Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Antigua Guatemala and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Antigua Guatemala: $1,267 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

61

Cost of Living Index in Antigua Guatemala
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Antigua Guatemala Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Antigua Guatemala

🇬🇹 Guatemala

$1,267

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Antigua Guatemala and in Medellin

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Antigua Guatemala and in Medellin actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,267 in Antigua Guatemala versus $1,614 in Medellin.

Antigua Guatemala $1,267
Medellin $1,614

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,106 in Antigua Guatemala versus $2,402 in Medellin.

Antigua Guatemala $2,106
Medellin $2,402

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,945 in Antigua Guatemala versus $3,190 in Medellin.

Antigua Guatemala $2,945
Medellin $3,190

Living in Antigua Guatemala costs roughly 22% less than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Antigua Guatemala is 6% below, Medellin is 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.60 Q 50.4

$7.93 COP 25.2K

-16.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$51.4 Q 393

$46.13 COP 146.3K

11.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.91 Q 60.5

$9.50 COP 30.1K

-16.74%

Cappuccino

$3.24 Q 24.80

$3.11 COP 9,866

4.18%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.16 Q 8.84

$1.83 COP 5,800

-36.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.92 Q 7.00

$1.38 COP 4,360

-33.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 Q 24.35

$3.05 COP 9,672

4.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.67 Q 35.68

$5.50 COP 17.4K

-15.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.10 Q 16.02

$1.45 COP 4,600

44.83%

White Bread (500g)

$3.14 Q 24.00

$2.36 COP 7,496

33.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.96 Q 15.00

$1.68 COP 5,328

16.67%

Eggs

$2.32 Q 17.74

$2.86 COP 9,077

-18.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.42 Q 41.44

$10.19 COP 32.3K

-46.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.21 Q 70.4

$9.53 COP 30.2K

-3.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.21 Q 78.0

$14.04 COP 44.5K

-27.28%

Apples (1kg)

$3.86 Q 29.55

$4.07 COP 12.9K

-5.16%

Banana (1kg)

$1.64 Q 12.57

$1.50 COP 4,742

9.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.81 Q 21.50

$2.17 COP 6,891

29.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 Q 12.66

$2.31 COP 7,310

-28.14%

Potato (1kg)

$1.47 Q 11.24

$1.93 COP 6,113

-23.83%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 Q 13.23

$1.64 COP 5,196

5.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.69 Q 5.31

$1.13 COP 3,571

-38.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 Q 9.29

$1.25 COP 3,954

-3.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.84 Q 29.36

$3.99 COP 12.6K

-3.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.69 Q 58.8

$13.35 COP 42.3K

-42.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 Q 13.67

$1.70 COP 5,384

5.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 Q 20.76

$2.37 COP 7,525

14.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.58 Q 19.76

$1.21 COP 3,827

113.22%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.69 Q 35.84

$1.32 COP 4,179

255.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,774

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.63 Q 81.2

$8.47 COP 26.8K

25.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 Q 10.16

$1.30 COP 4,114

2.31%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$22.7K Q 173.6K

$28.0K COP 88.7M

-18.86%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$21.8K Q 166.8K

$35.4K COP 112.3M

-38.40%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$57.4 Q 439

$172 COP 545.6K

-66.65%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$29.74 Q 227

$13.37 COP 42.4K

122.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.70 Q 349

$28.73 COP 91.1K

59.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.50 Q 317

$45.24 COP 143.5K

-8.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.20 Q 216

$17.04 COP 54.0K

65.49%

Cinema Ticket

$6.39 Q 48.83

$6.28 COP 19.9K

1.75%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$346 Q 2,645

$770 COP 2.4M

-55.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,755 Q 51.6K

$9,011 COP 28.6M

-25.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.31 Q 339

$86.4 COP 274.0K

-48.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.03 Q 367

$57.1 COP 181.1K

-15.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.1 Q 704

$137 COP 432.9K

-32.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.0 Q 611

$97.9 COP 310.4K

-18.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$865 Q 6,610

$1,055 COP 3.3M

-18.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$531 Q 4,059

$616 COP 2.0M

-13.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,864 Q 14.3K

$1,892 COP 6.0M

-1.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,180 Q 9,024

$1,023 COP 3.2M

15.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,064 Q 23.4K

$4,059 COP 12.9M

-24.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,227 Q 9,385

$1,678 COP 5.3M

-26.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$626 Q 4,786

$652 COP 2.1M

-4.05%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.62

10.94

6.22%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Antigua Guatemala: October 12, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Antigua Guatemala

$531 41.9%

Medellin

$616 38.2% 16% $85

Groceries & Markets

Antigua Guatemala

$266 21%

Medellin

$295 18.3% 10.7% $29

Eating Out

Antigua Guatemala

$149 11.8%

Medellin

$168 10.4% 13% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Antigua Guatemala

$133 10.5%

Medellin

$214 13.3% 61.2% $81

Clothing & Footwear

Antigua Guatemala

$119 9.4%

Medellin

$170 10.5% 43% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Antigua Guatemala

$54 4.3%

Medellin

$58 3.6% 6.5% $3.5

Getting Around

Antigua Guatemala

$15 * 1.2%

Medellin

$93 5.8% 521% $78

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $865 in Antigua Guatemala and $1,055 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays 4% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $51.0 in Antigua Guatemala vs $46.00 in Medellin. Groceries flip the comparison at $266 vs $295, with Antigua Guatemala cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇹 Antigua Guatemala

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

03:29 3:29 AM

04:29 4:29 AM

1 h ahead of Antigua Guatemala

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

46,054

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Guatemalan Quetzal GTQ Q

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GTQ = 0.131 USD

1 GTQ = 0.116 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to GTQ – Guatemalan Quetzal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇹 Guatemalan Quetzal (Q)

Guatemalan Quetzal exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 7.65 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.131 USD). 1 EUR = 8.6 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.116 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

USD to GTQ in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Antigua Guatemala Medellin 1,890 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Antigua Guatemala
Medellin

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Antigua Guatemala vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Antigua Guatemala and Medellin differ by about 27% in total monthly costs ($1,267 vs $1,614 including rent). Antigua Guatemala is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 4% lower in Medellin. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $865 in Antigua Guatemala versus $1,055 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $346 in Antigua Guatemala versus $770 in Medellin. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Antigua Guatemala – a meal for two runs $51.0 versus $46.00 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,267 in Antigua Guatemala versus $1,614 in Medellin, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Antigua Guatemala but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Antigua Guatemala the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Antigua Guatemala and Medellin are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Antigua Guatemala gentler on the wallet – expenses run 27% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.