Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chillan and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Chillan: $876 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $8,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in Chillan
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Chillan Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Chillan

🇨🇱 Chile

$876

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $876 in Chillan versus $1,614 in Medellin.

Chillan $876
Medellin $1,614

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,321 in Chillan versus $2,402 in Medellin.

Chillan $1,321
Medellin $2,402

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,766 in Chillan versus $3,190 in Medellin.

Chillan $1,766
Medellin $3,190

Living in Chillan costs roughly 46% less than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Chillan is 35% below, Medellin is 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.24 CLP 5,162

$7.93 COP 25.2K

-33.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.84 CLP 46.1K

$46.13 COP 146.3K

1.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.85 CLP 5,761

$9.50 COP 30.1K

-38.42%

Cappuccino

$3.65 CLP 3,592

$3.11 COP 9,866

17.36%

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

$0.92 CLP 909

$1.83 COP 5,800

-49.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.99 CLP 970

$1.38 COP 4,360

-28.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.52 CLP 3,467

$3.05 COP 9,672

15.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.55 CLP 4,477

$5.50 COP 17.4K

-17.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.06 CLP 1,043

$1.45 COP 4,600

-26.90%

White Bread (500g)

$1.62 CLP 1,593

$2.36 COP 7,496

-31.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 CLP 1,804

$1.68 COP 5,328

8.93%

Eggs

$3.70 CLP 3,640

$2.86 COP 9,077

29.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.08 CLP 6,974

$10.19 COP 32.3K

-30.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.51 CLP 2,473

$9.53 COP 30.2K

-73.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.12 CLP 7,998

$14.04 COP 44.5K

-42.17%

Apples (1kg)

$1.48 CLP 1,454

$4.07 COP 12.9K

-63.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.64 CLP 1,616

$1.50 COP 4,742

9.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.25 CLP 1,234

$2.17 COP 6,891

-42.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.03 CLP 1,018

$2.31 COP 7,310

-55.41%

Potato (1kg)

$1.44 CLP 1,415

$1.93 COP 6,113

-25.39%

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 CLP 1,236

$1.64 COP 5,196

-23.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.03 CLP 1,009

$1.13 COP 3,571

-8.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 CLP 1,176

$1.25 COP 3,954

-4.80%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.58 CLP 4,507

$3.99 COP 12.6K

14.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.37 CLP 3,320

$13.35 COP 42.3K

-74.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 CLP 1,234

$1.70 COP 5,384

-26.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 CLP 1,996

$2.37 COP 7,525

-14.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.58 CLP 571

$1.21 COP 3,827

-52.07%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$36.06 CLP 35.5K

$76.5 COP 242.5K

-52.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 CLP 590

$1.32 COP 4,179

-54.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.15 CLP 1,133

$2.14 COP 6,774

-46.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.29 CLP 12.1K

$8.47 COP 26.8K

45.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 CLP 1,316

$1.30 COP 4,114

3.08%

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

$11.9K CLP 11.7M

$28.0K COP 88.7M

-57.46%

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

$14.7K CLP 14.5M

$35.4K COP 112.3M

-58.35%

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

$127 CLP 125.4K

$172 COP 545.6K

-25.95%

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

$10.30 CLP 10.1K

$13.37 COP 42.4K

-22.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.07 CLP 22.7K

$28.73 COP 91.1K

-19.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$15.49 CLP 15.3K

$45.24 COP 143.5K

-65.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.60 CLP 16.3K

$17.04 COP 54.0K

-2.58%

Cinema Ticket

$11.08 CLP 10.9K

$6.28 COP 19.9K

76.43%

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

$770 COP 2.4M

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.6M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$35.58 CLP 35.0K

$86.4 COP 274.0K

-58.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.16 CLP 17.9K

$57.1 COP 181.1K

-68.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$48.07 CLP 47.3K

$137 COP 432.9K

-64.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$64.8 CLP 63.7K

$97.9 COP 310.4K

-33.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$302 CLP 297.5K

$1,055 COP 3.3M

-71.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$243 CLP 239.7K

$616 COP 2.0M

-60.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$445 CLP 437.9K

$1,892 COP 6.0M

-76.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$330 CLP 324.8K

$1,023 COP 3.2M

-67.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,415 CLP 2.4M

$4,059 COP 12.9M

-40.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,414 CLP 2.4M

$1,678 COP 5.3M

43.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$664 CLP 653.6K

$652 COP 2.1M

1.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

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

Last update for Chillan: 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

Chillan

$243 27.8%

Medellin

$616 38.2% 153% $372

Groceries & Markets

Chillan

$177 20.2%

Medellin

$295 18.3% 66.6% $118

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chillan

$161 18.4%

Medellin

$214 13.3% 33.2% $53

Eating Out

Chillan

$138 15.7%

Medellin

$168 10.4% 22.3% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Chillan

$75 8.6%

Medellin

$170 10.5% 127% $95

Getting Around

Chillan

$45 5.1%

Medellin

$93 5.8% 109% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Chillan

$38 4.3%

Medellin

$58 3.6% 53.5% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $302 in Chillan and $1,055 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Chillan pays 2% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $47.00 in Chillan vs $46.00 in Medellin. Groceries flip the comparison at $177 vs $295, with Chillan cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇱 Chillan

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

20:34 8:34 PM

18:34 6:34 PM

2 h behind Chillan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

164,270

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Chilean Peso CLP $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 CLP = 10.16 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to CLP – Chilean Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇱 Chilean Peso ($)

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 984 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,107 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 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 CLP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chillan Medellin 4,780 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Chillan
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

Chillan vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chillan and Medellin differ by about 84% in total monthly costs ($876 vs $1,614 including rent). Chillan is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 2% higher in Chillan, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $302 in Chillan versus $1,055 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 67% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $876 per month in Chillan versus $1,614 in Medellin – a 84% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $876 in Chillan versus $1,614 in Medellin, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Chillan but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Chillan 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.

Expats usually find Chillan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 84% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.