Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Popayan and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in Popayan: $1,340 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

63

Cost of Living Index in Popayan
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Popayan Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index

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Popayan

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,340

/mo nomad

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Popayan and in Montevideo

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Popayan and in Montevideo actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,340 per month in Popayan vs $1,771 in Montevideo, rent included.

Popayan $1,340
Montevideo $1,771

A couple spends around $2,023 per month in Popayan vs $2,740 in Montevideo, rent included.

Popayan $2,023
Montevideo $2,740

A family of three spends $2,706 per month in Popayan vs $3,708 in Montevideo, rent included.

Popayan $2,706
Montevideo $3,708

Popayan is about 24% cheaper than Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Popayan sits 1% below the global median, while Montevideo is 31% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.55 COP 20.8K

$15.16 UYU 609

-56.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.13 COP 143.1K

$69.2 UYU 2,776

-34.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.71 COP 27.6K

$14.65 UYU 588

-40.55%

Cappuccino

$2.80 COP 8,877

$4.46 UYU 179

-37.22%

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

$1.20 COP 3,793

$2.67 UYU 107

-55.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.02 COP 3,234

$2.00 UYU 80.4

-49.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.45 COP 10.9K

$4.83 UYU 194

-28.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.02 COP 12.8K

$3.80 UYU 152

5.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 COP 5,224

$1.36 UYU 54.8

21.32%

White Bread (500g)

$2.49 COP 7,898

$2.87 UYU 115

-13.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,338

$1.75 UYU 70.2

-4.00%

Eggs

$3.13 COP 9,927

$4.68 UYU 188

-33.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.94 COP 22.0K

$13.88 UYU 557

-50.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.05 COP 35.0K

$11.98 UYU 481

-7.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.39 COP 32.9K

$11.97 UYU 480

-13.20%

Apples (1kg)

$3.49 COP 11.1K

$2.78 UYU 111

25.54%

Banana (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,209

$2.74 UYU 110

-40.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.83 COP 5,805

$1.77 UYU 71.2

3.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,031

$3.24 UYU 130

-50.93%

Potato (1kg)

$1.33 COP 4,232

$1.97 UYU 79.2

-32.49%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 COP 4,714

$2.07 UYU 83.1

-28.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,572

$1.37 UYU 55.1

-17.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.00 COP 3,183

$1.88 UYU 75.3

-46.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.81 COP 12.1K

$5.59 UYU 224

-31.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.86 COP 37.6K

$8.78 UYU 352

35.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,485

$2.26 UYU 90.9

-37.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.62 COP 8,304

$2.75 UYU 110

-4.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.05 COP 3,332

$1.53 UYU 61.5

-31.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.3 UYU 2,980

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.71 COP 5,413

$1.91 UYU 76.7

-10.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.27 COP 7,194

$0.40 UYU 16.18

467.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.26 COP 29.4K

$10.33 UYU 415

-10.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.29 COP 4,091

$2.13 UYU 85.6

-39.44%

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

$25.7K COP 81.4M

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

-5.26%

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

$35.5K COP 112.5M

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

-2.12%

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

$136 COP 431.3K

$188 UYU 7,557

-27.75%

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

$11.34 COP 35.9K

$20.54 UYU 824

-44.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.78 COP 84.9K

$44.81 UYU 1,798

-40.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.41 COP 109.1K

$54.0 UYU 2,166

-36.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.75 UYU 793

Cinema Ticket

$5.91 COP 18.8K

$11.95 UYU 480

-50.54%

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

$539 COP 1.7M

$634 UYU 25.5K

-15.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,384 COP 23.4M

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

-33.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.9 COP 250.1K

$102 UYU 4,099

-22.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.9 COP 189.8K

$57.5 UYU 2,309

4.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$131 COP 414.9K

$127 UYU 5,079

3.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 COP 363.3K

$128 UYU 5,131

-10.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$554 COP 1.8M

$719 UYU 28.8K

-22.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$513 COP 1.6M

$568 UYU 22.8K

-9.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$903 COP 2.9M

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

-21.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$874 COP 2.8M

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

-14.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,101 COP 6.7M

$3,392 UYU 136.1K

-38.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,896 COP 6.0M

$1,949 UYU 78.2K

-2.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.58

5.74

101.74%

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

Last update for Popayan: October 11, 2026

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Popayan

$513 38.3%

Montevideo

$568 32.1% 10.7% $55

Groceries & Markets

Popayan

$270 20.2%

Montevideo

$332 18.7% 22.8% $62

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Popayan

$174 13%

Montevideo

$254 14.3% 45.6% $79

Clothing & Footwear

Popayan

$173 12.9%

Montevideo

$186 10.5% 7.8% $13

Eating Out

Popayan

$146 10.9%

Montevideo

$269 15.2% 84% $123

Sport & Entertainment

Popayan

$46 3.5%

Montevideo

$78 4.4% 68.4% $32

Getting Around

Popayan

$17 * 1.3%

Montevideo

$84 4.8% 389% $67

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $554 in Popayan versus $719 in Montevideo. 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 $45.00 in Popayan versus $69.0 in Montevideo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $270 vs $332 – making Popayan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Popayan

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🕒 Local time

22:57 10:57 PM

00:57 12:57 AM

2 h ahead of Popayan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

318,059

1,319,108 Capital

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UYU, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 40.14 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.12 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Popayan Montevideo 4,670 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Popayan
Montevideo

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

Popayan vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Montevideo is pricier by about 32%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,009 per month in Popayan and $2,656 in Montevideo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Popayan, 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 $45.00 in Popayan and $69.0 in Montevideo. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 23% 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 $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Popayan, where all-in costs run around $1,340, than in Montevideo at $1,771. In Popayan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montevideo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Popayan – 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 Popayan. 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.