Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Cajamarca

For one person, living is cheaper in Cajamarca: $695 a month against $1,813 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $13,400 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
33

Cost of Living Index in Cajamarca
Learn more

Cajamarca Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,813

/mo nomad

Cajamarca

🇵🇪 Peru

$695

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Cajamarca

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,813 in Montevideo versus $695 in Cajamarca.

Montevideo $1,813
Cajamarca $695

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,782 in Montevideo versus $1,177 in Cajamarca.

Montevideo $2,782
Cajamarca $1,177

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,750 in Montevideo versus $1,658 in Cajamarca.

Montevideo $3,750
Cajamarca $1,658

Living in Montevideo is roughly 161% more expensive than in Cajamarca, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Montevideo is 35% above, Cajamarca is 48% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.26 UYU 613

$3.57 PEN 12.30

327.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.4 UYU 2,707

$28.96 PEN 99.6

132.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.37 UYU 577

$5.95 PEN 20.46

141.51%

Cappuccino

$4.64 UYU 186

$2.64 PEN 9.08

75.76%

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

$2.73 UYU 110

$0.79 PEN 2.72

245.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 UYU 83.9

$0.62 PEN 2.12

237.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.75 UYU 191

$2.30 PEN 7.92

106.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 UYU 147

$3.64 PEN 12.50

0.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 UYU 55.4

$1.38 PEN 4.76

White Bread (500g)

$2.77 UYU 111

$3.27 PEN 11.25

-15.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.69 UYU 67.7

$1.29 PEN 4.44

31.01%

Eggs

$4.52 UYU 182

$2.28 PEN 7.85

98.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.17 UYU 569

$7.58 PEN 26.09

86.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.07 UYU 485

$6.28 PEN 21.60

92.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.16 UYU 488

$13.12 PEN 45.12

-7.32%

Apples (1kg)

$2.87 UYU 115

$1.06 PEN 3.66

170.75%

Banana (1kg)

$2.75 UYU 110

$0.78 PEN 2.69

252.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 UYU 69.4

$1.23 PEN 4.22

40.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

$1.08 PEN 3.71

200.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.0

$0.74 PEN 2.53

179.73%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.0

$1.00 PEN 3.42

107.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.38 UYU 55.4

$0.72 PEN 2.48

91.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 UYU 74.4

$0.75 PEN 2.57

146.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.57 UYU 224

$8.98 PEN 30.89

-37.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.89 UYU 357

$10.19 PEN 35.05

-12.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.29 UYU 92.1

$2.59 PEN 8.92

-11.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.70 UYU 108

$2.45 PEN 8.44

10.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 UYU 61.2

$0.56 PEN 1.93

171.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.7 UYU 2,958

$8.93 PEN 30.72

724.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.82 UYU 73.3

$1.76 PEN 6.05

3.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 UYU 16.02

$1.33 PEN 4.56

-69.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.66 UYU 428

$5.05 PEN 17.37

111.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 UYU 89.0

$1.51 PEN 5.21

47.02%

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

$26.7K UYU 1.1M

$23.7K PEN 81.6K

12.71%

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

$36.7K UYU 1.5M

$25.9K PEN 88.9K

42.10%

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

$191 UYU 7,662

$49.76 PEN 171

283.52%

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

$20.40 UYU 819

$9.79 PEN 33.68

108.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.14 UYU 1,772

$29.01 PEN 99.8

52.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 UYU 2,174

$30.97 PEN 107

74.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.68 UYU 790

$20.52 PEN 70.6

-4.09%

Cinema Ticket

$12.33 UYU 495

$4.76 PEN 16.37

159.03%

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

$613 UYU 24.6K

$137 PEN 472

346.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K UYU 443.6K

$4,463 PEN 15.4K

147.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$103 UYU 4,128

$51.7 PEN 178

98.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.1 UYU 2,251

$29.33 PEN 101

91.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 UYU 4,993

$80.8 PEN 278

53.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 UYU 5,207

$80.9 PEN 278

60.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$705 UYU 28.3K

$199 PEN 683

255.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$575 UYU 23.1K

$103 PEN 354

458.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,139 UYU 45.7K

$527 PEN 1,812

116.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,016 UYU 40.8K

$317 PEN 1,089

220.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,349 UYU 134.4K

$2,338 PEN 8,043

43.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,942 UYU 78.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,229 UYU 49.4K

$727 PEN 2,500

69.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

10.5

-45.33%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 5, 2026

Last update for Cajamarca: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$575 32.3%

Cajamarca

$103 14.9% 82.1% $472

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$332 18.7%

Cajamarca

$229 33.1% 31.1% $103

Eating Out

Montevideo

$271 15.2%

Cajamarca

$103 14.8% 62.2% $169

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$255 14.3%

Cajamarca

$89 12.8% 65.3% $167

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$186 10.4%

Cajamarca

$109 15.8% 41.2% $77

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.7%

Cajamarca

$20 2.8% 76.6% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$79 4.4%

Cajamarca

$40 5.9% 48.6% $38

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $705 in Montevideo and $199 in Cajamarca. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Montevideo pays 69% 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 $29.00 in Cajamarca for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $332 vs $229 per month, with Cajamarca cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇵🇪 Cajamarca

🕒 Local time

04:11 4:11 AM

02:11 2:11 AM

2 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

218,741

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, USD, EUR to UYU – Uruguayan Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 40.15 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.03 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.44 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Montevideo Cajamarca 3,840 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Cajamarca

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 Cajamarca: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cajamarca is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 161% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 69% 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: $705 in Montevideo versus $199 in Cajamarca. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Cajamarca runs roughly 725% less than in Montevideo. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $613 in Montevideo versus $137 in Cajamarca. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $695 in Cajamarca versus $1,813 in Montevideo, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cajamarca but tight or insufficient in Montevideo. The gap between the two cities makes Cajamarca the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Cajamarca is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Montevideo, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Montevideo and Cajamarca 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 Cajamarca gentler on the wallet – expenses run 161% less than in Montevideo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.