Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montevideo and Zihuatanejo

For one person, living is cheaper in Zihuatanejo: $1,131 a month against $1,784 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $7,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
Learn more

Montevideo Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Zihuatanejo
Learn more

Zihuatanejo Living Index

Jump to prices

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,784

/mo nomad

Zihuatanejo

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,131

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montevideo and in Zihuatanejo

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

A single person spends $1,784 per month in Montevideo vs $1,131 in Zihuatanejo, rent included.

Montevideo $1,784
Zihuatanejo $1,131

A couple spends around $2,756 per month in Montevideo vs $1,824 in Zihuatanejo, rent included.

Montevideo $2,756
Zihuatanejo $1,824

A family of three spends $3,728 per month in Montevideo vs $2,517 in Zihuatanejo, rent included.

Montevideo $3,728
Zihuatanejo $2,517

Montevideo costs about 58% more than Zihuatanejo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Montevideo sits 32% above the global median, while Zihuatanejo is 17% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.82 UYU 594

$10.86 MX$203

36.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.7 UYU 2,794

$44.16 MX$827

57.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.68 UYU 589

$8.74 MX$164

67.96%

Cappuccino

$4.65 UYU 186

$3.48 MX$65.2

33.62%

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

$2.74 UYU 110

$1.36 MX$25.45

101.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 UYU 82.8

$1.02 MX$19.08

102.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.79 UYU 192

$2.45 MX$45.89

95.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 UYU 145

$3.98 MX$74.4

-8.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 UYU 55.7

$1.66 MX$31.05

-16.27%

White Bread (500g)

$2.89 UYU 116

$2.55 MX$47.69

13.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 UYU 68.0

$1.65 MX$30.90

3.03%

Eggs

$4.62 UYU 185

$2.44 MX$45.61

89.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.22 UYU 570

$8.11 MX$152

75.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.62 UYU 466

$8.52 MX$159

36.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.23 UYU 490

$11.56 MX$216

5.80%

Apples (1kg)

$2.77 UYU 111

$2.72 MX$51.0

1.84%

Banana (1kg)

$2.85 UYU 114

$1.56 MX$29.27

82.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.81 UYU 72.4

$1.94 MX$36.39

-6.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.20 UYU 128

$1.77 MX$33.10

80.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 UYU 77.7

$1.94 MX$36.24

Onion (1kg)

$2.16 UYU 86.4

$1.88 MX$35.15

14.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.43 UYU 57.2

$1.43 MX$26.71

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.94 UYU 77.8

$1.09 MX$20.47

77.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.47 UYU 219

$4.28 MX$80.1

27.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.95 UYU 359

$10.27 MX$192

-12.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 UYU 90.7

$1.82 MX$34.04

24.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 UYU 113

$3.06 MX$57.3

-8.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.56 UYU 62.6

$0.68 MX$12.77

129.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.8 UYU 2,959

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.90 UYU 76.1

$2.61 MX$48.93

-27.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 UYU 17.34

$2.02 MX$37.88

-78.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.59 UYU 425

$11.18 MX$209

-5.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.12 UYU 85.1

$1.44 MX$26.93

47.22%

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

$26.8K UYU 1.1M

$21.3K MX$398.4K

25.86%

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

$37.0K UYU 1.5M

$23.9K MX$447.0K

54.91%

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

$193 UYU 7,717

$57.3 MX$1,072

236.22%

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

$20.91 UYU 838

$23.00 MX$431

-9.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.89 UYU 1,799

$29.80 MX$558

50.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.8 UYU 2,035

$34.76 MX$651

46.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.73 UYU 791

$20.02 MX$375

-1.45%

Cinema Ticket

$12.30 UYU 493

$5.14 MX$96.2

139.30%

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

$629 UYU 25.2K

$216 MX$4,041

191.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.9K UYU 436.7K

$4,526 MX$84.7K

140.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 UYU 4,160

$55.5 MX$1,038

87.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.4 UYU 2,302

$40.25 MX$753

42.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$125 UYU 5,003

$98.5 MX$1,844

26.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 UYU 5,308

$90.0 MX$1,684

47.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$713 UYU 28.6K

$596 MX$11.1K

19.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$575 UYU 23.1K

$384 MX$7,182

49.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,164 UYU 46.7K

$1,053 MX$19.7K

10.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 UYU 41.4K

$759 MX$14.2K

36.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,418 UYU 137.0K

$1,915 MX$35.8K

78.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,760 UYU 70.5K

$1,149 MX$21.5K

53.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,244 UYU 49.9K

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 19, 2026

Last update for Zihuatanejo: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montevideo

$575 32.2%

Zihuatanejo

$384 34% 33.3% $192

Groceries & Markets

Montevideo

$334 18.7%

Zihuatanejo

$264 23.3% 20.9% $70

Eating Out

Montevideo

$269 15.1%

Zihuatanejo

$185 16.3% 31.3% $84

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montevideo

$258 14.5%

Zihuatanejo

$110 9.7% 57.4% $148

Clothing & Footwear

Montevideo

$188 10.6%

Zihuatanejo

$128 11.3% 32.1% $60

Getting Around

Montevideo

$84 4.7%

Zihuatanejo

$15 * 1.4% 81.6% $69

Sport & Entertainment

Montevideo

$75 4.2%

Zihuatanejo

$45 4% 40.3% $30

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $713 in Montevideo versus $596 in Zihuatanejo. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $70 in Montevideo versus $44 in Zihuatanejo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $334 vs $264 – making Zihuatanejo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🇲🇽 Zihuatanejo

🕒 Local time

07:52 7:52 AM

04:52 4:52 AM

3 h behind Montevideo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,319,108 Capital

67,408

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 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 26, 2026: 1 USD = 40.08 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 44.97 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 18.72 MXN (100 MXN = 5.34 USD). 1 EUR = 21 MXN (100 MXN = 4.76 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Montevideo Zihuatanejo 7,550 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Montevideo
Zihuatanejo

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 Zihuatanejo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Montevideo is pricier by about 58%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,676 per month in Montevideo and $1,696 in Zihuatanejo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Zihuatanejo, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $596 there versus $713 in Montevideo.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $70 in Montevideo and $44 in Zihuatanejo. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 26% 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 Zihuatanejo, where all-in costs run around $1,131, than in Montevideo at $1,784. In Zihuatanejo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montevideo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Zihuatanejo – 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.