Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Caranavi

For one person, living is cheaper in Caranavi: $619 a month against $1,784 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $14,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index
30

Cost of Living Index in Caranavi
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Caranavi Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,784

/mo nomad

Caranavi

🇧🇴 Bolivia

$619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Caranavi

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,784 in Montevideo versus $619 in Caranavi.

Montevideo $1,784
Caranavi $619

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,756 in Montevideo versus $895 in Caranavi.

Montevideo $2,756
Caranavi $895

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,728 in Montevideo versus $1,170 in Caranavi.

Montevideo $3,728
Caranavi $1,170

Living in Montevideo is roughly 188% more expensive than in Caranavi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Montevideo is 32% above, Caranavi is 54% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.82 UYU 595

$1.46 BOB 16.99

915.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.7 UYU 2,797

$9.36 BOB 109

644.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.68 UYU 589

$4.04 BOB 46.94

263.37%

Cappuccino

$4.65 UYU 186

$1.72 BOB 19.98

170.35%

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

$2.74 UYU 110

$0.41 BOB 4.72

568.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 UYU 82.9

$0.29 BOB 3.33

613.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.79 UYU 192

$0.87 BOB 10.13

450.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 UYU 146

$2.29 BOB 26.54

58.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 UYU 55.8

$0.71 BOB 8.19

95.77%

White Bread (500g)

$2.89 UYU 116

$0.85 BOB 9.89

240.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 UYU 68.1

$0.77 BOB 8.97

120.78%

Eggs

$4.62 UYU 185

$0.53 BOB 6.13

771.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.22 UYU 571

$3.61 BOB 41.93

293.91%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.62 UYU 466

$1.11 BOB 12.92

946.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.23 UYU 491

$3.32 BOB 38.51

268.37%

Apples (1kg)

$2.77 UYU 111

$1.63 BOB 18.93

69.94%

Banana (1kg)

$2.85 UYU 114

$0.54 BOB 6.27

427.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.81 UYU 72.5

$0.45 BOB 5.23

302.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.20 UYU 129

$0.67 BOB 7.72

377.61%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 UYU 77.8

$0.59 BOB 6.85

228.81%

Onion (1kg)

$2.16 UYU 86.5

$0.44 BOB 5.05

390.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.43 UYU 57.3

$0.54 BOB 6.21

164.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.94 UYU 77.9

$0.60 BOB 7.02

223.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.47 UYU 219

$1.88 BOB 21.83

190.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.95 UYU 359

$2.91 BOB 33.82

207.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 UYU 90.8

$1.24 BOB 14.38

82.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 UYU 113

$1.60 BOB 18.60

75.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.56 UYU 62.6

$0.29 BOB 3.33

437.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.8 UYU 2,962

$8.50 BOB 98.7

768.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.90 UYU 76.2

$0.83 BOB 9.64

128.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 UYU 17.36

$0.83 BOB 9.62

-48.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.59 UYU 425

$8.32 BOB 96.6

27.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.12 UYU 85.2

$0.50 BOB 5.77

324.00%

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

$26.8K UYU 1.1M

$8,557 BOB 99.3K

213.11%

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

$37.0K UYU 1.5M

$11.9K BOB 138.3K

210.53%

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

$193 UYU 7,727

$23.45 BOB 272

720.98%

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

$20.91 UYU 839

$14.28 BOB 166

46.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.89 UYU 1,802

$18.22 BOB 211

146.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.8 UYU 2,038

$8.57 BOB 99.5

492.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.73 UYU 792

$12.60 BOB 146

56.59%

Cinema Ticket

$12.30 UYU 494

$3.85 BOB 44.74

219.48%

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

$629 UYU 25.2K

$85.9 BOB 997

632.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.9K UYU 437.3K

$1,295 BOB 15.0K

741.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 UYU 4,166

$16.25 BOB 189

538.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.4 UYU 2,305

$17.94 BOB 208

220.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$125 UYU 5,010

$29.67 BOB 344

320.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 UYU 5,315

$35.74 BOB 415

270.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$713 UYU 28.6K

$513 BOB 5,957

38.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$575 UYU 23.1K

$341 BOB 3,955

68.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,164 UYU 46.7K

$665 BOB 7,723

74.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 UYU 41.5K

$568 BOB 6,598

81.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,418 UYU 137.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,760 UYU 70.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,244 UYU 49.9K

$210 BOB 2,433

493.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

7.94

-27.71%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 19, 2026

Last update for Caranavi: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$575 32.2%

Caranavi

$341 55% 40.8% $235

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$334 18.7%

Caranavi

$91 14.7% 72.7% $243

Eating Out

Montevideo

$269 15.1%

Caranavi

$56 9.1% 79.1% $213

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$258 14.5%

Caranavi

$56 9% 78.3% $202

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$188 10.6%

Caranavi

$45 7.2% 76.2% $144

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.7%

Caranavi

$15 2.4% 82.6% $70

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$75 4.2%

Caranavi

$16 2.6% 78.4% $59

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $713 in Montevideo and $513 in Caranavi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Montevideo pays 494% 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 $9.00 in Caranavi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $334 vs $91.0 per month, with Caranavi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇧🇴 Caranavi

🕒 Local time

15:47 3:47 PM

14:47 2:47 PM

1 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

13,569

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Bolivian Boliviano BOB Bs.

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

100 BOB = 8.61 USD

100 BOB = 7.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BOB, USD, EUR to UYU – Uruguayan Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 40.14 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.12 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

Bolivian Boliviano exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 11.61 BOB (100 BOB = 8.61 USD). 1 EUR = 13.05 BOB (100 BOB = 7.66 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Montevideo Caranavi 2,400 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Caranavi

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 Caranavi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Caranavi is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 188% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 494% 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: $713 in Montevideo versus $513 in Caranavi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Caranavi – a meal for two runs $9.00 versus $70.0 in Montevideo. 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 $619 in Caranavi – a 188% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $619 in Caranavi versus $1,784 in Montevideo, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Caranavi but tight or insufficient in Montevideo. The gap between the two cities makes Caranavi the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Caranavi 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 Caranavi 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 Caranavi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 188% less than in Montevideo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.