Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,608 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. The total is higher in Montevideo despite lower rent and utilities.

85

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
Learn more

Mexico City Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Mexico City

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,771 in Montevideo versus $1,608 in Mexico City.

Montevideo $1,771
Mexico City $1,608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,784 in Montevideo versus $2,549 in Mexico City.

Montevideo $2,784
Mexico City $2,549

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,797 in Montevideo versus $3,490 in Mexico City.

Montevideo $3,797
Mexico City $3,490

Living in Montevideo is roughly 10% more expensive than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Montevideo 30% above, Mexico City 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.63 UYU 629

$10.62 MX$199

47.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.9 UYU 2,812

$48.35 MX$904

44.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.51 UYU 584

$10.35 MX$193

40.19%

Cappuccino

$4.43 UYU 178

$3.69 MX$69.0

20.05%

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

$2.49 UYU 100

$1.67 MX$31.14

49.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 UYU 78.5

$1.27 MX$23.65

53.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.78 UYU 192

$3.19 MX$59.7

49.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 UYU 148

$5.31 MX$99.2

-30.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.26 UYU 50.6

$1.72 MX$32.23

-26.74%

White Bread (500g)

$2.98 UYU 120

$3.04 MX$56.8

-1.97%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.74 UYU 70.1

$1.94 MX$36.27

-10.31%

Eggs

$4.80 UYU 193

$2.89 MX$54.0

66.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.06 UYU 565

$10.97 MX$205

28.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.35 UYU 457

$9.25 MX$173

22.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.16 UYU 489

$15.13 MX$283

-19.63%

Apples (1kg)

$2.74 UYU 110

$3.05 MX$57.0

-10.16%

Banana (1kg)

$2.83 UYU 114

$1.94 MX$36.27

45.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 UYU 65.4

$2.03 MX$37.85

-19.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.18 UYU 128

$2.31 MX$43.25

37.66%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 UYU 81.1

$2.04 MX$38.03

-0.98%

Onion (1kg)

$2.13 UYU 85.5

$1.80 MX$33.63

18.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.39 UYU 56.0

$1.48 MX$27.64

-6.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.94 UYU 78.2

$1.27 MX$23.69

52.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.34 UYU 215

$5.30 MX$99.1

0.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.31 UYU 334

$16.10 MX$301

-48.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.35 UYU 94.3

$1.98 MX$37.06

18.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.80 UYU 113

$4.25 MX$79.5

-34.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.55 UYU 62.4

$0.31 MX$5.70

400.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.9 UYU 3,013

$19.73 MX$369

279.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.91 UYU 76.9

$1.84 MX$34.34

3.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.41 UYU 16.55

$0.53 MX$9.97

-22.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.38 UYU 417

$5.30 MX$99.0

95.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.23 UYU 89.5

$1.51 MX$28.23

47.68%

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

$26.5K UYU 1.1M

$21.8K MX$406.5K

21.98%

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

$35.9K UYU 1.4M

$24.0K MX$448.2K

49.46%

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

$184 UYU 7,392

$63.0 MX$1,177

191.87%

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

$20.15 UYU 810

$27.39 MX$512

-26.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.24 UYU 1,739

$35.67 MX$666

21.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.47 UYU 1,949

$58.9 MX$1,101

-17.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.71 UYU 792

$23.64 MX$442

-16.62%

Cinema Ticket

$12.11 UYU 487

$6.40 MX$120

89.22%

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

$636 UYU 25.6K

$432 MX$8,065

47.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K UYU 442.1K

$11.4K MX$213.5K

-3.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 UYU 4,050

$68.2 MX$1,275

47.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.9 UYU 2,289

$53.1 MX$993

7.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$123 UYU 4,937

$108 MX$2,014

13.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 UYU 5,241

$117 MX$2,191

11.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$747 UYU 30.0K

$1,113 MX$20.8K

-32.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$581 UYU 23.3K

$710 MX$13.3K

-18.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,284 UYU 51.6K

$2,588 MX$48.4K

-50.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,125 UYU 45.2K

$1,406 MX$26.3K

-19.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,653 UYU 146.9K

$3,631 MX$67.8K

0.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,029 UYU 81.6K

$2,135 MX$39.9K

-4.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,284 UYU 51.6K

$946 MX$17.7K

35.74%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.65

11.35

-50.22%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 27, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$581 32.8%

Mexico City

$710 44.2% 22.4% $130

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$330 18.6%

Mexico City

$320 19.9% 3.2% $11

Eating Out

Montevideo

$271 15.3%

Mexico City

$199 12.4% 26.6% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$247 14%

Mexico City

$126 7.8% 49% $121

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$185 10.4%

Mexico City

$156 9.7% 15.7% $29

Getting Around

Montevideo

$85 4.8%

Mexico City

$25 1.6% 70.1% $60

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$73 4.1%

Mexico City

$72 4.5% 1.3% $0.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $747 in Montevideo and $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Montevideo pays 36% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $70 in Montevideo vs $48 in Mexico City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $330 vs $320 per month, with Mexico City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

07:34 7:34 AM

04:34 4:34 AM

3 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.23 EUR

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to UYU – Uruguayan Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 40.21 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 44.76 UYU (100 UYU = 2.23 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.69 MXN (100 MXN = 5.35 USD). 1 EUR = 20.8 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Montevideo Mexico City 7,550 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Mexico City

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 Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montevideo and Mexico City differ by about 10% in total monthly costs ($1,771 vs $1,608 including rent). Mexico City is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 36% 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: $747 in Montevideo versus $1,113 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Mexico City runs roughly 74% less than in Montevideo. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

Childcare runs $636 in Montevideo versus $432 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Mexico City gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Mexico City wins on affordability, Montevideo on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.