Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Porlamar

For one person, living is cheaper in Porlamar: $630 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $13,700 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
31

Cost of Living Index in Porlamar
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Porlamar Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Porlamar

🇻🇪 Venezuela

$630

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Porlamar

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

A single person spends $1,771 per month in Montevideo vs $630 in Porlamar, rent included.

Montevideo $1,771
Porlamar $630

A couple spends around $2,740 per month in Montevideo vs $1,008 in Porlamar, rent included.

Montevideo $2,740
Porlamar $1,008

A family of three spends $3,708 per month in Montevideo vs $1,386 in Porlamar, rent included.

Montevideo $3,708
Porlamar $1,386

Montevideo costs about 181% more than Porlamar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Montevideo sits 31% above the global median, while Porlamar is 53% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.16 UYU 609

$4.50 VES 3,950

236.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.2 UYU 2,776

$34.98 VES 30.7K

97.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.65 UYU 588

$9.06 VES 7,957

61.70%

Cappuccino

$4.46 UYU 179

$1.80 VES 1,579

147.78%

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

$2.67 UYU 107

$1.68 VES 1,477

58.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 UYU 80.4

$1.29 VES 1,129

55.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.83 UYU 194

$1.52 VES 1,338

217.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 UYU 152

$3.07 VES 2,699

23.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.36 UYU 54.8

$1.02 VES 891

33.33%

White Bread (500g)

$2.87 UYU 115

$0.97 VES 853

195.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 UYU 70.2

$1.01 VES 890

73.27%

Eggs

$4.68 UYU 188

$1.97 VES 1,729

137.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.88 UYU 557

$4.08 VES 3,582

240.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.98 UYU 481

$4.93 VES 4,332

143.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.97 UYU 480

$5.89 VES 5,167

103.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 UYU 111

$3.94 VES 3,459

-29.44%

Banana (1kg)

$2.74 UYU 110

$1.53 VES 1,341

79.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 UYU 71.2

$1.54 VES 1,354

14.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

$1.51 VES 1,329

114.57%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 UYU 79.2

$1.46 VES 1,284

34.93%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

$1.02 VES 895

102.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 UYU 55.1

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 UYU 75.3

$0.98 VES 857

91.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.59 UYU 224

$2.02 VES 1,777

176.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.78 UYU 352

$5.89 VES 5,171

49.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 UYU 90.9

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 UYU 110

$2.02 VES 1,774

36.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.53 UYU 61.5

$0.47 VES 414

225.53%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.3 UYU 2,980

$14.81 VES 13.0K

401.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.91 UYU 76.7

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 UYU 16.18

$1.27 VES 1,113

-68.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.33 UYU 415

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 UYU 85.6

$0.52 VES 455

309.62%

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

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

$20.4K VES 17.9M

32.93%

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

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

$34.4K VES 30.2M

5.29%

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

$188 UYU 7,557

$11.97 VES 10.5K

1473.10%

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

$20.54 UYU 824

$7.55 VES 6,630

172.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.81 UYU 1,798

$22.65 VES 19.9K

97.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.0 UYU 2,166

$39.68 VES 34.8K

35.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.75 UYU 793

$12.73 VES 11.2K

55.15%

Cinema Ticket

$11.95 UYU 480

$3.55 VES 3,118

236.62%

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

$634 UYU 25.5K

$29.99 VES 26.3K

2015.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 UYU 4,099

$29.54 VES 25.9K

245.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.5 UYU 2,309

$45.30 VES 39.8K

27.00%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 UYU 5,079

$61.1 VES 53.7K

107.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 UYU 5,131

$74.1 VES 65.1K

72.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$719 UYU 28.8K

$199 VES 174.4K

261.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$568 UYU 22.8K

$151 VES 132.2K

277.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

$332 VES 291.4K

244.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

$200 VES 175.6K

411.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,392 UYU 136.1K

$399 VES 350.5K

749.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,949 UYU 78.2K

$152 VES 133.1K

1186.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

$216 VES 189.4K

476.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

-71.30%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Last update for Porlamar: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$568 32.1%

Porlamar

$151 23.9% 73.5% $417

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$332 18.7%

Porlamar

$163 * 25.9% 50.9% $169

Eating Out

Montevideo

$269 15.2%

Porlamar

$110 17.5% 59% $159

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$254 14.3%

Porlamar

$42 6.7% 83.4% $211

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$186 10.5%

Porlamar

$95 15% 49.3% $92

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.8%

Porlamar

$23 * 3.7% 72.7% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$78 4.4%

Porlamar

$47 7.4% 39.9% $31

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $719 in Montevideo versus $199 in Porlamar. 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 477% 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 $69.0 in Montevideo versus $35.00 in Porlamar. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $332 vs $163 – making Porlamar the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇻🇪 Porlamar

🕒 Local time

08:47 8:47 AM

07:47 7:47 AM

1 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

103,496

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Venezuelan Bolívar VES Bs.S

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

1,000 VES = 1.14 USD

1,000 VES = 1.01 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VES, 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).

Venezuelan Bolívar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 878 VES (1,000 VES = 1.14 USD). 1 EUR = 987 VES (1,000 VES = 1.01 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Montevideo Porlamar 5,160 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Porlamar

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 Porlamar: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Montevideo is pricier by about 181%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,656 per month in Montevideo and $946 in Porlamar. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Kindergarten costs $634 per month in Montevideo and $29.99 in Porlamar. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 104% 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 Porlamar, where all-in costs run around $630, than in Montevideo at $1,771. In Porlamar it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montevideo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Porlamar – 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 Porlamar. 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.