How much does it cost to live in Montevideo?
Typical Month (Mid Range)
$1,916 (UYU 76,967)
Housing, food, transport, mobile, coworking and gym.
Updated September 2026 · Sources cited: regus.com, infonegocios.biz
- Typical Month (Lower End)
- $959 (UYU 38,532)
- Typical Month (Premium)
- $2,414 (UYU 97,011)
- Furnished 1-bed rent
- $900 (UYU 36,163)
Pocitos
Good to know
Good to Know
- Montevideo is consistently described as one of the pricier cities in South America for cost of living, but furnished short-term rents in Pocitos/Punta Carretas remain well below equivalent US or Western European neighborhoods.
- Formal long-term leases in Uruguay typically require a rental guarantee (ANDA fund or private SGR insurance), which is difficult for newly arrived foreigners without local residency or income history — most nomads instead book furnished monthly stays via Airbnb-type platforms or short-term rental agencies while they get established.
- Imported groceries (packaged/branded goods) cost noticeably more than local staples — shopping at neighborhood ferias (street markets) for produce, meat and cheese is the most effective way to cut a grocery budget.
- Ciudad Vieja and Palermo offer the best value furnished apartments in the city, but quality varies block by block, so it's worth viewing before committing to a longer stay.
- Get an STM card early — cash bus fares cost noticeably more per ride than paying with the card, and there's no flat monthly unlimited pass, only per-ride discounts and a small rebate for very frequent riders.
- Coworking is concentrated around Centro, Ciudad Vieja, Pocitos, and Punta Carretas; Sinergia is the largest local network with several sites across the city plus one in Punta del Este.
- Most US/UK/EU passport holders get 90 days visa-free on arrival, which is enough for a typical nomad stint — no advance visa application needed for a first stay.
- Local private health plans ('mutualistas') are generally tied to residency status, so most nomads rely on international travel/health insurance rather than joining a Uruguayan plan directly.
- Mobile data, gym, cinema and night-out figures here are rough estimates rather than confirmed live prices — worth double-checking against a current Antel/Movistar plan or a specific gym/cinema page before budgeting tightly.
Monthly Totals
- Mid-range month
- UYU 76,967
Includes 6 estimated components
- Lean month
- UYU 38,532
Includes 4 estimated components
- Comfortable month
- UYU 97,011
Includes 7 estimated components
Living Costs
- Where nomads live
- Pocitos and Punta Carretas are the two neighborhoods most documented as the main expat/digital-nomad cluster in Montevideo (beachfront, walkable, restaurants, coworking-dense); Ciudad Vieja and adjacent Palermo are the documented lower-cost alternative popular with younger expats. All housing figures below are grounded in these areas.
Housing (per month)
- Mid-range 1-bed
- UYU 36,163
Estimated
My Latin Life relocation guide states Pocitos 1BR furnished rents at $700-1,100/month, calling it 'the most in-demand area for foreign residents'; figure is the midpoint of that stated range.
Published in USD
- Budget studio / 1-bed
- UYU 23,104
Estimated
My Latin Life relocation guide states Ciudad Vieja 1BR furnished rents at $450-700/month; figure is the midpoint of that stated range.
Published in USD
- Premium apartment
- UYU 39,176
Estimated
My Latin Life relocation guide states Punta Carretas 1BR furnished rents at $750-1,200/month; figure is the midpoint of that stated range.
Published in USD
- Private room in a shared home
- UYU 16,072
Estimated
No live short-term private-room listing data was found for Montevideo. Estimated as roughly 40-50% of a budget furnished 1BR in Ciudad Vieja/Palermo, consistent with typical shared-housing discounts described for the local rental market.
Published in USD
Groceries
- Groceries for one (month)
- UYU 15,000
Estimated
Pacific Prime states a single person typically spends UYU 12,000-18,000/month on groceries (basket referencing INE, Numbeo and Expatistan data); figure is the midpoint of that stated range.
Sample prices
1L Milk
- 1L Milk
- UYU 70
Estimated
No single retrieved source stated this exact price; estimated from general Montevideo supermarket price levels.
Dozen Eggs
- Dozen Eggs
- UYU 130
Estimated
Numbeo price rankings note eggs rank among the more expensive items in Montevideo globally, but no absolute figure was retrieved; value is an estimate.
1kg Chicken Breast
- 1kg Chicken Breast
- UYU 280
Estimated
Estimated from general Montevideo supermarket price levels; no single sourced page confirmed this figure.
1kg Rice
- 1kg Rice
- UYU 90
Estimated
Estimated staple-good price; no single sourced page confirmed this figure.
