Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Tulum

For one person, living is cheaper in Tulum: $1,252 a month against $1,813 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $6,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
Learn more

Montevideo Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Tulum
Learn more

Tulum Living Index

Jump to prices

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,813

/mo nomad

Tulum

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,252

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Tulum

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

A single person spends $1,813 per month in Montevideo vs $1,252 in Tulum, rent included.

Montevideo $1,813
Tulum $1,252

A couple spends around $2,782 per month in Montevideo vs $2,131 in Tulum, rent included.

Montevideo $2,782
Tulum $2,131

A family of three spends $3,750 per month in Montevideo vs $3,010 in Tulum, rent included.

Montevideo $3,750
Tulum $3,010

Montevideo costs about 45% more than Tulum, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Montevideo sits 35% above the global median, while Tulum is 7% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.26 UYU 613

$8.26 MX$150

84.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.4 UYU 2,707

$56.4 MX$1,026

19.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.37 UYU 577

$8.13 MX$148

76.75%

Cappuccino

$4.64 UYU 186

$3.87 MX$70.4

19.90%

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

$2.73 UYU 110

$1.14 MX$20.80

139.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 UYU 83.9

$1.18 MX$21.42

77.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.75 UYU 191

$2.94 MX$53.5

61.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 UYU 147

$3.80 MX$69.1

-3.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 UYU 55.4

$1.58 MX$28.75

-12.66%

White Bread (500g)

$2.77 UYU 111

$2.00 MX$36.31

38.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.69 UYU 67.7

$1.74 MX$31.71

-2.87%

Eggs

$4.52 UYU 182

$1.89 MX$34.29

139.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.17 UYU 569

$5.55 MX$101

155.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.07 UYU 485

$7.93 MX$144

52.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.16 UYU 488

$9.09 MX$165

33.77%

Apples (1kg)

$2.87 UYU 115

$2.66 MX$48.31

7.89%

Banana (1kg)

$2.75 UYU 110

$1.42 MX$25.75

93.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 UYU 69.4

$1.52 MX$27.67

13.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 UYU 130

$1.50 MX$27.34

116.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.0

$2.28 MX$41.45

-9.21%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 UYU 83.0

$1.86 MX$33.77

11.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.38 UYU 55.4

$1.51 MX$27.40

-8.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 UYU 74.4

$0.83 MX$15.11

122.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.57 UYU 224

$4.39 MX$79.9

26.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.89 UYU 357

$8.35 MX$152

6.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.29 UYU 92.1

$1.39 MX$25.31

64.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.70 UYU 108

$1.32 MX$24.00

104.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 UYU 61.2

$1.40 MX$25.48

8.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.7 UYU 2,958

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.82 UYU 73.3

$2.81 MX$51.2

-35.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 UYU 16.02

$2.44 MX$44.47

-83.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.66 UYU 428

$5.58 MX$102

91.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 UYU 89.0

$1.52 MX$27.71

46.05%

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

$26.7K UYU 1.1M

$21.4K MX$389.2K

24.99%

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

$36.7K UYU 1.5M

$23.8K MX$433.0K

54.37%

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

$191 UYU 7,662

$106 MX$1,927

80.12%

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

$20.40 UYU 819

$16.87 MX$307

20.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.14 UYU 1,772

$34.97 MX$636

26.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 UYU 2,174

$34.35 MX$625

57.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.68 UYU 790

Cinema Ticket

$12.33 UYU 495

$6.45 MX$117

91.16%

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

$613 UYU 24.6K

$263 MX$4,776

133.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K UYU 443.6K

$3,022 MX$55.0K

265.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$103 UYU 4,128

$42.26 MX$769

143.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.1 UYU 2,251

$33.26 MX$605

68.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 UYU 4,993

$97.4 MX$1,772

27.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 UYU 5,207

$60.2 MX$1,095

115.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$705 UYU 28.3K

$614 MX$11.2K

14.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$575 UYU 23.1K

$539 MX$9,808

6.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,139 UYU 45.7K

$1,504 MX$27.4K

-24.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,016 UYU 40.8K

$1,316 MX$23.9K

-22.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,349 UYU 134.4K

$3,162 MX$57.5K

5.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,942 UYU 78.0K

$1,818 MX$33.1K

6.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,229 UYU 49.4K

$784 MX$14.3K

56.69%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.74

10.8

-46.85%

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

Last update for Montevideo: October 5, 2026

Last update for Tulum: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$575 32.3%

Tulum

$539 42.8% 6.3% $36

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$332 18.7%

Tulum

$222 17.6% 33.2% $110

Eating Out

Montevideo

$271 15.2%

Tulum

$169 13.4% 37.9% $103

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$255 14.3%

Tulum

$158 12.5% 38.2% $98

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$186 10.4%

Tulum

$105 8.3% 43.5% $81

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.7%

Tulum

$21 * 1.6% 75.3% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$79 4.4%

Tulum

$47 3.8% 40.1% $32

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 $614 in Tulum. 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 57% 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 $56.0 in Tulum. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $332 vs $222 – making Tulum the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇲🇽 Tulum

🕒 Local time

23:46 11:46 PM

21:46 9:46 PM

2 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

46,721

💱 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 = 4.9 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 = 45.03 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 = 20.4 MXN (100 MXN = 4.9 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Montevideo Tulum 6,990 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Tulum

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 Tulum: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Montevideo is pricier by about 45%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,720 per month in Montevideo and $1,878 in Tulum. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Tulum, 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 $56.0 in Tulum. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 50% 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 Tulum, where all-in costs run around $1,252, than in Montevideo at $1,813. In Tulum it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montevideo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Tulum – 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 Tulum. 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.