Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Queretaro

For one person, living is cheaper in Queretaro: $1,458 a month against $1,813 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $4,300 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
70

Cost of Living Index in Queretaro
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Queretaro Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,813

/mo nomad

Queretaro

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,458

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Queretaro

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

A single person spends $1,813 per month in Montevideo vs $1,458 in Queretaro, rent included.

Montevideo $1,813
Queretaro $1,458

A couple spends around $2,782 per month in Montevideo vs $2,209 in Queretaro, rent included.

Montevideo $2,782
Queretaro $2,209

A family of three spends $3,750 per month in Montevideo vs $2,960 in Queretaro, rent included.

Montevideo $3,750
Queretaro $2,960

Montevideo costs about 24% more than Queretaro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Montevideo and Queretaro sit above the global median – Montevideo by 35%, Queretaro by 9%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.26 UYU 613

$11.24 MX$204

35.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.4 UYU 2,707

$64.3 MX$1,169

4.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.37 UYU 577

$9.59 MX$174

49.84%

Cappuccino

$4.64 UYU 186

$3.59 MX$65.3

29.25%

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

$2.73 UYU 110

$1.61 MX$29.27

69.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 UYU 83.9

$1.10 MX$20.01

90.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.75 UYU 191

$3.26 MX$59.2

45.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 UYU 147

$5.55 MX$101

-33.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 UYU 55.4

$1.96 MX$35.64

-29.59%

White Bread (500g)

$2.77 UYU 111

$2.77 MX$50.4

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.69 UYU 67.7

$2.04 MX$37.03

-17.16%

Eggs

$4.52 UYU 182

$2.70 MX$49.12

67.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.17 UYU 569

$9.21 MX$168

53.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.07 UYU 485

$8.86 MX$161

36.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.16 UYU 488

$13.80 MX$251

-11.88%

Apples (1kg)

$2.87 UYU 115

$3.40 MX$61.8

-15.59%

Banana (1kg)

$2.75 UYU 110

$1.68 MX$30.49

63.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 UYU 69.4

$2.16 MX$39.28

-19.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

$1.92 MX$35.00

68.75%

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.0

$1.86 MX$33.75

11.29%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.0

$1.82 MX$33.12

13.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.38 UYU 55.4

$1.55 MX$28.11

-10.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 UYU 74.4

$1.25 MX$22.78

48.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.57 UYU 224

$4.64 MX$84.5

20.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.89 UYU 357

$18.28 MX$332

-51.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.29 UYU 92.1

$2.19 MX$39.85

4.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.70 UYU 108

$3.91 MX$71.2

-30.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 UYU 61.2

$0.60 MX$10.90

153.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.7 UYU 2,958

$26.03 MX$473

182.98%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.82 UYU 73.3

$3.25 MX$59.0

-44.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 UYU 16.02

$2.57 MX$46.67

-84.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.66 UYU 428

$10.88 MX$198

-2.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 UYU 89.0

$1.58 MX$28.80

40.51%

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

$26.7K UYU 1.1M

$21.5K MX$391.3K

24.34%

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

$36.7K UYU 1.5M

$24.4K MX$443.3K

50.77%

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

$191 UYU 7,662

$58.0 MX$1,055

229.15%

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

$20.40 UYU 819

$27.03 MX$492

-24.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.14 UYU 1,772

$24.66 MX$449

78.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 UYU 2,174

$57.1 MX$1,039

-5.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.68 UYU 790

$25.02 MX$455

-21.34%

Cinema Ticket

$12.33 UYU 495

$7.54 MX$137

63.53%

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

$613 UYU 24.6K

$269 MX$4,888

128.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K UYU 443.6K

$5,127 MX$93.3K

115.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$103 UYU 4,128

$52.8 MX$960

94.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.1 UYU 2,251

$44.39 MX$807

26.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 UYU 4,993

$102 MX$1,853

22.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 UYU 5,207

$101 MX$1,828

29.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$705 UYU 28.3K

$850 MX$15.5K

-16.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$575 UYU 23.1K

$574 MX$10.4K

0.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,139 UYU 45.7K

$1,460 MX$26.6K

-22.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,016 UYU 40.8K

$849 MX$15.4K

19.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,349 UYU 134.4K

$2,208 MX$40.2K

51.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,942 UYU 78.0K

$1,244 MX$22.6K

56.12%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,229 UYU 49.4K

$943 MX$17.2K

30.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

11.99

-52.13%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 5, 2026

Last update for Queretaro: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$575 32.3%

Queretaro

$574 39.7% 0.3% $1.9

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$332 18.7%

Queretaro

$311 21.5% 6.5% $22

Eating Out

Montevideo

$271 15.2%

Queretaro

$200 13.8% 26.3% $71

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$255 14.3%

Queretaro

$110 7.6% 57.1% $146

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$186 10.4%

Queretaro

$135 9.3% 27.4% $51

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.7%

Queretaro

$45 3.1% 46.8% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$79 4.4%

Queretaro

$72 5% 8.4% $6.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $705 in Montevideo versus $850 in Queretaro. 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 30% 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 $64.0 in Queretaro. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $332 vs $311 – making Queretaro the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇲🇽 Queretaro

🕒 Local time

07:19 7:19 AM

04:19 4:19 AM

3 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

804,663

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

100 MXN = 5.5 USD

100 MXN = 4.91 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 40.15 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 44.99 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.19 MXN (100 MXN = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20.38 MXN (100 MXN = 4.91 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Montevideo Queretaro 7,740 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Queretaro

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 Queretaro: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Montevideo is pricier by about 24%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,720 per month in Montevideo and $2,187 in Queretaro. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Queretaro, 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 $269 in Queretaro. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 7% 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 $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Queretaro, where all-in costs run around $1,458, than in Montevideo at $1,813. In Queretaro it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montevideo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Queretaro – 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 Queretaro. 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.