1.5L Bottled Water (Supermarket)
- 1.5L Bottled Water (Supermarket)
- UYU 60
Estimated
Estimated staple-good price for a store purchase (not restaurant); no single sourced page confirmed this figure.
Eating out
- Cheap meal
- UYU 623
Estimated
Pacific Prime states a local lunch menu costs UYU 460-1,200 per person; figure is the midpoint of that stated range. [Adjusted 2026-09-18: the source's 830 UYU reduced by 25%; see "adjusted".]
- High-end meal
- UYU 4,900
Estimated
No single sourced page gave a high-end per-person figure; estimated above the sourced mid-range dinner ceiling, consistent with upscale Montevideo/Punta del Este dining noted by Pacific Prime.
- Mid-range meal
- UYU 1,988
Estimated
Pacific Prime states a mid-range three-course dinner runs UYU 1,500-3,800 per person; figure is the midpoint of that stated range. [Adjusted 2026-09-18: the source's 2650 UYU reduced by 25%; see "adjusted".]
Work, Transport & Essentials
Coworking
- Day pass
- UYU 321
Operator's own price
Regus's own Montevideo (World Trade Center) page states its Coworking Access Plan starts at '$8 USD per person per day (including unlimited days coworking access per month)'.
Published in USD
- Monthly hot desk
- UYU 4,219
Operator's own price
Infonegocios interview with Sinergia states monthly cowork membership access plans 'van desde USD 105 + IVA hasta USD 155 + IVA para acceso total' — entry-level figure used here, VAT (22%) not included.
Published in USD
Transport
- What the pass covers
- No flat monthly unlimited pass exists; STM card riders get a lower per-ride fare than cash payers, plus a partial monthly refund after 40+ electronic trips.
- Single ride
- UYU 52
Official figure
Reports the Intendencia de Montevideo's new tariff effective 5 January 2026: the 1-hour electronic ticket paid with the STM card rose to $52 pesos (cash fare $64 pesos).
- Monthly pass
- Not available
Montevideo's STM bus system has no flat-rate unlimited monthly pass product; there is only a per-ride STM card discount and a small automatic cash-back for 'usuario frecuente' riders who complete 40+ paid electronic trips in a calendar month.
Mobile & data
- Monthly plan
- UYU 400
Estimated
Estimated based on general knowledge of Antel/Movistar Uruguay prepaid plan pricing tiers; no live current operator pricing page was retrieved at the time of research, so treat as a rough placeholder only.
Short Stays (per night)
- Seasonal pricing
- Yes
- Why
- Southern Hemisphere summer (December–February) combined with the world's longest Carnival (40 days, late January–early March) drives sustained high-season demand; accommodation rates nearly double from low season (~$53) to peak season (~$99).
Low season
- Budget
- UYU 1,440
Budget hotels at lowest seasonality (Kayak: 2-star from $37; BudgetYourTrip: budget avg $36); Things to Do in Uruguay reports hostels $15-25 and budget guesthouses around $50-60
- Luxury
- UYU 6,000
5-star hotels in low season: Booking.com baseline $223 implies ~30-35% discount to ~$150-160 in June-August per source patterns; 15% occupancy data supports lower off-season rates
- Premium
- UYU 2,720
4-star average: BudgetYourTrip reports 4-star at $68 baseline; Kayak July average $100 blended across all categories, so 4-star portion lower; Sofitel/Hyatt Centric discounted 30-40% off peak
- Standard
- UYU 1,920
3-star hotel in June-August: Kayak reports ~$100 average in July, but older BudgetYourTrip data shows 3-star at ~$46 base; TheLatinvestor shows median Montevideo ~$53, dropping off-season ~$38 for lower-end
High season
- Budget
- UYU 1,600
Hotel Hispano (2-star, Kayak listing ~$37-40/night); confirmed by multiple sources showing budget hotels/hostels at $36-50 range for December-February peak
- Luxury
- UYU 8,000
5-star hotels: Booking.com average $223/night; Hotel Montevideo, Sofitel, Hyatt Centric, Hotel Costanero all listing $200-227 in reviews; Sofitel Carrasco traditionally peaks higher in January
- Premium
- UYU 3,560
4-star hotel average (Kayak reports ~$89/night for 4-star in Montevideo; BudgetYourTrip reports 4-star at $68 low/high average ~$100+)
- Standard
- UYU 2,400
3-star hotel average (Kayak: $44-77 range for 3-star in high season); TheLatinvestor Sept 2025 reports top-performing Montevideo properties at $77-120 during peak Dec-March
Low-season months
- June
- July
- August
High-season months
- December
- January
- February
Sources cited for this category
These are the sources cited in this cost of living research for this city. Individual figures may not each trace to one of them.
More About Montevideo
Data last updated September 2026 · Verify anything important.