Distillers Uruguay
A one-page guide to Uruguay for the spirits trade: the country, its people, its economy and how it drinks.
At a glance
- Capital
- Montevideo
- Official languages
- Spanish (de facto; Uruguayan Sign Language official since 2001)
- Currency
- Uruguayan peso (UYU)
- Time zone
- UTC-3
- Area
- 176,215 km²
People
- Population
- 3.4 million (2025)
- Population growth
- -0.1% a year
- Living in towns and cities
- 95.7%
- Aged under 15
- 17.9%
- Aged 65 and over
- 16.3%
- Life expectancy
- 78.3 years
Economy
- GDP
- US$85.3 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$25,216 (2025)
- Economic growth
- 1.78% (2025)
- Inflation
- 4.65% (2025)
Climate
Mild temperate climate with an average of about 17.5 C; winter daily averages around 11-14 C and summer around 21-25 C. Record high 44 C, record low -11 C. Moderate swings suit steady wine and spirits storage.
Alcohol
- Alcohol per adult a year
- 5.45 litres of pure alcohol (2019)
Sources: World Bank (population, economy and demographics), WHO Global Health Observatory (alcohol per adult and drinking mix); Uruguay (Wikipedia); World Bank API; Our World in Data / WHO GISAH alcohol per capita; UN Comtrade API; La Nación: Uruguay second-largest whisky consumer (2023); IMPO: Ley 16.753 art. 4 (as amended by Ley 20.073); Wikipedia: Grappamiel. Figures are the latest each source publishes; the year is shown beside each one.