Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur and Medellin

For one person, living costs are similar in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur and in Medellin: $1,611 and $1,625 a month, rent and utilities included.

79

Cost of Living Index in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur
Learn more

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index

Jump to prices

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,611

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,625

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur 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 Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur and in Medellin actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,611 per month in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur vs $1,625 in Medellin, rent included.

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur $1,611
Medellin $1,625

A couple spends around $2,409 per month in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur vs $2,412 in Medellin, rent included.

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur $2,409
Medellin $2,412

A family of three spends $3,207 per month in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur vs $3,199 in Medellin, rent included.

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur $3,207
Medellin $3,199

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur is about 1% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur and Medellin sit above the global median – Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur by 19%, Medellin by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.35 MX$191

$8.30 COP 26.3K

24.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.09 MX$889

$46.91 COP 148.7K

2.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.88 MX$182

$9.24 COP 29.3K

6.93%

Cappuccino

$3.37 MX$62.2

$3.05 COP 9,676

10.49%

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

$1.44 MX$26.54

$1.80 COP 5,707

-20.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.91 MX$16.86

$1.38 COP 4,382

-34.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.39 MX$44.20

$3.24 COP 10.3K

-26.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 MX$81.5

$5.56 COP 17.6K

-20.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.78 MX$32.84

$1.50 COP 4,760

18.67%

White Bread (500g)

$3.03 MX$55.9

$2.37 COP 7,508

27.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.38 MX$43.92

$1.70 COP 5,377

40.00%

Eggs

$2.35 MX$43.47

$2.96 COP 9,379

-20.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.47 MX$212

$10.22 COP 32.4K

12.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 MX$178

$9.74 COP 30.9K

-0.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.41 MX$248

$13.90 COP 44.1K

-3.53%

Apples (1kg)

$2.59 MX$47.82

$4.13 COP 13.1K

-37.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.57 MX$28.94

$1.53 COP 4,839

2.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 MX$29.98

$2.22 COP 7,052

-27.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.71 MX$31.57

$2.27 COP 7,194

-24.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 MX$22.29

$1.99 COP 6,311

-39.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.84 MX$33.99

$1.67 COP 5,285

10.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.77 MX$51.3

$1.18 COP 3,742

134.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.31

$1.24 COP 3,919

-2.42%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.81 MX$88.9

$3.87 COP 12.3K

24.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.87 MX$201

$13.78 COP 43.7K

-21.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.53

$1.66 COP 5,256

-7.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 MX$64.3

$2.40 COP 7,615

45.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.90 MX$16.59

$1.24 COP 3,944

-27.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.4 MX$968

$78.2 COP 248.0K

-33.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.37 MX$80.8

$1.28 COP 4,044

241.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.97 MX$54.9

$2.15 COP 6,803

38.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.43 MX$193

$8.37 COP 26.5K

24.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.14

$1.35 COP 4,288

4.44%

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

$21.3K MX$394.1K

$34.8K COP 110.2M

-38.66%

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

$23.9K MX$441.5K

$34.7K COP 110.0M

-31.12%

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

$84.4 MX$1,560

$167 COP 528.4K

-49.34%

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

$24.86 MX$459

$13.62 COP 43.2K

82.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.45 MX$581

$29.12 COP 92.3K

8.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.08 MX$833

$45.09 COP 143.0K

-0.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.06 MX$556

$17.18 COP 54.5K

74.97%

Cinema Ticket

$4.13 MX$76.3

$6.97 COP 22.1K

-40.75%

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

$226 MX$4,180

$790 COP 2.5M

-71.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,280 MX$153.0K

$9,041 COP 28.7M

-8.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.3 MX$1,317

$87.8 COP 278.4K

-18.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.5 MX$970

$58.2 COP 184.4K

-9.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.2 MX$1,759

$139 COP 440.7K

-31.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.0 MX$1,257

$98.9 COP 313.5K

-31.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 MX$22.0K

$1,028 COP 3.3M

15.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$733 MX$13.5K

$620 COP 2.0M

18.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,509 MX$46.4K

$1,881 COP 6.0M

33.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$21.8K

$1,008 COP 3.2M

17.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,827 MX$70.7K

$3,988 COP 12.6M

-4.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,210 MX$40.8K

$1,702 COP 5.4M

29.88%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$750 MX$13.9K

$663 COP 2.1M

13.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.6

10.94

6.03%

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

Last update for Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur: October 19, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

$733 45.5%

Medellin

$619 38.1% 15.5% $113

Groceries & Markets

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

$297 18.4%

Medellin

$298 18.3% 0.5% $1.3

Eating Out

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

$183 11.4%

Medellin

$171 10.5% 6.7% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

$141 8.7%

Medellin

$209 12.9% 48.8% $69

Clothing & Footwear

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

$129 8%

Medellin

$173 10.6% 33.7% $44

Getting Around

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

$75 4.7%

Medellin

$95 5.9% 26.6% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

$53 3.3%

Medellin

$59 3.6% 10.7% $5.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,190 in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur versus $1,028 in Medellin. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 13% higher in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $48.00 in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur versus $47.00 in Medellin. Groceries tell a different story – $297 in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur vs $298 in Medellin – so Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

15:40 3:40 PM

17:40 5:40 PM

2 h ahead of Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

202,694

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 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 October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 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 MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur Medellin 4,110 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur
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

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 1%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,416 per month in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur and $2,437 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 49% less in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $226 per month in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur and $790 in Medellin. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur, where all-in costs run around $1,611, than in Medellin at $1,625. In Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Medellin makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.