The cheapest countries in South America in 2026

The cheapest country in South America right now is Venezuela, where a Big Mac costs $4.51, just ahead of Brazil at $4.71. The most expensive is Uruguay at $8.94. For drivers, the cheapest petrol (gas) on the continent is in Venezuela at $0.035 a litre. This ranking moves faster than most, because several South American currencies swing hard against the dollar, so below we show what changed between the last two surveys and why.

The ranking, and how it moved

Big Mac prices come from The Economist’s Big Mac Index. The current survey is from July 2026; the previous one, which we keep as a baseline, is from January 2026. A burger’s price is set mostly by local wages, rent and ingredients, so it is a fair stand-in for what cheap meals and everyday services cost a visitor. Hotels, flights and rents are not included because we don’t collect them.

Venezuela was also the cheapest in the previous survey, at $4.04. The biggest dollar increase was in Colombia (+29%). Peru got very slightly cheaper in dollar terms (-0.8%).

Why currency matters more here than anywhere

A burger’s dollar price changes for two reasons: the restaurant changes the local price, or the currency moves. Splitting the two is revealing. In Venezuela, the local price changed +138% but the dollar price only +12%, because the currency lost about 53% of its value against the dollar between surveys. In Colombia, the reverse: the local price moved +13%, yet the dollar price moved +29%, as the currency strengthened.

For a visitor, that is the whole game. A country gets cheaper when its currency falls faster than local prices rise, and dearer when local inflation outruns the exchange rate. The survey prices above use the exchange rate on the survey date. Converting the same local prices at our October 2026 exchange rates, Venezuela is cheapest at $3.73, and the spread runs to $8.93 in Uruguay. Our weakest currencies guide explains why some of these currencies need thousands of units to buy one dollar, and the Big Mac Index 2026 guide covers the survey worldwide.

Fuel across 12 countries

Petrol prices cover more of the continent, including countries the Big Mac Index skips. They come from GlobalPetrolPrices; the change column compares our July 3, 2026 and October 13, 2026 snapshots in US dollars.

6 of 12 countries saw their pump price move by 5% or more in dollar terms. The largest fall was in Bolivia (-42%); the largest rise in Guyana (+10%). Fuel at the bottom of the table is cheap by government decision, through subsidies or state pricing. It is a bargain for a road trip, but rationing, queues and black-market pricing can come with it. At the top, Uruguay charges $2.26 a litre, close to European levels.

Picking a country

• Cheapest overall: Venezuela, though its prices are hard to pin down; Brazil ($4.71) is the cheapest country with a more stable currency.
• Cheapest for a road trip: Venezuela and Bolivia on fuel price alone.
• Most expensive: Uruguay, at $8.94 a burger and $2.26 a litre of petrol.
• Most volatile: Venezuela, where the currency moved the dollar price most between surveys. Check rates just before you go.

Staying longer than a holiday? Household electricity, from the same source, is cheapest among these countries in Paraguay ($0.056 per kWh) and dearest in Uruguay ($0.255). Power prices in the region track hydropower and state tariffs more than wages, so they need not follow the Big Mac order. A month of air conditioning in a rented flat will cost more in the dearest of these than in the cheapest, whatever the burger says. Every country we cover is on the electricity price table.

For country detail, the Venezuela and Argentina petrol pages track each price over time. To compare South America with Asia and Europe, see the cheapest countries to visit.