Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Oranjestad

For one person, living is cheaper in Montevideo: $1,813 a month against $2,327 in Oranjestad, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 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
113

Cost of Living Index in Oranjestad
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Oranjestad Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,813

/mo nomad

Oranjestad

🇦🇼 Aruba

$2,327

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Oranjestad

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

A single person spends $1,813 per month in Montevideo vs $2,327 in Oranjestad, rent included.

Montevideo $1,813
Oranjestad $2,327

A couple spends around $2,782 per month in Montevideo vs $4,208 in Oranjestad, rent included.

Montevideo $2,782
Oranjestad $4,208

A family of three spends $3,750 per month in Montevideo vs $6,089 in Oranjestad, rent included.

Montevideo $3,750
Oranjestad $6,089

Montevideo is about 22% cheaper than Oranjestad, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both Montevideo and Oranjestad sit above the global median – Montevideo by 35%, Oranjestad by 74%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.26 UYU 613

$22.18 AWG 39.71

-31.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.4 UYU 2,711

$79.3 AWG 142

-14.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.37 UYU 578

$10.14 AWG 18.16

41.72%

Cappuccino

$4.64 UYU 187

$4.29 AWG 7.68

8.16%

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

$2.73 UYU 110

$1.41 AWG 2.52

93.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 UYU 84.0

$1.66 AWG 2.97

25.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.75 UYU 191

$2.92 AWG 5.24

62.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 UYU 147

$4.10 AWG 7.33

-10.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 UYU 55.5

$1.84 AWG 3.30

-25.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.77 UYU 112

$2.93 AWG 5.24

-5.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.69 UYU 67.8

$2.91 AWG 5.21

-41.92%

Eggs

$4.52 UYU 182

$5.40 AWG 9.66

-16.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.17 UYU 570

$12.62 AWG 22.59

12.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.07 UYU 485

$9.22 AWG 16.50

30.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.16 UYU 489

$12.03 AWG 21.54

1.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.87 UYU 116

$4.68 AWG 8.37

-38.68%

Banana (1kg)

$2.75 UYU 110

$2.31 AWG 4.13

19.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 UYU 69.5

$5.11 AWG 9.15

-66.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

$3.56 AWG 6.38

-8.99%

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

$2.19 AWG 3.91

-5.48%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

$2.05 AWG 3.67

0.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.38 UYU 55.4

$2.67 AWG 4.78

-48.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 UYU 74.5

$1.59 AWG 2.84

16.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.57 UYU 224

$9.91 AWG 17.75

-43.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.89 UYU 357

$9.70 AWG 17.36

-8.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.29 UYU 92.2

$3.95 AWG 7.07

-42.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.70 UYU 109

$4.33 AWG 7.74

-37.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 UYU 61.3

$2.14 AWG 3.83

-28.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.7 UYU 2,962

$30.14 AWG 54.0

144.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.82 UYU 73.4

$16.86 AWG 30.18

-89.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 UYU 16.05

$3.83 AWG 6.86

-89.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.66 UYU 429

$24.95 AWG 44.67

-57.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 UYU 89.2

$2.04 AWG 3.65

8.82%

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

$26.7K UYU 1.1M

$25.9K AWG 46.4K

3.23%

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

$36.7K UYU 1.5M

$34.7K AWG 62.2K

5.80%

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

$191 UYU 7,674

$252 AWG 451

-24.25%

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

$20.40 UYU 820

$48.35 AWG 86.6

-57.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.14 UYU 1,775

$104 AWG 187

-57.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 UYU 2,177

$62.3 AWG 111

-13.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.68 UYU 791

$26.38 AWG 47.22

-25.40%

Cinema Ticket

$12.33 UYU 496

$12.02 AWG 21.52

2.58%

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

$613 UYU 24.7K

$254 AWG 455

141.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K UYU 444.3K

$8,657 AWG 15.5K

27.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$103 UYU 4,134

$59.1 AWG 106

73.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.1 UYU 2,255

$51.3 AWG 91.9

9.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 UYU 5,000

$109 AWG 195

14.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 UYU 5,214

$104 AWG 186

24.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$705 UYU 28.4K

$935 AWG 1,673

-24.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$575 UYU 23.1K

$936 AWG 1,676

-38.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,139 UYU 45.8K

$2,703 AWG 4,839

-57.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,016 UYU 40.8K

$3,031 AWG 5,426

-66.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,349 UYU 134.6K

$2,210 AWG 3,956

51.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,942 UYU 78.1K

$1,744 AWG 3,121

11.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,229 UYU 49.4K

$1,706 AWG 3,053

-27.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

6.25

-8.16%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 5, 2026

Last update for Oranjestad: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$575 32.3%

Oranjestad

$936 40.6% 62.7% $361

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$332 18.7%

Oranjestad

$365 15.8% 9.7% $32

Eating Out

Montevideo

$271 15.2%

Oranjestad

$294 12.8% 8.6% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$255 14.3%

Oranjestad

$405 17.5% 58.4% $149

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$186 10.4%

Oranjestad

$145 6.3% 21.8% $41

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.7%

Oranjestad

$75 3.2% 10.6% $8.8

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$79 4.4%

Oranjestad

$86 3.7% 9.5% $7.5

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $705 in Montevideo versus $935 in Oranjestad. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 39% higher in Oranjestad, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $67.0 in Montevideo versus $79.0 in Oranjestad. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $332 vs $365 – making Montevideo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇦🇼 Oranjestad

🕒 Local time

07:12 7:12 AM

06:12 6:12 AM

1 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

35,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Aruban Florin AWG ƒ

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

1 AWG = 0.559 USD

1 AWG = 0.499 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AWG, USD, EUR to UYU – Uruguayan Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 40.21 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.06 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

Aruban Florin exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.79 AWG (1 AWG = 0.559 USD). 1 EUR = 2.01 AWG (1 AWG = 0.499 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Montevideo Oranjestad 5,470 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Oranjestad

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 Oranjestad: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Oranjestad is pricier by about 28%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in utilities.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,720 per month in Montevideo and $3,491 in Oranjestad. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Montevideo, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $613 per month in Montevideo and $254 in Oranjestad. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 10% more in Oranjestad, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Montevideo, where all-in costs run around $1,813, than in Oranjestad at $2,327. In Montevideo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Oranjestad it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Montevideo – 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 Montevideo. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Oranjestad makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.