Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San José, Uruguay and London

For one person, living is cheaper in San José: $918 a month against $4,048 in London, rent and utilities included – about $37,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in San José
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San José Living Index
196

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index

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San José

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$918

/mo nomad

London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,048

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in San José and in London

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

A single person spends $918 per month in San José vs $4,048 in London, rent included.

San José $918
London $4,048

A couple spends around $1,456 per month in San José vs $5,903 in London, rent included.

San José $1,456
London $5,903

A family of three spends $1,995 per month in San José vs $7,758 in London, rent included.

San José $1,995
London $7,758

San José is about 77% cheaper than London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

San José sits 32% below the global median, while London is 199% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.30 UYU 535

$26.36 £19.68

-49.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.40 UYU 1,786

$109 £81.1

-59.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.94 UYU 561

$10.71 £8.00

30.16%

Cappuccino

$4.83 UYU 194

$5.59 £4.17

-13.60%

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

$2.28 UYU 91.9

$3.00 £2.24

-24.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 UYU 91.3

$2.22 £1.66

2.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 UYU 119

$9.65 £7.20

-69.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.61 UYU 145

$8.26 £6.16

-56.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.00 UYU 40.19

$1.97 £1.47

-49.24%

White Bread (500g)

$2.01 UYU 80.8

$2.09 £1.56

-3.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.46 UYU 58.6

$2.59 £1.94

-43.63%

Eggs

$2.57 UYU 103

$5.37 £4.01

-52.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.91 UYU 479

$13.12 £9.79

-9.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.35 UYU 296

$11.03 £8.23

-33.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.68 UYU 470

$17.73 £13.23

-34.12%

Apples (1kg)

$1.21 UYU 48.70

$3.17 £2.37

-61.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.51 UYU 60.5

$1.38 £1.03

9.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.23 UYU 49.38

$2.82 £2.11

-56.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.53 UYU 61.4

$3.36 £2.51

-54.46%

Potato (1kg)

$0.97 UYU 39.14

$1.70 £1.27

-42.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.23 UYU 49.35

$1.78 £1.33

-30.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.56 UYU 62.9

$1.49 £1.11

4.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.97 UYU 79.2

$1.82 £1.36

8.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.18 UYU 409

$23.85 £17.80

-57.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.31 UYU 334

$13.44 £10.03

-38.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.03 UYU 122

$3.11 £2.32

-2.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.23 UYU 130

$4.49 £3.35

-28.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.13 £3.08

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$266 £199

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.54 UYU 142

$5.98 £4.46

-40.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.43 UYU 138

$3.39 £2.53

1.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.87 UYU 397

$56.6 £42.21

-82.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 UYU 89.4

$2.21 £1.65

0.45%

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

$35.4K UYU 1.4M

$38.3K £28.6K

-7.47%

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

$39.7K UYU 1.6M

$41.0K £30.6K

-3.33%

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

$115 UYU 4,628

$372 £278

-69.10%

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

$23.51 UYU 946

$18.66 £13.93

25.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.19 UYU 1,898

$40.53 £30.26

16.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.0 £41.82

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.10 £12.76

Cinema Ticket

$12.41 UYU 499

$17.95 £13.40

-30.86%

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

$498 UYU 20.0K

$2,946 £2,199

-83.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,594 UYU 265.2K

$47.6K £35.5K

-86.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.3 UYU 3,591

$116 £86.8

-23.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.39 UYU 1,504

$56.9 £42.47

-34.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$165 UYU 6,631

$128 £95.5

28.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 UYU 4,821

$154 £115

-22.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,935 £2,191

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,258 £1,686

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,250 £3,919

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,859 £2,881

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$17.2K £12.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,278 £6,179

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,621 £4,196

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.78

4.60%

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

Last update for San José: November 3, 2026

Last update for London: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

San José

$255 27.8%

London

$360 8.9% 41.4% $105

Eating Out

San José

$246 26.9%

London

$396 9.8% 60.6% $149

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San José

$186 20.3%

London

$432 10.7% 132% $246

Clothing & Footwear

San José

$185 20.2%

London

$205 5.1% 10.6% $20

Sport & Entertainment

San José

$25 * 2.7%

London

$92 2.3% 270% $67

Getting Around

San José

$21 * 2.3%

London

$305 7.6% 1378% $285

Accommodation & Living

San José

- * 0%

London

$2.3K 55.8%

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 $44 in San José versus $109 in London. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $360 – making San José the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇾 San José

🇬🇧 London

🕒 Local time

19:12 7:12 PM

22:12 10:12 PM

3 h ahead of San José

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

36,747

8,908,083 Capital

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to UYU – Uruguayan Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 40.22 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 44.95 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.747 GBP (1 GBP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.834 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

San José London 11,020 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

San José
London

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

San José vs London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $918 in San José, $4,048 in London – San José comes out roughly 77% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,376 per month in San José and $6,072 in London. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $918 in San José and $4,048 in London. That makes San José about 77% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $498 per month in San José and $2,946 in London. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $918 in San José and $4,048 in London. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. London has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $918 in San José to $4,048 in London. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.