Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Marabella

For one person, living is cheaper in Marabella: $766 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $12,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Montevideo
🇺🇾 Uruguay
$1,771
/mo nomad
Marabella
🇹🇹 Trinidad And Tobago
$766
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Marabella

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,771 in Montevideo versus $766 in Marabella.

  • Montevideo $1,771
  • Marabella $766

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,740 in Montevideo versus $1,313 in Marabella.

  • Montevideo $2,740
  • Marabella $1,313

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,708 in Montevideo versus $1,860 in Marabella.

  • Montevideo $3,708
  • Marabella $1,860

Living in Montevideo is roughly 131% more expensive than in Marabella, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Montevideo is 31% above, Marabella is 43% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Montevideo
Marabella
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$15.16 UYU 609
$10.15 TTD 68.3
49.36%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$69.2 UYU 2,776
$58.8 TTD 395
17.64%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$14.65 UYU 588
$8.24 TTD 55.4
77.79%
Cappuccino
$4.46 UYU 179
$3.77 TTD 25.36
18.30%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.67 UYU 107
$1.01 TTD 6.77
164.36%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.00 UYU 80.4
$0.71 TTD 4.78
181.69%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$4.83 UYU 194
$1.80 TTD 12.10
168.33%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.80 UYU 152
$2.61 TTD 17.57
45.59%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Montevideo
Marabella
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.36 UYU 54.8
$2.05 TTD 13.77
-33.66%
White Bread (500g)
$2.87 UYU 115
$2.34 TTD 15.72
22.65%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.75 UYU 70.2
$2.92 TTD 19.62
-40.07%
Eggs
$4.68 UYU 188
$3.81 TTD 25.61
22.83%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$13.88 UYU 557
$6.74 TTD 45.36
105.93%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$11.98 UYU 481
$10.22 TTD 68.8
17.22%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.97 UYU 480
$8.91 TTD 59.9
34.34%
Apples (1kg)
$2.78 UYU 111
$5.60 TTD 37.66
-50.36%
Banana (1kg)
$2.74 UYU 110
$2.50 TTD 16.81
9.60%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.77 UYU 71.2
$3.67 TTD 24.69
-51.77%
Tomato (1kg)
$3.24 UYU 130
$4.17 TTD 28.03
-22.30%
Potato (1kg)
$1.97 UYU 79.2
$0.75 TTD 5.06
162.67%
Onion (1kg)
$2.07 UYU 83.1
$0.77 TTD 5.15
168.83%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.37 UYU 55.1
$1.44 TTD 9.70
-4.86%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.88 UYU 75.3
$1.17 TTD 7.85
60.68%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.59 UYU 224
$5.46 TTD 36.76
2.38%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.78 UYU 352
$17.68 TTD 119
-50.34%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.26 UYU 90.9
$1.48 TTD 9.93
52.70%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.75 UYU 110
$2.93 TTD 19.74
-6.14%
🚌 Getting Around
Montevideo
Marabella
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.53 UYU 61.5
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$74.3 UYU 2,980
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.91 UYU 76.7
$0.87 TTD 5.87
119.54%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.40 UYU 16.18
$0.87 TTD 5.83
-54.02%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$10.33 UYU 415
$14.57 TTD 98.0
-29.10%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.13 UYU 85.6
$1.15 TTD 7.74
85.22%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$27.1K UYU 1.1M
$37.3K TTD 250.6K
-27.24%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$36.3K UYU 1.5M
$42.0K TTD 282.2K
-13.57%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Montevideo
Marabella
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$188 UYU 7,557
$43.38 TTD 292
334.07%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$20.54 UYU 824
$41.83 TTD 281
-50.90%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$44.81 UYU 1,798
$45.32 TTD 305
-1.13%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Montevideo
Marabella
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$54.0 UYU 2,166
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$19.75 UYU 793
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$11.95 UYU 480
$8.76 TTD 58.9
36.42%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Montevideo
Marabella
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$634 UYU 25.5K
$405 TTD 2,724
56.65%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.1K UYU 443.6K
$10.7K TTD 71.9K
3.45%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Montevideo
Marabella
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$102 UYU 4,099
$53.7 TTD 361
90.12%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$57.5 UYU 2,309
$36.47 TTD 245
57.75%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$127 UYU 5,079
$89.7 TTD 603
41.12%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$128 UYU 5,131
$90.0 TTD 606
42.01%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Montevideo
Marabella
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$719 UYU 28.8K
-
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$568 UYU 22.8K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,145 UYU 46.0K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,023 UYU 41.1K
-
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,392 UYU 136.1K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,949 UYU 78.2K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Montevideo
Marabella
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,245 UYU 50.0K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.74
5.75
-0.17%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Last update for Marabella: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Montevideo
$568
Marabella
- * 100%
Groceries & Markets
Montevideo
$332
Marabella
$319 3.7% $12
Eating Out
Montevideo
$269
Marabella
$172 36% $97
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Montevideo
$254
Marabella
$131 48.5% $123
Clothing & Footwear
Montevideo
$186
Marabella
$121 34.8% $65
Getting Around
Montevideo
$84
Marabella
$5.2 * 93.8% $79
Sport & Entertainment
Montevideo
$78
Marabella
$18 * 77.5% $60

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $69.0 in Montevideo vs $59.0 in Marabella for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $332 vs $319 per month, with Marabella cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇺🇾 Montevideo
🇹🇹 Marabella
🕒 Local time
09:29 9:29 AM
08:29 8:29 AM
1 h behind Montevideo
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
1,319,108 Capital
26,700
Exchange rates and currency converter

TTD, USD, EUR to UYU – Uruguayan Peso Converter

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 40.14 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.12 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 6.73 TTD (1 TTD = 0.149 USD). 1 EUR = 7.56 TTD (1 TTD = 0.132 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Montevideo Marabella 5,060 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Montevideo
  • Marabella

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 Marabella: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Montevideo and in Marabella?
Montevideo and Marabella differ by about 131% in total monthly costs ($1,771 vs $766 including rent). Marabella is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
What salary covers living expenses in Montevideo compared to Marabella?
You'd need roughly $2,656 in Montevideo and $1,150 in Marabella to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Supermarket bills run roughly 4% higher in Montevideo. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
Which city is more expensive overall: Montevideo or Marabella?
All in, you'll spend $1,771 per month in Montevideo versus $766 in Marabella – a 131% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.
Which city is more doable on $2,000 per month?
At $766 in Marabella versus $1,771 in Montevideo, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Marabella but tight or insufficient in Montevideo. The gap between the two cities makes Marabella the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Montevideo and Marabella?
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.
Is Montevideo or Marabella safer for residents?
Safety-wise, Montevideo and Marabella are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.
Where should expats move: Montevideo or Marabella?
Expats usually find Marabella gentler on the wallet – expenses run 131% less than in Montevideo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

Montevideo vs other spots: cost of living compared

Similar cities

Show times on the 12-hour clock, temperatures in °F and distances in miles?