Cost of living comparison

Uruguay

compared to

United States

United States vs. Montevideo Cost of Living Summary

United States is 36.8% more expensive than Montevideo.

Restaurants: pay 4.3% more in United States
Groceries: pay 20.9% more in United States
Transportation: pay 8.4% less in United States
Housing: pay 2.1 times more in United States
Childcare: pay 2.3 times more in United States
Entertainment and Sports: pay 16.0% more in United States
Clothing: pay 29.9% less in United States

The cost of childcare, housing, groceries, entertainment and sports, and restaurants in United States are more expensive than in Montevideo. Expenses including clothing and transportation are lower in United States. Notably, childcare and housing are significantly more expensive in United States.

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United States vs. Montevideo Cost Breakdown

If you lived in United States instead of Montevideo, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 4.3% more for restaurants

	Montevideo	United States
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$15.00 UYU604.68	$19.86	+32.4%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$14.46 UYU582.98	$11.42	-21.0%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.70 UYU108.80	$2.67	-1.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$2.05 UYU82.65	$2.05
Average			+4.3%

Montevideo vs. United States - Cost of restaurants

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pay 20.9% more for groceries

	Montevideo	United States
Bread 1 loaf	$2.84 UYU114.68	$3.63	+27.4%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$7.03 UYU283.53	$6.52	-7.4%
Milk (1 gallon)	$5.10 UYU205.46	$3.98	-21.9%
Eggs 1 dozen	$4.57 UYU184.14	$4.30	-6.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$5.46 UYU220.09	$5.46
Apples (1 lb)	$1.28 UYU51.67	$2.34	+82.2%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.27 UYU51.03	$0.80	-37.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.80 UYU32.15	$2.02	+152.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.44 UYU57.99	$2.19	+52.4%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.92 UYU37.22	$1.34	+45.5%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.96 UYU38.72	$1.39	+44.4%
Average			+20.9%

Montevideo vs. United States - Cost of groceries

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pay 8.4% less for transportation

	Montevideo	United States
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$8.25 UYU332.47	$4.01	-51.4%
Monthly public transit pass	$74.80 UYU3,015.42	$66.70	-10.8%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$26,990.00 UYU1M	$34,164.82	+26.6%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$5.27 UYU212.49	$18.02	+242.0%
Average			-8.4%

Montevideo vs. United States - Cost of transportation

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pay 2.1 times more for housing

	Montevideo	United States
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$44.58 UYU1,796.98	$70.22	+57.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$706.61 UYU28,484.92	$1,681.01	+137.9%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$583.28 UYU23,513.15	$1,404.28	+140.8%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$144.76 UYU5,835.63	$157.64	+8.9%
Average			+108.3%

Montevideo vs. United States - Cost of housing

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pay 2.3 times more for childcare

	Montevideo	United States
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$626.83 UYU25,268.82	$1,450.99	+131.5%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$10,986.11 UYU443K	$24,361.50	+121.7%
Average			+126.6%

Montevideo vs. United States - Cost of childcare

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pay 16.0% more for entertainment and sports

	Montevideo	United States
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$4.92 UYU198.51	$6.00	+21.8%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$4.59 UYU184.83	$5.31	+15.8%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$5.49 UYU221.13	$10.42	+90.0%
Monthly membership at local gym	$54.39 UYU2,192.39	$50.68	-6.8%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$12.22 UYU492.52	$13.95	+14.1%
Average			+16.0%

Montevideo vs. United States - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 29.9% less for clothing

	Montevideo	United States
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$102.85 UYU4,146.03	$53.15	-48.3%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$56.61 UYU2,282.15	$41.88	-26.0%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$124.46 UYU5,017.32	$89.76	-27.9%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$130.21 UYU5,249.06	$114.01	-12.4%
Average			-29.9%

Montevideo vs. United States - Cost of clothing

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this

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