Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Playa del Coco

For one person, living costs are similar in Montevideo and in Playa del Coco: $1,813 and $1,765 a month, rent and utilities included.

86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index
85

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Coco
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Playa del Coco Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,813

/mo nomad

Playa del Coco

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,765

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Playa del Coco

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 Playa del Coco actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,813 per month in Montevideo vs $1,765 in Playa del Coco, rent included.

Montevideo $1,813
Playa del Coco $1,765

A couple spends around $2,782 per month in Montevideo vs $2,806 in Playa del Coco, rent included.

Montevideo $2,782
Playa del Coco $2,806

A family of three spends $3,750 per month in Montevideo vs $3,847 in Playa del Coco, rent included.

Montevideo $3,750
Playa del Coco $3,847

Montevideo costs about 3% more than Playa del Coco, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Montevideo and Playa del Coco sit above the global median – Montevideo by 35%, Playa del Coco by 32%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.26 UYU 613

$18.05 ₡8,137

-15.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.4 UYU 2,711

$57.5 ₡25.9K

17.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.37 UYU 578

$11.25 ₡5,070

27.73%

Cappuccino

$4.64 UYU 187

$4.08 ₡1,839

13.73%

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

$2.73 UYU 110

$2.52 ₡1,138

8.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 UYU 84.0

$1.63 ₡736

28.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.75 UYU 191

$3.56 ₡1,605

33.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 UYU 147

$6.15 ₡2,774

-40.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 UYU 55.5

$2.42 ₡1,089

-42.98%

White Bread (500g)

$2.77 UYU 112

$2.88 ₡1,298

-3.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.69 UYU 67.8

$2.46 ₡1,107

-31.30%

Eggs

$4.52 UYU 182

$3.44 ₡1,553

31.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.17 UYU 570

$10.86 ₡4,894

30.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.07 UYU 485

$10.65 ₡4,800

13.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.16 UYU 489

$14.23 ₡6,417

-14.55%

Apples (1kg)

$2.87 UYU 116

$5.11 ₡2,302

-43.84%

Banana (1kg)

$2.75 UYU 110

$1.65 ₡744

66.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 UYU 69.5

$3.37 ₡1,520

-48.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

$3.38 ₡1,522

-4.14%

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

$3.00 ₡1,351

-31.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

$3.21 ₡1,446

-35.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.38 UYU 55.4

$1.08 ₡487

27.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 UYU 74.5

$2.70 ₡1,219

-31.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.57 UYU 224

$5.59 ₡2,521

-0.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.89 UYU 357

$16.65 ₡7,504

-46.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.29 UYU 92.2

$2.66 ₡1,200

-13.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.70 UYU 109

$2.73 ₡1,229

-1.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 UYU 61.3

$1.33 ₡602

14.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.7 UYU 2,962

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.82 UYU 73.4

$3.33 ₡1,501

-45.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 UYU 16.05

$1.58 ₡713

-74.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.66 UYU 429

$8.90 ₡4,011

19.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 UYU 89.2

$1.93 ₡870

15.03%

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

$26.7K UYU 1.1M

$22.2K ₡10.0M

20.42%

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

$36.7K UYU 1.5M

$34.5K ₡15.6M

6.43%

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

$191 UYU 7,674

$94.1 ₡42.4K

102.72%

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

$20.40 UYU 820

$29.60 ₡13.3K

-31.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.14 UYU 1,775

$60.8 ₡27.4K

-27.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 UYU 2,177

$72.1 ₡32.5K

-24.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.68 UYU 791

Cinema Ticket

$12.33 UYU 496

$8.08 ₡3,641

52.60%

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

$613 UYU 24.7K

$827 ₡372.9K

-25.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K UYU 444.3K

$16.8K ₡7.6M

-34.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$103 UYU 4,134

$71.9 ₡32.4K

42.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.1 UYU 2,255

$56.6 ₡25.5K

-0.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 UYU 5,000

$130 ₡58.6K

-4.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 UYU 5,214

$135 ₡60.6K

-3.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$705 UYU 28.4K

$819 ₡369.1K

-13.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$575 UYU 23.1K

$638 ₡287.7K

-9.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,139 UYU 45.8K

$1,894 ₡854.1K

-39.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,016 UYU 40.8K

$1,244 ₡561.0K

-18.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,349 UYU 134.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,942 UYU 78.1K

$332 ₡149.6K

485.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,229 UYU 49.4K

$765 ₡344.7K

60.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

8.78

-34.62%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 5, 2026

Last update for Playa del Coco: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$575 32.3%

Playa del Coco

$638 36.4% 10.9% $63

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$332 18.7%

Playa del Coco

$375 21.4% 12.8% $43

Eating Out

Montevideo

$271 15.2%

Playa del Coco

$274 15.6% 1% $2.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$255 14.3%

Playa del Coco

$185 10.5% 27.7% $71

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$186 10.4%

Playa del Coco

$177 10.1% 4.8% $9

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.7%

Playa del Coco

$17 * 1% 80.2% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$79 4.4%

Playa del Coco

$88 5% 12% $9.5

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $705 in Montevideo versus $819 in Playa del Coco. 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 61% higher in Montevideo, 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 $57.0 in Playa del Coco. Groceries tell a different story – $332 in Montevideo vs $375 in Playa del Coco – so Montevideo wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇨🇷 Playa del Coco

🕒 Local time

23:49 11:49 PM

20:49 8:49 PM

3 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, 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 = 45.1 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 506 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Montevideo Playa del Coco 5,930 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Playa del Coco

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 Playa del Coco: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Montevideo is pricier by about 3%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,720 per month in Montevideo and $2,648 in Playa del Coco. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $67.0 in Montevideo and $57.0 in Playa del Coco. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 13% cheaper in Montevideo – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Coco, where all-in costs run around $1,765, than in Montevideo at $1,813. In Playa del Coco it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montevideo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Coco – 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 Playa del Coco. 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.