Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Busto Arsizio

For one person, living costs are similar in Montevideo and in Busto Arsizio: $1,784 and $1,828 a month, rent and utilities included.

86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Busto Arsizio
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Busto Arsizio Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,784

/mo nomad

Busto Arsizio

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,828

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Busto Arsizio

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,784 in Montevideo versus $1,828 in Busto Arsizio.

Montevideo $1,784
Busto Arsizio $1,828

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,756 in Montevideo versus $2,845 in Busto Arsizio.

Montevideo $2,756
Busto Arsizio $2,845

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,728 in Montevideo versus $3,863 in Busto Arsizio.

Montevideo $3,728
Busto Arsizio $3,863

Living in Montevideo costs roughly 2% less than in Busto Arsizio, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Montevideo 32% above, Busto Arsizio 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.82 UYU 595

$22.53 €20.04

-34.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.7 UYU 2,797

$90.8 €80.7

-23.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.68 UYU 589

$11.20 €9.96

31.07%

Cappuccino

$4.65 UYU 186

$2.24 €1.99

107.59%

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

$2.74 UYU 110

$3.31 €2.94

-17.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 UYU 82.9

$1.42 €1.26

45.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.79 UYU 192

$6.69 €5.95

-28.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 UYU 146

$6.00 €5.33

-39.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 UYU 55.8

$1.54 €1.37

-9.74%

White Bread (500g)

$2.89 UYU 116

$2.35 €2.09

22.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 UYU 68.1

$3.40 €3.02

-50.00%

Eggs

$4.62 UYU 185

$4.91 €4.36

-5.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.22 UYU 571

$17.70 €15.74

-19.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.62 UYU 466

$13.86 €12.33

-16.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.23 UYU 491

$22.01 €19.58

-44.43%

Apples (1kg)

$2.77 UYU 111

$2.76 €2.45

0.36%

Banana (1kg)

$2.85 UYU 114

$1.89 €1.69

50.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.81 UYU 72.5

$2.50 €2.22

-27.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.20 UYU 129

$3.26 €2.90

-1.84%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 UYU 77.8

$1.65 €1.46

17.58%

Onion (1kg)

$2.16 UYU 86.5

$2.04 €1.82

5.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.43 UYU 57.3

$1.16 €1.04

23.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.94 UYU 77.9

$0.65 €0.58

198.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.47 UYU 219

$7.74 €6.89

-29.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.95 UYU 359

$5.03 €4.48

77.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 UYU 90.8

$1.53 €1.36

47.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 UYU 113

$1.60 €1.42

75.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.56 UYU 62.6

$1.72 €1.53

-9.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.8 UYU 2,962

$42.93 €38.18

71.93%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.90 UYU 76.2

$4.01 €3.56

-52.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 UYU 17.36

$2.26 €2.01

-80.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.59 UYU 425

$39.57 €35.19

-73.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.12 UYU 85.2

$2.11 €1.88

0.47%

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

$26.8K UYU 1.1M

$35.9K €31.9K

-25.28%

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

$37.0K UYU 1.5M

$34.7K €30.9K

6.53%

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

$193 UYU 7,727

$198 €176

-2.81%

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

$20.91 UYU 839

$12.01 €10.68

74.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.89 UYU 1,802

$27.37 €24.35

64.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.8 UYU 2,038

$31.00 €27.57

63.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.73 UYU 792

Cinema Ticket

$12.30 UYU 494

$11.18 €9.94

10.02%

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

$629 UYU 25.2K

$902 €802

-30.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.9K UYU 437.3K

$7,092 €6,309

53.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 UYU 4,166

$90.1 €80.2

15.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.4 UYU 2,305

$28.02 €24.93

105.00%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$125 UYU 5,010

$108 €96.1

15.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 UYU 5,315

$137 €122

-3.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$713 UYU 28.6K

$1,279 €1,138

-44.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$575 UYU 23.1K

$649 €577

-11.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,164 UYU 46.7K

$1,961 €1,744

-40.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 UYU 41.5K

$1,086 €966

-4.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,418 UYU 137.2K

$2,535 €2,255

34.83%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,760 UYU 70.6K

$1,576 €1,402

11.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,244 UYU 49.9K

$2,194 €1,952

-43.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

3.65

57.26%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 19, 2026

Last update for Busto Arsizio: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$575 32.2%

Busto Arsizio

$649 35.5% 12.8% $74

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$334 18.7%

Busto Arsizio

$354 19.4% 6.3% $21

Eating Out

Montevideo

$269 15.1%

Busto Arsizio

$305 16.7% 13.5% $36

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$258 14.5%

Busto Arsizio

$237 13% 8.1% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$188 10.6%

Busto Arsizio

$163 8.9% 13.2% $25

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.7%

Busto Arsizio

$65 3.6% 22.6% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$75 4.2%

Busto Arsizio

$53 2.9% 29.2% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $713 in Montevideo and $1,279 in Busto Arsizio. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Busto Arsizio pays 76% 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: $70.0 in Montevideo vs $91.0 in Busto Arsizio for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $334 vs $354 per month, with Montevideo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇮🇹 Busto Arsizio

🕒 Local time

12:19 12:19 PM

17:19 5:19 PM

5 h ahead of Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

83,094

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to UYU – Uruguayan Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 40.14 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.12 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Montevideo Busto Arsizio 11,080 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Busto Arsizio

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 Busto Arsizio: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montevideo and Busto Arsizio differ by about 2% in total monthly costs ($1,784 vs $1,828 including rent). Montevideo is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 76% lower in Busto Arsizio. 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: $713 in Montevideo versus $1,279 in Busto Arsizio. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Montevideo – a meal for two runs $70.0 versus $91.0 in Busto Arsizio. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,784 per month in Montevideo versus $1,828 in Busto Arsizio – a 2% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,784 in Montevideo versus $1,828 in Busto Arsizio, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Montevideo but tight or insufficient in Busto Arsizio. 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 Busto Arsizio 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 2% less than in Busto Arsizio. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.