Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Cucuta

For one person, living is cheaper in Cucuta: $1,335 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 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
63

Cost of Living Index in Cucuta
Learn more

Cucuta Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Cucuta

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,335

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Cucuta

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,771 in Montevideo versus $1,335 in Cucuta.

Montevideo $1,771
Cucuta $1,335

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,740 in Montevideo versus $2,003 in Cucuta.

Montevideo $2,740
Cucuta $2,003

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,708 in Montevideo versus $2,670 in Cucuta.

Montevideo $3,708
Cucuta $2,670

Living in Montevideo is roughly 33% more expensive than in Cucuta, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Montevideo is 31% above, Cucuta is 1% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.16 UYU 609

$7.44 COP 23.6K

103.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.2 UYU 2,776

$48.54 COP 153.9K

42.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.65 UYU 588

$9.16 COP 29.1K

59.93%

Cappuccino

$4.46 UYU 179

$2.91 COP 9,235

53.26%

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

$2.67 UYU 107

$1.43 COP 4,544

86.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 UYU 80.4

$1.08 COP 3,420

85.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.83 UYU 194

$3.09 COP 9,785

56.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 UYU 152

$3.70 COP 11.7K

2.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.36 UYU 54.8

$1.61 COP 5,112

-15.53%

White Bread (500g)

$2.87 UYU 115

$2.47 COP 7,844

16.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 UYU 70.2

$1.54 COP 4,893

13.64%

Eggs

$4.68 UYU 188

$2.99 COP 9,488

56.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.88 UYU 557

$9.00 COP 28.5K

54.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.98 UYU 481

$8.58 COP 27.2K

39.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.97 UYU 480

$11.41 COP 36.2K

4.91%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 UYU 111

$3.54 COP 11.2K

-21.47%

Banana (1kg)

$2.74 UYU 110

$1.60 COP 5,061

71.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 UYU 71.2

$2.07 COP 6,574

-14.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

$1.94 COP 6,139

67.01%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 UYU 79.2

$1.28 COP 4,071

53.91%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

$1.31 COP 4,149

58.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 UYU 55.1

$1.10 COP 3,497

24.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 UYU 75.3

$1.02 COP 3,221

84.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.59 UYU 224

$4.35 COP 13.8K

28.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.78 UYU 352

$14.74 COP 46.7K

-40.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 UYU 90.9

$1.65 COP 5,217

36.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 UYU 110

$2.29 COP 7,271

20.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.53 UYU 61.5

$1.19 COP 3,783

28.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.3 UYU 2,980

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.91 UYU 76.7

$1.52 COP 4,830

25.66%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 UYU 16.18

$2.09 COP 6,624

-80.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.33 UYU 415

$9.90 COP 31.4K

4.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 UYU 85.6

$1.28 COP 4,055

66.41%

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

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

$28.7K COP 90.9M

-5.41%

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

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

$40.2K COP 127.6M

-9.88%

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

$188 UYU 7,557

$126 COP 397.9K

50.04%

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

$20.54 UYU 824

$13.88 COP 44.0K

47.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.81 UYU 1,798

$29.14 COP 92.4K

53.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.0 UYU 2,166

$33.45 COP 106.1K

61.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.75 UYU 793

Cinema Ticket

$11.95 UYU 480

$6.95 COP 22.0K

71.94%

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

$634 UYU 25.5K

$647 COP 2.1M

-1.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

$6,396 COP 20.3M

72.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 UYU 4,099

$86.4 COP 273.8K

18.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.5 UYU 2,309

$49.97 COP 158.4K

15.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 UYU 5,079

$154 COP 489.8K

-18.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 UYU 5,131

$102 COP 323.2K

25.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$719 UYU 28.8K

$643 COP 2.0M

11.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$568 UYU 22.8K

$497 COP 1.6M

14.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

$1,017 COP 3.2M

12.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

$792 COP 2.5M

29.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,392 UYU 136.1K

$1,980 COP 6.3M

71.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,949 UYU 78.2K

$1,498 COP 4.7M

30.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

$565 COP 1.8M

120.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

11.58

-50.43%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Last update for Cucuta: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$568 32.1%

Cucuta

$497 37.2% 12.5% $71

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$332 18.7%

Cucuta

$274 20.5% 17.4% $58

Eating Out

Montevideo

$269 15.2%

Cucuta

$155 11.6% 42.5% $114

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$254 14.3%

Cucuta

$169 12.6% 33.6% $85

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$186 10.5%

Cucuta

$177 13.2% 5.2% $9.6

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.8%

Cucuta

$17 * 1.3% 80.1% $68

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$78 4.4%

Cucuta

$47 3.6% 39.2% $31

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $719 in Montevideo and $643 in Cucuta. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Montevideo pays 120% 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 $49.00 in Cucuta for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $332 vs $274 per month, with Cucuta cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇨🇴 Cucuta

🕒 Local time

13:30 1:30 PM

11:30 11:30 AM

2 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

777,106

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to UYU – Uruguayan Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 40.14 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.13 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Montevideo Cucuta 5,060 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Cucuta

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 Cucuta: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cucuta is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 33% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 120% 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: $719 in Montevideo versus $643 in Cucuta. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $634 in Montevideo versus $647 in Cucuta. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Cucuta – a meal for two runs $49.00 versus $69.0 in Montevideo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,335 in Cucuta versus $1,771 in Montevideo, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cucuta but tight or insufficient in Montevideo. The gap between the two cities makes Cucuta the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Cucuta 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 Cucuta 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 Cucuta gentler on the wallet – expenses run 33% less than in Montevideo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.