Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Saint Charles, IL and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in Montevideo: $1,784 a month against $2,710 in Saint Charles, IL, rent and utilities included – about $11,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Saint Charles, IL
🇺🇸 United States
$2,710
/mo nomad
Montevideo
🇺🇾 Uruguay
$1,784
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Saint Charles, IL 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 Saint Charles, IL and in Montevideo actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,710 per month in Saint Charles, IL vs $1,784 in Montevideo, rent included.

  • Saint Charles, IL $2,710
  • Montevideo $1,784

A couple spends around $4,230 per month in Saint Charles, IL vs $2,756 in Montevideo, rent included.

  • Saint Charles, IL $4,230
  • Montevideo $2,756

A family of three spends $5,749 per month in Saint Charles, IL vs $3,728 in Montevideo, rent included.

  • Saint Charles, IL $5,749
  • Montevideo $3,728

Saint Charles, IL costs about 52% more than Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Saint Charles, IL and Montevideo sit above the global median – Saint Charles, IL by 100%, Montevideo by 32%.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Saint Charles, IL
Montevideo
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$38.02 $38.02
$14.82 UYU 595
156.55%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$99.6 $99.6
$69.7 UYU 2,797
42.94%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.63 $10.63
$14.68 UYU 589
-27.59%
Cappuccino
$6.85 $6.85
$4.65 UYU 186
47.31%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.37 $3.37
$2.74 UYU 110
22.99%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.07 $3.07
$2.07 UYU 82.9
48.31%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$7.03 $7.03
$4.79 UYU 192
46.76%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$7.54 $7.54
$3.63 UYU 146
107.71%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Saint Charles, IL
Montevideo
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$0.98 $0.98
$1.39 UYU 55.8
-29.50%
White Bread (500g)
$3.55 $3.55
$2.89 UYU 116
22.84%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$4.23 $4.23
$1.70 UYU 68.1
148.82%
Eggs
$4.57 $4.57
$4.62 UYU 185
-1.08%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$12.33 $12.33
$14.22 UYU 571
-13.29%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$11.47 $11.47
$11.62 UYU 466
-1.29%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.85 $12.85
$12.23 UYU 491
5.07%
Apples (1kg)
$5.08 $5.08
$2.77 UYU 111
83.39%
Banana (1kg)
$1.01 $1.01
$2.85 UYU 114
-64.56%
Oranges (1kg)
$4.34 $4.34
$1.81 UYU 72.5
139.78%
Tomato (1kg)
$4.78 $4.78
$3.20 UYU 129
49.38%
Potato (1kg)
$2.75 $2.75
$1.94 UYU 77.8
41.75%
Onion (1kg)
$3.04 $3.04
$2.16 UYU 86.5
40.74%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.57 $1.57
$1.43 UYU 57.3
9.79%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$2.23 $2.23
$1.94 UYU 77.9
14.95%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$11.41 $11.41
$5.47 UYU 219
108.59%
Wine (Bottle)
$15.12 $15.12
$8.95 UYU 359
68.94%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.93 $1.93
$2.26 UYU 90.8
-14.60%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.46 $3.46
$2.81 UYU 113
23.13%
🚌 Getting Around
Saint Charles, IL
Montevideo
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.02 $2.02
$1.56 UYU 62.6
29.49%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$73.8 UYU 2,962
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 $3.24
$1.90 UYU 76.2
70.53%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.64 $1.64
$0.43 UYU 17.36
281.40%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$32.52 $32.52
$10.59 UYU 425
207.08%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.99 $0.99
$2.12 UYU 85.2
-53.30%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$26.0K $26.0K
$26.8K UYU 1.1M
-2.97%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$26.1K $26.1K
$37.0K UYU 1.5M
-29.53%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Saint Charles, IL
Montevideo
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$195 $195
$193 UYU 7,727
1.51%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$66.6 $66.6
$20.91 UYU 839
218.60%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$70.9 $70.9
$44.89 UYU 1,802
57.87%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Saint Charles, IL
Montevideo
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$43.09 $43.09
$50.8 UYU 2,038
-15.13%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$19.73 UYU 792
-
Cinema Ticket
$14.74 $14.74
$12.30 UYU 494
19.84%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Saint Charles, IL
Montevideo
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$1,358 $1,358
$629 UYU 25.2K
116.02%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$26.2K $26.2K
$10.9K UYU 437.3K
140.70%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Saint Charles, IL
Montevideo
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$51.1 $51.1
$104 UYU 4,166
-50.77%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.30 $39.30
$57.4 UYU 2,305
-31.58%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$75.7 $75.7
$125 UYU 5,010
-39.37%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$131 $131
$132 UYU 5,315
-1.11%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Saint Charles, IL
Montevideo
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,800 $1,800
$713 UYU 28.6K
152.44%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,277 $1,277
$575 UYU 23.1K
121.94%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,543 $2,543
$1,164 UYU 46.7K
118.49%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$2,472 $2,472
$1,033 UYU 41.5K
139.15%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,065 $3,065
$3,418 UYU 137.2K
-10.34%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,620 $2,620
$1,760 UYU 70.6K
48.87%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Saint Charles, IL
Montevideo
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
-
$1,244 UYU 49.9K
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
6.57
5.74
14.46%

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

Last update for Saint Charles, IL: October 19, 2026

Last update for Montevideo: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Saint Charles, IL
$1.3K
Montevideo
$575 54.9% $702
Eating Out
Saint Charles, IL
$494
Montevideo
$269 45.6% $225
Groceries & Markets
Saint Charles, IL
$380
Montevideo
$334 12.3% $47
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Saint Charles, IL
$333
Montevideo
$258 22.4% $75
Clothing & Footwear
Saint Charles, IL
$134
Montevideo
$188 40.9% $55
Sport & Entertainment
Saint Charles, IL
$73
Montevideo
$75 3.9% $2.8
Getting Around
Saint Charles, IL
$20 *
Montevideo
$84 331% $65

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,800 in Saint Charles, IL versus $713 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 $100 in Saint Charles, IL versus $70.0 in Montevideo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $380 vs $334 – making Montevideo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇺🇸 Saint Charles, IL
🇺🇾 Montevideo
🕒 Local time
17:20 5:20 PM
19:20 7:20 PM
2 h ahead of Saint Charles, IL
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
70,329
1,319,108 Capital
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

UYU, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 40.14 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.12 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Saint Charles, IL Montevideo 9,150 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Saint Charles, IL
  • 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
Saint Charles, IL vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Montevideo cheaper than Saint Charles, IL?
Yes – Saint Charles, IL is pricier by about 52%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,065 per month in Saint Charles, IL and $2,676 in Montevideo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Montevideo, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.
Is eating out cheaper in Saint Charles, IL or in Montevideo?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $100 in Saint Charles, IL and $70.0 in Montevideo. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
How do food prices compare in Saint Charles, IL and in Montevideo?
Groceries cost about 14% more in Saint Charles, IL, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.
Is $2,500 a realistic budget for living in Saint Charles, IL or in Montevideo?
A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Montevideo, where all-in costs run around $1,784, than in Saint Charles, IL at $2,710. In Montevideo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Saint Charles, IL it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Saint Charles, IL or Montevideo more family-friendly?
Families tend to lean toward Montevideo – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.
Which city is safer, Saint Charles, IL or Montevideo?
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.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Montevideo. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Saint Charles, IL makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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