Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Masaya

For one person, living is cheaper in Masaya: $824 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $11,400 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
40

Cost of Living Index in Masaya
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Masaya Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Masaya

🇳🇮 Nicaragua

$824

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Masaya

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

A single person spends $1,771 per month in Montevideo vs $824 in Masaya, rent included.

Montevideo $1,771
Masaya $824

A couple spends around $2,740 per month in Montevideo vs $1,287 in Masaya, rent included.

Montevideo $2,740
Masaya $1,287

A family of three spends $3,708 per month in Montevideo vs $1,749 in Masaya, rent included.

Montevideo $3,708
Masaya $1,749

Montevideo costs about 115% more than Masaya, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Montevideo sits 31% above the global median, while Masaya is 39% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.16 UYU 609

$10.03 NIO 367

51.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.2 UYU 2,776

$34.86 NIO 1,277

98.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.65 UYU 588

$7.83 NIO 287

87.10%

Cappuccino

$4.46 UYU 179

$2.55 NIO 93.6

74.90%

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

$2.67 UYU 107

$0.91 NIO 33.39

193.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 UYU 80.4

$0.70 NIO 25.47

185.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.83 UYU 194

$1.46 NIO 53.5

230.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 UYU 152

$2.24 NIO 81.9

69.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.36 UYU 54.8

$1.27 NIO 46.37

7.09%

White Bread (500g)

$2.87 UYU 115

$2.33 NIO 85.4

23.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 UYU 70.2

$1.86 NIO 68.2

-5.91%

Eggs

$4.68 UYU 188

$2.38 NIO 87.2

96.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.88 UYU 557

$11.41 NIO 418

21.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.98 UYU 481

$6.49 NIO 238

84.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.97 UYU 480

$7.57 NIO 277

58.12%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 UYU 111

$3.93 NIO 144

-29.26%

Banana (1kg)

$2.74 UYU 110

$0.61 NIO 22.40

349.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 UYU 71.2

$1.84 NIO 67.3

-3.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

$2.53 NIO 92.6

28.06%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 UYU 79.2

$4.04 NIO 148

-51.24%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

$2.27 NIO 83.3

-8.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 UYU 55.1

$1.06 NIO 38.71

29.25%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 UYU 75.3

$1.01 NIO 37.06

86.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.59 UYU 224

$2.80 NIO 103

99.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.78 UYU 352

$14.46 NIO 530

-39.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 UYU 90.9

$1.47 NIO 53.9

53.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 UYU 110

$2.23 NIO 81.8

23.32%

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

$1.67 NIO 61.2

14.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 UYU 16.18

$1.62 NIO 59.2

-75.31%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.33 UYU 415

$6.92 NIO 254

49.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 UYU 85.6

$1.31 NIO 47.98

62.60%

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

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

$23.3K NIO 855.0K

16.13%

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

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

$26.8K NIO 980.3K

35.49%

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

$188 UYU 7,557

$154 NIO 5,651

22.03%

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

$20.54 UYU 824

$19.49 NIO 714

5.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.81 UYU 1,798

$32.65 NIO 1,196

37.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.0 UYU 2,166

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.75 UYU 793

Cinema Ticket

$11.95 UYU 480

$8.99 NIO 329

32.93%

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

$634 UYU 25.5K

$232 NIO 8,481

173.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

$5,944 NIO 217.7K

85.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 UYU 4,099

$59.8 NIO 2,189

70.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.5 UYU 2,309

$64.6 NIO 2,364

-10.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 UYU 5,079

$124 NIO 4,553

1.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 UYU 5,131

$147 NIO 5,367

-12.76%

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

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

11.92

-51.85%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Last update for Masaya: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$568 32.1%

Masaya

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$332 18.7%

Masaya

$259 31.5% 21.8% $72

Eating Out

Montevideo

$269 15.2%

Masaya

$153 18.5% 43.3% $117

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$254 14.3%

Masaya

$206 25.1% 18.6% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$186 10.5%

Masaya

$178 21.6% 4.6% $8.5

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.8%

Masaya

$9.8 * 1.2% 88.4% $75

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$78 4.4%

Masaya

$18 * 2.2% 76.9% $60

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 $69.0 in Montevideo versus $35.00 in Masaya. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $332 vs $259 – making Masaya the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇳🇮 Masaya

🕒 Local time

21:22 9:22 PM

18:22 6:22 PM

3 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

178,835

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Nicaraguan Córdoba NIO C$

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

100 NIO = 2.73 USD

100 NIO = 2.43 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NIO, USD, EUR to UYU – Uruguayan Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

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).

Nicaraguan Córdoba exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 36.62 NIO (100 NIO = 2.73 USD). 1 EUR = 41.17 NIO (100 NIO = 2.43 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Montevideo Masaya 6,090 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Masaya

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 Masaya: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Montevideo is pricier by about 115%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,656 per month in Montevideo and $1,236 in Masaya. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $69.0 in Montevideo and $35.00 in Masaya. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 28% 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 $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Masaya, where all-in costs run around $824, than in Montevideo at $1,771. In Masaya it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montevideo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Masaya – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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 Masaya. 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.