Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Chimaltenango

For one person, living is cheaper in Chimaltenango: $745 a month against $1,813 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $12,800 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
37

Cost of Living Index in Chimaltenango
Learn more

Chimaltenango Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,813

/mo nomad

Chimaltenango

🇬🇹 Guatemala

$745

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Chimaltenango

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

A single person spends $1,813 per month in Montevideo vs $745 in Chimaltenango, rent included.

Montevideo $1,813
Chimaltenango $745

A couple spends around $2,782 per month in Montevideo vs $1,229 in Chimaltenango, rent included.

Montevideo $2,782
Chimaltenango $1,229

A family of three spends $3,750 per month in Montevideo vs $1,712 in Chimaltenango, rent included.

Montevideo $3,750
Chimaltenango $1,712

Montevideo costs about 143% more than Chimaltenango, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Montevideo sits 35% above the global median, while Chimaltenango is 44% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.26 UYU 613

$6.92 Q 52.9

120.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.4 UYU 2,711

$49.80 Q 381

35.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.37 UYU 578

$7.69 Q 58.8

86.87%

Cappuccino

$4.64 UYU 187

$3.36 Q 25.67

38.10%

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

$2.73 UYU 110

$1.16 Q 8.88

135.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 UYU 84.0

$0.93 Q 7.10

124.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.75 UYU 191

$3.19 Q 24.36

48.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 UYU 147

$4.85 Q 37.04

-24.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 UYU 55.5

$2.00 Q 15.30

-31.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.77 UYU 112

$3.13 Q 23.94

-11.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.69 UYU 67.8

$2.09 Q 15.96

-19.14%

Eggs

$4.52 UYU 182

$2.56 Q 19.59

76.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.17 UYU 570

$6.46 Q 49.37

119.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.07 UYU 485

$9.44 Q 72.1

27.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.16 UYU 489

$13.47 Q 103

-9.73%

Apples (1kg)

$2.87 UYU 116

$4.00 Q 30.54

-28.25%

Banana (1kg)

$2.75 UYU 110

$1.66 Q 12.66

65.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 UYU 69.5

$2.82 Q 21.56

-38.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

$1.66 Q 12.70

95.18%

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

$1.48 Q 11.27

39.86%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

$2.10 Q 16.08

-1.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.38 UYU 55.4

$0.68 Q 5.17

102.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 UYU 74.5

$1.15 Q 8.78

60.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.57 UYU 224

$3.99 Q 30.48

39.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.89 UYU 357

$8.36 Q 63.9

6.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.29 UYU 92.2

$1.75 Q 13.36

30.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.70 UYU 109

$2.68 Q 20.49

0.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 UYU 61.3

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.7 UYU 2,962

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.82 UYU 73.4

$5.27 Q 40.28

-65.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 UYU 16.05

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.66 UYU 429

$10.27 Q 78.5

3.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 UYU 89.2

$1.21 Q 9.28

83.47%

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

$26.7K UYU 1.1M

$27.9K Q 213.3K

-4.18%

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

$36.7K UYU 1.5M

$25.3K Q 193.1K

45.37%

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

$191 UYU 7,674

$72.4 Q 553

163.63%

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

$20.40 UYU 820

$29.30 Q 224

-30.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.14 UYU 1,775

$47.04 Q 359

-6.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 UYU 2,177

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.68 UYU 791

Cinema Ticket

$12.33 UYU 496

$6.34 Q 48.43

94.48%

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

$613 UYU 24.7K

$338 Q 2,583

81.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K UYU 444.3K

$6,593 Q 50.4K

67.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$103 UYU 4,134

$49.38 Q 377

108.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.1 UYU 2,255

$47.63 Q 364

17.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 UYU 5,000

$116 Q 889

6.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 UYU 5,214

$114 Q 873

13.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$705 UYU 28.4K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$575 UYU 23.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,139 UYU 45.8K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,016 UYU 40.8K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,349 UYU 134.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,942 UYU 78.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,229 UYU 49.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

11.62

-50.60%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 5, 2026

Last update for Chimaltenango: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$575 32.3%

Chimaltenango

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$332 18.7%

Chimaltenango

$282 37.7% 15% $50

Eating Out

Montevideo

$271 15.2%

Chimaltenango

$153 20.4% 43.7% $118

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$255 14.3%

Chimaltenango

$149 19.9% 41.8% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$186 10.4%

Chimaltenango

$147 19.7% 20.7% $38

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.7%

Chimaltenango

$5.3 * 0.7% 93.7% $78

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$79 4.4%

Chimaltenango

$13 * 1.7% 83.9% $66

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $67.0 in Montevideo versus $50.0 in Chimaltenango. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $332 vs $282 – making Chimaltenango the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇬🇹 Chimaltenango

🕒 Local time

07:04 7:04 AM

04:04 4:04 AM

3 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

43,900

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Guatemalan Quetzal GTQ Q

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

1 GTQ = 0.131 USD

1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GTQ, USD, EUR to UYU – Uruguayan Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 40.21 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.06 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

Guatemalan Quetzal exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 7.64 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.131 USD). 1 EUR = 8.56 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Montevideo Chimaltenango 6,610 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Chimaltenango

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 Chimaltenango: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montevideo costs about 143% more than Chimaltenango, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,720 per month in Montevideo and $1,117 in Chimaltenango. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $67.0 in Montevideo and $50.0 in Chimaltenango. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 18% more in Montevideo, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Chimaltenango, where all-in costs run around $745, than in Montevideo at $1,813. In Chimaltenango it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montevideo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chimaltenango costs $745 versus $1,813 in Montevideo. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Chimaltenango. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Montevideo makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.