Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Batangas and Santa Marta

For one person, living is cheaper in Batangas: $610 a month against $1,447 in Santa Marta, rent and utilities included – about $10,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

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Cost of Living Index in Batangas
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Batangas Living Index

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Batangas

🇵🇭 Philippines

$610

/mo nomad

Santa Marta

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,447

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Batangas and in Santa Marta

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $610 in Batangas versus $1,447 in Santa Marta.

Batangas $610
Santa Marta $1,447

Estimated couple costs with rent: $887 in Batangas versus $1,693 in Santa Marta.

Batangas $887
Santa Marta $1,693

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,165 in Batangas versus $1,939 in Santa Marta.

Batangas $1,165
Santa Marta $1,939

Living in Batangas costs roughly 58% less than in Santa Marta, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Batangas is 55% below, Santa Marta is 6% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.14 ₱136

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ₱1,210

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.63 ₱168

Cappuccino

$2.06 ₱131

$3.86 COP 12.4K

-46.63%

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

$0.37 ₱23.82

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.28 ₱17.93

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.05 ₱66.8

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.40 ₱88.9

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 ₱109

$1.59 COP 5,132

7.55%

White Bread (500g)

$1.16 ₱73.9

$2.17 COP 6,982

-46.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.77 ₱49.23

$1.22 COP 3,918

-36.89%

Eggs

$1.61 ₱103

$2.46 COP 7,931

-34.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.49 ₱350

$8.39 COP 27.0K

-34.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.09 ₱261

$9.57 COP 30.9K

-57.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.99 ₱445

$11.26 COP 36.3K

-37.92%

Apples (1kg)

$2.29 ₱146

$4.13 COP 13.3K

-44.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.35 ₱85.8

$1.04 COP 3,354

29.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.41 ₱153

$1.11 COP 3,595

117.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.16 ₱73.8

$1.99 COP 6,424

-41.71%

Potato (1kg)

$2.20 ₱140

$0.93 COP 2,986

136.56%

Onion (1kg)

$3.24 ₱207

$1.54 COP 4,965

110.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 ₱81.9

$0.96 COP 3,081

34.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 ₱56.5

$0.62 COP 1,986

43.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.52 ₱161

$4.13 COP 13.3K

-38.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.55 ₱481

$17.52 COP 56.5K

-56.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 ₱81.2

$1.45 COP 4,678

-12.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 ₱110

$1.40 COP 4,526

22.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.63 ₱39.97

$0.96 COP 3,104

-34.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.76 ₱48.48

$3.07 COP 9,907

-75.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.21 ₱13.33

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.48 ₱158

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.01 ₱64.1

$1.35 COP 4,346

-25.19%

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

$20.9K ₱1.3M

$23.6K COP 76.1M

-11.46%

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

$18.9K ₱1.2M

$34.2K COP 110.2M

-44.65%

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

$161 ₱10.3K

$159 COP 511.7K

1.76%

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

$14.33 ₱913

$9.23 COP 29.7K

55.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.93 ₱1,525

$21.79 COP 70.3K

9.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$18.53 ₱1,180

$31.36 COP 101.1K

-40.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.48 ₱795

Cinema Ticket

$5.63 ₱359

$5.27 COP 17.0K

6.83%

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

$71.9 ₱4,579

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,239 ₱78.9K

$10.9K COP 35.1M

-88.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$15.94 ₱1,016

$86.4 COP 278.6K

-81.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.67 ₱1,445

$62.8 COP 202.4K

-63.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$53.8 ₱3,431

$92.6 COP 298.6K

-41.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$39.82 ₱2,538

$86.7 COP 279.4K

-54.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,096 COP 3.5M

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$71.1 ₱4,532

$752 COP 2.4M

-90.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$156 ₱9,968

$1,095 COP 3.5M

-85.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$93.3 ₱5,945

$620 COP 2.0M

-84.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,500 ₱159.3K

$1,110 COP 3.6M

125.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,573 ₱100.2K

$1,191 COP 3.8M

32.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$185 ₱11.8K

$526 COP 1.7M

-64.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

19.54

-64.18%

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

Last update for Batangas: October 25, 2026

Last update for Santa Marta: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Batangas

$200 32.8%

Santa Marta

–

Groceries & Markets

Batangas

$185 30.3%

Santa Marta

–

Accommodation & Living

Batangas

$71 11.7%

Santa Marta

–

Eating Out

Batangas

$60 9.9%

Santa Marta

–

Clothing & Footwear

Batangas

$60 9.8%

Santa Marta

–

Sport & Entertainment

Batangas

$30 4.9%

Santa Marta

–

Getting Around

Batangas

$4.3 * 0.7%

Santa Marta

–

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

Cost Breakdown

Santa Marta pays about 2.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Batangas

🇨🇴 Santa Marta

🕒 Local time

07:12 7:12 AM

18:12 6:12 PM

13 h behind Batangas

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

329,874

500,000

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 63.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.15 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 3,224 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,600 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Batangas Santa Marta 16,770 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Batangas
Santa Marta

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

Batangas vs Santa Marta: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $610 in Batangas and $1,447 in Santa Marta, so Batangas is about 58% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 65% lower in Batangas. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Supermarket bills run roughly 42% higher in Santa Marta. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $610 per month in Batangas versus $1,447 in Santa Marta – Batangas is about 58% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $610 in Batangas versus $1,447 in Santa Marta, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Batangas but tight or insufficient in Santa Marta. The gap between the two cities makes Batangas 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.

It comes down to priorities – Batangas wins on affordability, Santa Marta on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.