Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Boca del Rio and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Boca del Rio: $1,167 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Boca del Rio
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Boca del Rio Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Boca del Rio

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,167

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Boca del Rio 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 Boca del Rio and in Medellin actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,167 per month in Boca del Rio vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

Boca del Rio $1,167
Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $1,904 per month in Boca del Rio vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

Boca del Rio $1,904
Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $2,641 per month in Boca del Rio vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

Boca del Rio $2,641
Medellin $3,186

Boca del Rio is about 29% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Boca del Rio sits 14% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.98 MX$206

$8.09 COP 26.1K

35.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.22 MX$812

$47.05 COP 151.9K

-8.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.56 MX$161

$9.50 COP 30.7K

-9.89%

Cappuccino

$3.59 MX$67.5

$3.01 COP 9,735

19.27%

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

$1.33 MX$24.92

$1.80 COP 5,809

-26.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.04 MX$19.64

$1.41 COP 4,561

-26.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.35 MX$44.25

$3.18 COP 10.3K

-26.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.93 MX$73.9

$5.75 COP 18.6K

-31.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.69

$1.51 COP 4,876

-2.65%

White Bread (500g)

$2.66 MX$50.1

$2.38 COP 7,678

11.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 MX$32.83

$1.77 COP 5,720

-1.13%

Eggs

$2.51 MX$47.08

$2.89 COP 9,333

-13.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.15 MX$153

$10.19 COP 32.9K

-20.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.11 MX$152

$9.87 COP 31.9K

-17.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.70 MX$220

$13.99 COP 45.2K

-16.37%

Apples (1kg)

$2.45 MX$45.96

$3.97 COP 12.8K

-38.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 MX$31.73

$1.55 COP 5,012

9.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 MX$31.25

$2.18 COP 7,048

-23.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.78 MX$33.53

$2.18 COP 7,051

-18.35%

Potato (1kg)

$2.24 MX$42.17

$1.96 COP 6,337

14.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.75 MX$32.87

$1.59 COP 5,132

10.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.34 MX$25.14

$1.15 COP 3,699

16.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 MX$18.13

$1.24 COP 4,014

-22.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.82 MX$71.9

$3.96 COP 12.8K

-3.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.62 MX$181

$13.68 COP 44.2K

-29.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 MX$36.01

$1.66 COP 5,359

15.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.28 MX$61.6

$2.26 COP 7,291

45.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 MX$12.72

$1.17 COP 3,771

-41.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$33.89 MX$637

$77.4 COP 249.8K

-56.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.80 MX$52.7

$1.27 COP 4,094

120.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.10 MX$39.46

$2.05 COP 6,612

2.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.32 MX$175

$8.55 COP 27.6K

9.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 MX$26.27

$1.35 COP 4,349

3.70%

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

$22.7K MX$426.7K

$34.1K COP 110.0M

-33.35%

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

$22.6K MX$424.0K

$34.7K COP 111.9M

-34.92%

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

$55.1 MX$1,035

$170 COP 547.8K

-67.54%

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

$24.45 MX$460

$13.55 COP 43.8K

80.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.52 MX$480

$28.07 COP 90.6K

-9.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.45 MX$629

$43.70 COP 141.1K

-23.46%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.12 MX$359

$17.19 COP 55.5K

11.23%

Cinema Ticket

$5.88 MX$111

$6.91 COP 22.3K

-14.91%

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

$201 MX$3,776

$797 COP 2.6M

-74.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,612 MX$86.7K

$9,112 COP 29.4M

-49.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.4 MX$1,116

$84.7 COP 273.5K

-29.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.15 MX$679

$58.0 COP 187.2K

-37.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 MX$1,969

$135 COP 435.8K

-22.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.8 MX$1,800

$97.9 COP 316.0K

-2.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$622 MX$11.7K

$1,208 COP 3.9M

-48.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$389 MX$7,308

$642 COP 2.1M

-39.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,056 MX$19.9K

$2,028 COP 6.5M

-47.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$819 MX$15.4K

$1,012 COP 3.3M

-19.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,000 MX$37.6K

$4,170 COP 13.5M

-52.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,169 MX$22.0K

$1,910 COP 6.2M

-38.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.31

10.94

3.38%

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

Last update for Boca del Rio: October 24, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Boca del Rio

$389 33.3%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 65% $253

Groceries & Markets

Boca del Rio

$259 22.2%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 14.7% $38

Eating Out

Boca del Rio

$186 15.9%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 8.7% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Boca del Rio

$133 11.4%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 26.8% $36

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Boca del Rio

$105 9%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 101% $106

Getting Around

Boca del Rio

$50 4.3%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 87.5% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Boca del Rio

$45 3.9%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 27.2% $12

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $622 in Boca del Rio versus $1,208 in Medellin. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Boca del Rio versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $259 vs $297 – making Boca del Rio the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Boca del Rio

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

15:01 3:01 PM

16:01 4:01 PM

1 h ahead of Boca del Rio

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.75 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 21.06 MXN (100 MXN = 4.75 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,619 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Boca del Rio Medellin 2,640 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Boca del Rio
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

Boca del Rio vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,167 in Boca del Rio, $1,639 in Medellin – Boca del Rio comes out roughly 29% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,750 per month in Boca del Rio and $2,459 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Boca del Rio, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $622 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,167 in Boca del Rio and $1,639 in Medellin. That makes Boca del Rio about 29% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 56% less in Boca del Rio. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,167 in Boca del Rio and $1,639 in Medellin, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Boca del Rio – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

For expats, Boca del Rio is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 29% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.