Cost of living comparison

South Africa

compared to

Uruguay

Uruguay vs. South Africa Cost of Living Summary

Uruguay is 43.2% more expensive than South Africa overall.

Restaurants: pay 81.1% more in Uruguay
Groceries: pay 49.2% more in Uruguay
Transportation: pay 10.4% more in Uruguay
Housing: pay 34.5% more in Uruguay
Childcare: pay 95.7% more in Uruguay
Entertainment and Sports: pay 68.0% more in Uruguay
Clothing: pay 45.4% more in Uruguay

The cost of childcare, restaurants, entertainment and sports, groceries, clothing, and housing in Uruguay are more expensive than in South Africa. Notably, childcare and restaurants are significantly more expensive in Uruguay.

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Uruguay vs. South Africa Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Uruguay instead of South Africa, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 81.1% more for restaurants

	South Africa	Uruguay
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$10.21 ZAR169.26	$14.77 UYU591.77	+44.6%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.91 ZAR97.96	$13.18 UYU528.33	+123.0%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.08 ZAR17.96	$2.28 UYU91.55	+110.8%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.84 ZAR13.84	$1.73 UYU69.16	+106.6%
Average			+81.1%

South Africa vs. Uruguay - Cost of restaurants

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pay 49.2% more for groceries

	South Africa	Uruguay
Bread 1 loaf	$1.07 ZAR17.68	$2.54 UYU101.92	+138.4%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$4.08 ZAR67.65	$6.45 UYU258.32	+57.9%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.58 ZAR75.86	$4.76 UYU190.95	+4.1%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.56 ZAR42.48	$4.37 UYU175.09	+70.4%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.31 ZAR38.34	$4.88 UYU195.75	+111.1%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.81 ZAR13.47	$1.11 UYU44.67	+37.2%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.74 ZAR12.19	$1.06 UYU42.37	+43.8%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.79 ZAR13.01	$0.67 UYU27.04	-14.1%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.77 ZAR12.77	$1.51 UYU60.64	+96.4%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.64 ZAR10.68	$0.81 UYU32.48	+25.8%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.66 ZAR10.90	$0.91 UYU36.31	+37.7%
Average			+49.2%

South Africa vs. Uruguay - Cost of groceries

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pay 10.4% more for transportation

	South Africa	Uruguay
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.49 ZAR90.97	$7.82 UYU313.60	+42.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$65.15 ZAR1,079.75	$50.87 UYU2,038.51	-21.9%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$32,517.32 ZAR539K	$29,807.93 UYU1M	-8.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$7.35 ZAR121.78	$13.74 UYU550.54	+87.0%
Average			+10.4%

South Africa vs. Uruguay - Cost of transportation

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pay 34.5% more for housing

	South Africa	Uruguay
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$38.93 ZAR645.27	$39.12 UYU1,567.75	+0.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$421.37 ZAR6,983.69	$658.65 UYU26,396.37	+56.3%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$369.24 ZAR6,119.76	$494.58 UYU19,821.32	+33.9%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$105.57 ZAR1,749.66	$105.91 UYU4,244.63	+0.3%
Average			+34.5%

South Africa vs. Uruguay - Cost of housing

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pay 95.7% more for childcare

	South Africa	Uruguay
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$199.53 ZAR3,307.02	$530.72 UYU21,269.40	+166.0%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$4,917.78 ZAR81,505.89	$7,084.27 UYU284K	+44.1%
Average			+95.7%

South Africa vs. Uruguay - Cost of childcare

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pay 68.0% more for entertainment and sports

	South Africa	Uruguay
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$2.25 ZAR37.31	$3.88 UYU155.30	+72.2%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.25 ZAR37.36	$4.38 UYU175.64	+94.4%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.16 ZAR52.38	$5.69 UYU228.17	+80.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$31.59 ZAR523.57	$49.86 UYU1,998.36	+57.8%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$7.32 ZAR121.28	$11.10 UYU444.68	+51.6%
Average			+68.0%

South Africa vs. Uruguay - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 45.4% more for clothing

	South Africa	Uruguay
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$52.66 ZAR872.75	$83.65 UYU3,352.28	+58.8%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$34.13 ZAR565.64	$52.03 UYU2,085.23	+52.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$99.75 ZAR1,653.25	$127.51 UYU5,110.16	+27.8%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$86.61 ZAR1,435.40	$125.09 UYU5,013.09	+44.4%
Average			+45.4%

South Africa vs. Uruguay - 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 October 2026). How we calculate this

Compare further: South Africa vs. Uruguay

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Uruguay?

Quality of Life Comparison · 23 statistics

Make 3.8 times more money in Uruguay

Size Comparison · See true size

South Africa is about 7 times bigger than Uruguay.

Moving from South Africa to Uruguay · Cost, visas & climate

Compare cost of living, salary and climate.

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