Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Puerto Escondido

For one person, living is cheaper in Puerto Escondido: $1,151 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $7,400 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
56

Cost of Living Index in Puerto Escondido
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Puerto Escondido Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Puerto Escondido

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,151

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Puerto Escondido

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

A single person spends $1,771 per month in Montevideo vs $1,151 in Puerto Escondido, rent included.

Montevideo $1,771
Puerto Escondido $1,151

A couple spends around $2,740 per month in Montevideo vs $1,856 in Puerto Escondido, rent included.

Montevideo $2,740
Puerto Escondido $1,856

A family of three spends $3,708 per month in Montevideo vs $2,561 in Puerto Escondido, rent included.

Montevideo $3,708
Puerto Escondido $2,561

Montevideo costs about 54% more than Puerto Escondido, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Montevideo sits 31% above the global median, while Puerto Escondido is 15% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.16 UYU 609

$10.52 MX$194

44.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.2 UYU 2,776

$42.96 MX$794

60.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.65 UYU 588

$8.65 MX$160

69.36%

Cappuccino

$4.46 UYU 179

$3.58 MX$66.1

24.58%

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

$2.67 UYU 107

$1.42 MX$26.25

88.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 UYU 80.4

$1.05 MX$19.38

90.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.83 UYU 194

$3.04 MX$56.2

58.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 UYU 152

$4.05 MX$74.9

-6.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.36 UYU 54.8

$1.85 MX$34.14

-26.49%

White Bread (500g)

$2.87 UYU 115

$2.84 MX$52.5

1.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 UYU 70.2

$1.64 MX$30.22

6.71%

Eggs

$4.68 UYU 188

$2.80 MX$51.7

67.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.88 UYU 557

$8.20 MX$152

69.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.98 UYU 481

$10.98 MX$203

9.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.97 UYU 480

$11.54 MX$213

3.73%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 UYU 111

$2.68 MX$49.45

3.73%

Banana (1kg)

$2.74 UYU 110

$1.59 MX$29.42

72.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 UYU 71.2

$1.86 MX$34.42

-4.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

$1.73 MX$32.01

87.28%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 UYU 79.2

$1.59 MX$29.46

23.90%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

$2.02 MX$37.35

2.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 UYU 55.1

$1.48 MX$27.28

-7.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 UYU 75.3

$1.14 MX$21.15

64.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.59 UYU 224

$4.48 MX$82.7

24.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.78 UYU 352

$10.36 MX$191

-15.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 UYU 90.9

$2.46 MX$45.43

-8.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 UYU 110

$3.09 MX$57.1

-11.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.53 UYU 61.5

$0.83 MX$15.35

84.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.3 UYU 2,980

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.91 UYU 76.7

$2.80 MX$51.7

-31.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 UYU 16.18

$1.78 MX$32.92

-77.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.33 UYU 415

$9.89 MX$183

4.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 UYU 85.6

$1.36 MX$25.14

56.62%

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

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

$18.7K MX$344.9K

45.24%

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

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

$25.2K MX$465.2K

44.05%

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

$188 UYU 7,557

$64.7 MX$1,196

191.04%

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

$20.54 UYU 824

$22.92 MX$424

-10.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.81 UYU 1,798

$36.45 MX$674

22.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.0 UYU 2,166

$27.77 MX$513

94.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.75 UYU 793

$19.89 MX$368

-0.70%

Cinema Ticket

$11.95 UYU 480

$4.56 MX$84.2

162.06%

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

$634 UYU 25.5K

$220 MX$4,069

188.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

$4,364 MX$80.6K

153.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 UYU 4,099

$49.88 MX$922

104.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.5 UYU 2,309

$42.79 MX$791

34.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 UYU 5,079

$91.6 MX$1,693

38.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 UYU 5,131

$84.0 MX$1,553

52.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$719 UYU 28.8K

$601 MX$11.1K

19.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$568 UYU 22.8K

$382 MX$7,061

48.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

$960 MX$17.7K

19.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

$778 MX$14.4K

31.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,392 UYU 136.1K

$2,036 MX$37.6K

66.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,949 UYU 78.2K

$1,289 MX$23.8K

51.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

$327 MX$6,035

281.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

11.3

-49.20%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Last update for Puerto Escondido: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$568 32.1%

Puerto Escondido

$382 33.2% 32.7% $186

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$332 18.7%

Puerto Escondido

$285 24.8% 13.9% $46

Eating Out

Montevideo

$269 15.2%

Puerto Escondido

$186 16.2% 30.8% $83

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$254 14.3%

Puerto Escondido

$124 10.8% 51.1% $130

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$186 10.5%

Puerto Escondido

$121 10.5% 35.2% $66

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.8%

Puerto Escondido

$15 * 1.3% 82.2% $69

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$78 4.4%

Puerto Escondido

$37 3.2% 52.6% $41

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 $601 in Puerto Escondido. 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 281% 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 $43.00 in Puerto Escondido. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $332 vs $285 – making Puerto Escondido the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇲🇽 Puerto Escondido

🕒 Local time

12:58 12:58 PM

09:58 9:58 AM

3 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

25,902

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 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 18, 2026: 1 USD = 40.14 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.12 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Montevideo Puerto Escondido 7,110 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Puerto Escondido

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 Puerto Escondido: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Montevideo is pricier by about 54%, 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 $1,726 in Puerto Escondido. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Puerto Escondido, 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 $69.0 in Montevideo and $43.00 in Puerto Escondido. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 16% 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 Puerto Escondido, where all-in costs run around $1,151, than in Montevideo at $1,771. In Puerto Escondido it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montevideo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Puerto Escondido – 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 Puerto Escondido. 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.