%

Banana (1kg)

$2.74 UYU 110

$1.43 VES 1,255

91.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 UYU 71.2

$0.72 VES 631

145.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

$0.89 VES 782

264.04%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 UYU 79.2

$0.96 VES 845

105.21%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

$1.30 VES 1,146

59.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 UYU 55.1

$0.64 VES 566

114.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 UYU 75.3

$1.60 VES 1,402

17.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.59 UYU 224

$2.52 VES 2,213

121.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.78 UYU 352

$10.16 VES 8,918

-13.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 UYU 90.9

$1.24 VES 1,090

82.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 UYU 110

$2.28 VES 2,001

20.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.53 UYU 61.5

$0.43 VES 376

255.81%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.3 UYU 2,980

$40.19 VES 35.3K

84.77%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.91 UYU 76.7

$3.33 VES 2,926

-42.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 UYU 16.18

$1.95 VES 1,710

-79.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.33 UYU 415

$15.10 VES 13.3K

-31.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 UYU 85.6

$0.76 VES 670

180.26%

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

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

$24.9K VES 21.9M

8.92%

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

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

$30.3K VES 26.6M

19.56%

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

$188 UYU 7,557

$15.23 VES 13.4K

1136.38%

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

$20.54 UYU 824

$7.76 VES 6,810

164.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.81 UYU 1,798

$36.49 VES 32.0K

22.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.0 UYU 2,166

$32.73 VES 28.7K

64.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.75 UYU 793

$8.51 VES 7,475

132.08%

Cinema Ticket

$11.95 UYU 480

$4.97 VES 4,368

140.44%

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

$634 UYU 25.5K

$57.3 VES 50.3K

1006.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

$498 VES 437.4K

2118.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 UYU 4,099

$46.83 VES 41.1K

118.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.5 UYU 2,309

$40.42 VES 35.5K

42.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 UYU 5,079

$94.4 VES 82.8K

34.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 UYU 5,131

$80.4 VES 70.5K

59.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$719 UYU 28.8K

$215 VES 188.5K

234.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$568 UYU 22.8K

$138 VES 121.3K

310.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

$476 VES 417.6K

140.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

$318 VES 278.9K

222.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,392 UYU 136.1K

$469 VES 411.3K

624.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,949 UYU 78.2K

$250 VES 219.2K

680.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

$189 VES 166.1K

557.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

-77.04%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Last update for Barquisimeto: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$568 32.1%

Barquisimeto

$138 17.4% 75.7% $430

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$332 18.7%

Barquisimeto

$222 27.9% 33% $110

Eating Out

Montevideo

$269 15.2%

Barquisimeto

$161 20.2% 40.3% $109

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$254 14.3%

Barquisimeto

$59 7.5% 76.6% $194

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$186 10.5%

Barquisimeto

$118 14.8% 36.7% $68

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.8%

Barquisimeto

$55 6.9% 34.8% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$78 4.4%

Barquisimeto

$43 5.4% 45.2% $35

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $719 in Montevideo and $215 in Barquisimeto. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Montevideo pays 558% 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: $69.0 in Montevideo vs $51.0 in Barquisimeto for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $332 vs $222 per month, with Barquisimeto cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇻🇪 Barquisimeto

🕒 Local time

02:29 2:29 AM

01:29 1:29 AM

1 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

1,240,714

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Venezuelan Bolívar VES Bs.S

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

1,000 VES = 1.14 USD

1,000 VES = 1.01 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VES, USD, EUR to UYU – Uruguayan Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

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).

Venezuelan Bolívar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 878 VES (1,000 VES = 1.14 USD). 1 EUR = 987 VES (1,000 VES = 1.01 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Montevideo Barquisimeto 5,190 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Barquisimeto

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 Barquisimeto: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montevideo and Barquisimeto differ by about 123% in total monthly costs ($1,771 vs $796 including rent). Barquisimeto is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 558% higher in Montevideo, 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: $719 in Montevideo versus $215 in Barquisimeto. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Barquisimeto – a meal for two runs $51.0 versus $69.0 in Montevideo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,771 per month in Montevideo versus $796 in Barquisimeto – a 123% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $796 in Barquisimeto versus $1,771 in Montevideo, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Barquisimeto but tight or insufficient in Montevideo. The gap between the two cities makes Barquisimeto 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 Barquisimeto 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 Barquisimeto gentler on the wallet – expenses run 123% less than in Montevideo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.