Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Zapopan and Montevideo

For one person, living is cheaper in Zapopan: $1,518 a month against $1,771 in Montevideo, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. The total is higher in Montevideo despite lower rent and utilities.

74

Cost of Living Index in Zapopan
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Zapopan Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Montevideo
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Montevideo Living Index

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Zapopan

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,518

/mo nomad

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,771

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,518 per month in Zapopan vs $1,771 in Montevideo, rent included.

Zapopan $1,518
Montevideo $1,771

A couple spends around $2,203 per month in Zapopan vs $2,740 in Montevideo, rent included.

Zapopan $2,203
Montevideo $2,740

A family of three spends $2,888 per month in Zapopan vs $3,708 in Montevideo, rent included.

Zapopan $2,888
Montevideo $3,708

Zapopan is about 14% cheaper than Montevideo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Zapopan and Montevideo sit above the global median – Zapopan by 12%, Montevideo by 31%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.95 MX$202

$15.16 UYU 609

-27.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$33.24 MX$614

$69.2 UYU 2,776

-51.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.12 MX$205

$14.65 UYU 588

-24.10%

Cappuccino

$3.76 MX$69.4

$4.46 UYU 179

-15.70%

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

$1.11 MX$20.48

$2.67 UYU 107

-58.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.17 MX$21.68

$2.00 UYU 80.4

-41.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.20 MX$40.74

$4.83 UYU 194

-54.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 MX$82.7

$3.80 UYU 152

17.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 MX$27.51

$1.36 UYU 54.8

9.56%

White Bread (500g)

$2.58 MX$47.70

$2.87 UYU 115

-10.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.21 MX$22.28

$1.75 UYU 70.2

-30.86%

Eggs

$2.73 MX$50.5

$4.68 UYU 188

-41.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.44 MX$156

$13.88 UYU 557

-39.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.07 MX$186

$11.98 UYU 481

-15.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.14 MX$187

$11.97 UYU 480

-15.29%

Apples (1kg)

$2.96 MX$54.7

$2.78 UYU 111

6.47%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$26.39

$2.74 UYU 110

-47.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.71 MX$31.68

$1.77 UYU 71.2

-3.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 MX$40.25

$3.24 UYU 130

-32.72%

Potato (1kg)

$2.23 MX$41.19

$1.97 UYU 79.2

13.20%

Onion (1kg)

$2.60 MX$48.12

$2.07 UYU 83.1

25.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.88 MX$34.70

$1.37 UYU 55.1

37.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 MX$22.01

$1.88 UYU 75.3

-36.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.68 MX$105

$5.59 UYU 224

1.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.48 MX$120

$8.78 UYU 352

-26.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 MX$33.78

$2.26 UYU 90.9

-19.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 MX$52.4

$2.75 UYU 110

3.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.54 MX$10.01

$1.53 UYU 61.5

-64.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$32.31 MX$597

$74.3 UYU 2,980

-56.49%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 MX$44.72

$1.91 UYU 76.7

26.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.54 MX$46.94

$0.40 UYU 16.18

535.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.80 MX$181

$10.33 UYU 415

-5.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 MX$26.99

$2.13 UYU 85.6

-31.46%

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

$20.9K MX$385.6K

$27.1K UYU 1.1M

-23.03%

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

$23.9K MX$441.7K

$36.3K UYU 1.5M

-34.09%

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

$125 MX$2,301

$188 UYU 7,557

-33.88%

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

$24.20 MX$447

$20.54 UYU 824

17.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.26 MX$541

$44.81 UYU 1,798

-34.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.29 MX$800

$54.0 UYU 2,166

-19.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.80 MX$255

$19.75 UYU 793

-30.13%

Cinema Ticket

$5.37 MX$99.3

$11.95 UYU 480

-55.06%

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

$166 MX$3,076

$634 UYU 25.5K

-73.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,056 MX$130.4K

$11.1K UYU 443.6K

-36.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.26 MX$855

$102 UYU 4,099

-54.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.07 MX$463

$57.5 UYU 2,309

-56.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.8 MX$1,364

$127 UYU 5,079

-41.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 MX$2,184

$128 UYU 5,131

-7.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$969 MX$17.9K

$719 UYU 28.8K

34.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$658 MX$12.2K

$568 UYU 22.8K

15.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,667 MX$30.8K

$1,145 UYU 46.0K

45.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,026 MX$19.0K

$1,023 UYU 41.1K

0.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,695 MX$105.2K

$3,392 UYU 136.1K

67.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,559 MX$28.8K

$1,949 UYU 78.2K

-20.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,013 MX$18.7K

$1,245 UYU 50.0K

-18.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

5.74

96.86%

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

Last update for Zapopan: October 10, 2026

Last update for Montevideo: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Zapopan

$658 43.3%

Montevideo

$568 32.1% 13.6% $90

Groceries & Markets

Zapopan

$265 17.5%

Montevideo

$332 18.7% 25.1% $66

Eating Out

Zapopan

$195 12.9%

Montevideo

$269 15.2% 37.9% $74

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Zapopan

$178 11.7%

Montevideo

$254 14.3% 42.5% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Zapopan

$119 7.8%

Montevideo

$186 10.5% 57.2% $68

Sport & Entertainment

Zapopan

$54 3.6%

Montevideo

$78 4.4% 44.1% $24

Getting Around

Zapopan

$50 3.3%

Montevideo

$84 4.8% 70% $35

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $969 in Zapopan 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.

Salaries run about 23% 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 $33.00 in Zapopan versus $69.0 in Montevideo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $265 vs $332 – making Zapopan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Zapopan

🇺🇾 Montevideo

🕒 Local time

23:23 11:23 PM

02:23 2:23 AM

3 h ahead of Zapopan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,257,547

1,319,108 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UYU, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 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 MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Zapopan Montevideo 7,940 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Zapopan
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

Zapopan vs Montevideo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Montevideo is pricier by about 17%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,277 per month in Zapopan 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 Zapopan, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $166 per month in Zapopan and $634 in Montevideo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 25% 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 Zapopan, where all-in costs run around $1,518, than in Montevideo at $1,771. In Zapopan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montevideo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Zapopan – 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 Zapopan. 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.