Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $996 a month against $1,813 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,813

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$996

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Lima

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,813 in Montevideo versus $996 in Lima.

Montevideo $1,813
Lima $996

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,782 in Montevideo versus $1,594 in Lima.

Montevideo $2,782
Lima $1,594

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,750 in Montevideo versus $2,191 in Lima.

Montevideo $3,750
Lima $2,191

Living in Montevideo is roughly 82% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Montevideo is 35% above, Lima is 26% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.26 UYU 613

$4.42 PEN 15.21

245.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.4 UYU 2,707

$35.04 PEN 121

92.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.37 UYU 577

$6.84 PEN 23.52

110.09%

Cappuccino

$4.64 UYU 186

$3.27 PEN 11.26

41.90%

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

$2.73 UYU 110

$1.10 PEN 3.80

148.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 UYU 83.9

$0.65 PEN 2.23

221.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.75 UYU 191

$2.58 PEN 8.88

84.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 UYU 147

$4.47 PEN 15.39

-17.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 UYU 55.4

$1.59 PEN 5.48

-13.21%

White Bread (500g)

$2.77 UYU 111

$2.58 PEN 8.89

7.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.69 UYU 67.7

$1.36 PEN 4.67

24.26%

Eggs

$4.52 UYU 182

$2.95 PEN 10.14

53.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.17 UYU 569

$9.10 PEN 31.30

55.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.07 UYU 485

$5.81 PEN 19.98

107.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.16 UYU 488

$9.83 PEN 33.80

23.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.87 UYU 115

$2.01 PEN 6.92

42.79%

Banana (1kg)

$2.75 UYU 110

$1.08 PEN 3.70

154.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 UYU 69.4

$1.37 PEN 4.71

26.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

$1.48 PEN 5.08

118.92%

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.0

$0.96 PEN 3.32

115.63%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.0

$0.85 PEN 2.93

143.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.38 UYU 55.4

$0.88 PEN 3.03

56.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 UYU 74.4

$0.87 PEN 2.98

112.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.57 UYU 224

$5.90 PEN 20.31

-5.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.89 UYU 357

$8.81 PEN 30.31

0.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.29 UYU 92.1

$1.92 PEN 6.59

19.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.70 UYU 108

$3.20 PEN 11.02

-15.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 UYU 61.2

$0.68 PEN 2.33

123.53%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.7 UYU 2,958

$26.74 PEN 92.0

175.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.82 UYU 73.3

$3.81 PEN 13.10

-52.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 UYU 16.02

$2.04 PEN 7.02

-80.39%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.66 UYU 428

$7.14 PEN 24.57

49.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 UYU 89.0

$1.65 PEN 5.67

34.55%

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

$26.7K UYU 1.1M

$22.2K PEN 76.3K

20.61%

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

$36.7K UYU 1.5M

$25.7K PEN 88.3K

43.15%

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

$191 UYU 7,662

$73.0 PEN 251

161.28%

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

$20.40 UYU 819

$16.26 PEN 55.9

25.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.14 UYU 1,772

$27.60 PEN 94.9

59.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 UYU 2,174

$33.07 PEN 114

63.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.68 UYU 790

$19.49 PEN 67.1

0.97%

Cinema Ticket

$12.33 UYU 495

$7.39 PEN 25.41

66.85%

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

$613 UYU 24.6K

$182 PEN 626

236.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K UYU 443.6K

$13.3K PEN 45.8K

-17.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$103 UYU 4,128

$52.6 PEN 181

95.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.1 UYU 2,251

$34.23 PEN 118

63.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 UYU 4,993

$83.8 PEN 288

48.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 UYU 5,207

$79.0 PEN 272

64.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$705 UYU 28.3K

$723 PEN 2,488

-2.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$575 UYU 23.1K

$340 PEN 1,170

69.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,139 UYU 45.7K

$1,184 PEN 4,074

-3.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,016 UYU 40.8K

$635 PEN 2,183

60.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,349 UYU 134.4K

$2,449 PEN 8,423

36.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,942 UYU 78.0K

$1,372 PEN 4,718

41.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,229 UYU 49.4K

$653 PEN 2,245

88.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

8.94

-35.79%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 5, 2026

Last update for Lima: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$575 32.3%

Lima

$340 33.6% 40.9% $235

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$332 18.7%

Lima

$226 22.4% 31.9% $106

Eating Out

Montevideo

$271 15.2%

Lima

$124 12.3% 54.3% $147

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$255 14.3%

Lima

$117 11.6% 54.2% $138

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$186 10.4%

Lima

$112 11.1% 39.6% $74

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.7%

Lima

$43 4.3% 48% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$79 4.4%

Lima

$48 4.7% 39.3% $31

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $705 in Montevideo and $723 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Montevideo pays 88% 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 $35.00 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $332 vs $226 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

21:58 9:58 PM

19:58 7:58 PM

2 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

9,989,369 Capital

💱 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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Between locations

Montevideo Lima 3,300 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Lima

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 Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montevideo and Lima differ by about 82% in total monthly costs ($1,813 vs $996 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 88% 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 $723 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $613 in Montevideo versus $182 in Lima. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 47% higher in Montevideo. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $996 in Lima versus $1,813 in Montevideo, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Montevideo. The gap between the two cities makes Lima the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Montevideo and Lima 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 Lima gentler on the wallet – expenses run 82% less than in Montevideo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.