Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and St.James

For one person, living is cheaper in St.James: $921 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $10,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in St.James
Learn more

St.James Living Index

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Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

St.James

🇹🇹 Trinidad And Tobago

$921

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in St.James

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

A single person spends $1,771 per month in Montevideo vs $921 in St.James, rent included.

Montevideo $1,771
St.James $921

A couple spends around $2,740 per month in Montevideo vs $1,596 in St.James, rent included.

Montevideo $2,740
St.James $1,596

A family of three spends $3,708 per month in Montevideo vs $2,270 in St.James, rent included.

Montevideo $3,708
St.James $2,270

Montevideo costs about 92% more than St.James, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Montevideo sits 31% above the global median, while St.James is 32% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.16 UYU 609

$10.17 TTD 68.4

49.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.2 UYU 2,776

$86.9 TTD 585

-20.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.65 UYU 588

$8.91 TTD 60.0

64.42%

Cappuccino

$4.46 UYU 179

$3.75 TTD 25.23

18.93%

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

$2.67 UYU 107

$0.99 TTD 6.66

169.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 UYU 80.4

$0.77 TTD 5.18

159.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.83 UYU 194

$2.27 TTD 15.30

112.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 UYU 152

$3.64 TTD 24.50

4.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.36 UYU 54.8

$2.49 TTD 16.76

-45.38%

White Bread (500g)

$2.87 UYU 115

$2.53 TTD 17.04

13.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 UYU 70.2

$2.93 TTD 19.68

-40.27%

Eggs

$4.68 UYU 188

$4.31 TTD 29.00

8.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.88 UYU 557

$6.62 TTD 44.56

109.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.98 UYU 481

$10.12 TTD 68.1

18.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.97 UYU 480

$11.49 TTD 77.3

4.18%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 UYU 111

$5.57 TTD 37.50

-50.09%

Banana (1kg)

$2.74 UYU 110

$2.98 TTD 20.02

-8.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 UYU 71.2

$3.71 TTD 24.94

-52.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

$4.17 TTD 28.05

-22.30%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 UYU 79.2

$2.11 TTD 14.22

-6.64%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.1

$1.86 TTD 12.49

11.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 UYU 55.1

$1.89 TTD 12.68

-27.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 UYU 75.3

$1.35 TTD 9.05

39.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.59 UYU 224

$5.83 TTD 39.19

-4.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.78 UYU 352

$19.53 TTD 131

-55.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 UYU 90.9

$2.33 TTD 15.64

-3.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 UYU 110

$3.05 TTD 20.51

-9.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.53 UYU 61.5

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.3 UYU 2,980

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.91 UYU 76.7

$1.05 TTD 7.06

81.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 UYU 16.18

$1.23 TTD 8.27

-67.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.33 UYU 415

$14.78 TTD 99.5

-30.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 UYU 85.6

$1.12 TTD 7.56

90.18%

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

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

$36.5K TTD 245.8K

-25.81%

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

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

$41.8K TTD 281.1K

-13.21%

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

$188 UYU 7,557

$90.1 TTD 606

108.90%

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

$20.54 UYU 824

$52.6 TTD 354

-60.94%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.81 UYU 1,798

$56.5 TTD 380

-20.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.0 UYU 2,166

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.75 UYU 793

Cinema Ticket

$11.95 UYU 480

$9.09 TTD 61.2

31.46%

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

$634 UYU 25.5K

$398 TTD 2,676

59.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

$10.8K TTD 72.9K

2.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 UYU 4,099

$55.7 TTD 375

83.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.5 UYU 2,309

$52.7 TTD 354

9.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 UYU 5,079

$148 TTD 997

-14.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 UYU 5,131

$103 TTD 692

24.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$719 UYU 28.8K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$568 UYU 22.8K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,392 UYU 136.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,949 UYU 78.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

5.75

-0.17%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Last update for St.James: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$568 32.1%

St.James

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$332 18.7%

St.James

$356 38.7% 7.4% $24

Eating Out

Montevideo

$269 15.2%

St.James

$179 19.4% 33.6% $90

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$254 14.3%

St.James

$199 21.6% 21.5% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$186 10.5%

St.James

$162 17.6% 13.2% $25

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.8%

St.James

$7.2 * 0.8% 91.5% $77

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$78 4.4%

St.James

$18 * 2% 76.6% $60

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $69.0 in Montevideo versus $87.0 in St.James. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $332 vs $356 – making Montevideo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇹🇹 St.James

🕒 Local time

00:51 12:51 AM

23:51 11:51 PM

1 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

4,342

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar TTD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

1 TTD = 0.149 USD

1 TTD = 0.132 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TTD, 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).

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 6.73 TTD (1 TTD = 0.149 USD). 1 EUR = 7.56 TTD (1 TTD = 0.132 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Montevideo St.James 5,100 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
St.James

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 St.James: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Montevideo is pricier by about 92%, 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 $1,382 in St.James. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $69.0 in Montevideo and $87.0 in St.James. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 7% 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 St.James, where all-in costs run around $921, than in Montevideo at $1,771. In St.James it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montevideo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward St.James – 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 St.James. 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.