Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Cambridge

For one person, living is cheaper in Montevideo: $1,771 a month against $2,398 in Cambridge, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cambridge outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index
118

Cost of Living Index in Cambridge
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Cambridge Living Index

Jump to prices

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Cambridge

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,398

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Cambridge

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,771 in Montevideo versus $2,398 in Cambridge.

Montevideo $1,771
Cambridge $2,398

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,740 in Montevideo versus $3,402 in Cambridge.

Montevideo $2,740
Cambridge $3,402

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,708 in Montevideo versus $4,406 in Cambridge.

Montevideo $3,708
Cambridge $4,406

Living in Montevideo costs roughly 26% less than in Cambridge, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Montevideo 31% above, Cambridge 78% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.16 UYU 609

$17.30 CA$24.45

-12.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.2 UYU 2,776

$55.8 CA$78.9

23.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.65 UYU 588

$9.96 CA$14.07

47.09%

Cappuccino

$4.46 UYU 179

$3.51 CA$4.96

27.07%

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

$2.67 UYU 107

$1.98 CA$2.79

34.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 UYU 80.4

$1.32 CA$1.86

51.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.83 UYU 194

$5.11 CA$7.22

-5.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 UYU 152

$6.24 CA$8.82

-39.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.36 UYU 54.8

$2.06 CA$2.91

-33.98%

White Bread (500g)

$2.87 UYU 115

$2.38 CA$3.36

20.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 UYU 70.2

$3.09 CA$4.36

-43.37%

Eggs

$4.68 UYU 188

$3.20 CA$4.53

46.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.88 UYU 557

$10.84 CA$15.33

28.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.98 UYU 481

$11.33 CA$16.02

5.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.97 UYU 480

$14.30 CA$20.22

-16.29%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 UYU 111

$3.95 CA$5.58

-29.62%

Banana (1kg)

$2.74 UYU 110

$1.18 CA$1.67

132.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 UYU 71.2

$4.00 CA$5.66

-55.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

$3.68 CA$5.20

-11.96%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 UYU 79.2

$2.61 CA$3.69

-24.52%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

$1.98 CA$2.79

4.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 UYU 55.1

$2.04 CA$2.88

-32.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 UYU 75.3

$1.41 CA$2.00

33.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.59 UYU 224

$12.82 CA$18.13

-56.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.78 UYU 352

$12.20 CA$17.25

-28.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 UYU 90.9

$2.57 CA$3.63

-12.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 UYU 110

$3.85 CA$5.44

-28.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.53 UYU 61.5

$2.44 CA$3.44

-37.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.3 UYU 2,980

$63.9 CA$90.3

16.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.91 UYU 76.7

$2.42 CA$3.42

-21.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 UYU 16.18

$1.78 CA$2.52

-77.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.33 UYU 415

$22.60 CA$31.95

-54.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 UYU 85.6

$1.16 CA$1.63

83.62%

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

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

$25.8K CA$36.5K

4.89%

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

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

$18.5K CA$26.2K

95.73%

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

$188 UYU 7,557

$149 CA$211

26.41%

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

$20.54 UYU 824

$42.05 CA$59.5

-51.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.81 UYU 1,798

$49.52 CA$70.0

-9.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.0 UYU 2,166

$28.59 CA$40.42

88.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.75 UYU 793

Cinema Ticket

$11.95 UYU 480

$10.28 CA$14.53

16.25%

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

$634 UYU 25.5K

$528 CA$746

20.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

$16.2K CA$22.8K

-31.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 UYU 4,099

$54.2 CA$76.7

88.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.5 UYU 2,309

$29.82 CA$42.16

92.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 UYU 5,079

$74.3 CA$105

70.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 UYU 5,131

$103 CA$146

23.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$719 UYU 28.8K

$1,305 CA$1,845

-44.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$568 UYU 22.8K

$1,299 CA$1,837

-56.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

$2,509 CA$3,547

-54.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

$1,989 CA$2,812

-48.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,392 UYU 136.1K

$4,236 CA$5,989

-19.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,949 UYU 78.2K

$3,850 CA$5,443

-49.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

$2,938 CA$4,153

-57.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

5.09

12.77%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Last update for Cambridge: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$568 32.1%

Cambridge

$1.3K 54.2% 129% $731

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$332 18.7%

Cambridge

$345 14.4% 3.9% $13

Eating Out

Montevideo

$269 15.2%

Cambridge

$262 10.9% 2.8% $7.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$254 14.3%

Cambridge

$241 10% 5.2% $13

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$186 10.5%

Cambridge

$118 4.9% 36.8% $69

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.8%

Cambridge

$85 3.5% 0.8% $0.6

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$78 4.4%

Cambridge

$49 2.1% 36.9% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $719 in Montevideo and $1,305 in Cambridge. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cambridge pays 136% 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 $56.0 in Cambridge. Groceries flip the comparison at $332 vs $345, with Montevideo cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇨🇦 Cambridge

🕒 Local time

19:37 7:37 PM

18:37 6:37 PM

1 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

138,479

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, USD, EUR to UYU – Uruguayan Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

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).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Montevideo Cambridge 9,040 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Cambridge

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 Cambridge: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montevideo is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, transport, and utilities. The 35% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 136% lower in Cambridge. 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: $719 in Montevideo versus $1,305 in Cambridge. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 4% higher in Cambridge. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Montevideo – a meal for two runs $69.0 versus $56.0 in Cambridge. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,771 in Montevideo versus $2,398 in Cambridge, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Montevideo but tight or insufficient in Cambridge. The gap between the two cities makes Montevideo the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Safety-wise, Montevideo and Cambridge 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 35% less than in Cambridge. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.