Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ciudad Obregon and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Ciudad Obregon: $1,129 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Ciudad Obregon
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Ciudad Obregon Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Ciudad Obregon

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,129

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,129 in Ciudad Obregon versus $1,639 in Medellin.

Ciudad Obregon $1,129
Medellin $1,639

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,686 in Ciudad Obregon versus $2,413 in Medellin.

Ciudad Obregon $1,686
Medellin $2,413

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,243 in Ciudad Obregon versus $3,186 in Medellin.

Ciudad Obregon $2,243
Medellin $3,186

Living in Ciudad Obregon costs roughly 31% less than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Ciudad Obregon is 17% below, Medellin is 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.79 MX$200

$8.09 COP 26.1K

33.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.52 MX$660

$47.05 COP 151.8K

-24.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.68 MX$161

$9.50 COP 30.7K

-8.63%

Cappuccino

$2.90 MX$53.8

$3.01 COP 9,729

-3.65%

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

$1.19 MX$22.16

$1.80 COP 5,806

-33.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 MX$15.30

$1.41 COP 4,558

-41.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 MX$47.30

$3.18 COP 10.2K

-19.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.84 MX$71.3

$5.75 COP 18.6K

-33.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 MX$31.41

$1.51 COP 4,873

11.92%

White Bread (500g)

$2.26 MX$41.95

$2.38 COP 7,673

-5.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.89 MX$16.51

$1.77 COP 5,716

-49.72%

Eggs

$3.10 MX$57.6

$2.89 COP 9,327

7.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.24 MX$78.7

$10.19 COP 32.9K

-58.39%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.47 MX$102

$9.87 COP 31.9K

-44.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.70 MX$199

$13.99 COP 45.1K

-23.52%

Apples (1kg)

$1.79 MX$33.26

$3.97 COP 12.8K

-54.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 MX$20.59

$1.55 COP 5,009

-28.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.11 MX$20.62

$2.18 COP 7,044

-49.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.30 MX$24.15

$2.18 COP 7,047

-40.37%

Potato (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.35

$1.96 COP 6,333

-8.16%

Onion (1kg)

$2.16 MX$40.16

$1.59 COP 5,129

35.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.56 MX$10.44

$1.15 COP 3,696

-51.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.40 MX$26.01

$1.24 COP 4,012

12.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.19 MX$77.8

$3.96 COP 12.8K

5.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.81 MX$164

$13.68 COP 44.2K

-35.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 MX$10.48

$1.66 COP 5,356

-66.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$24.27

$2.26 COP 7,286

-42.04%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 MX$12.55

$1.17 COP 3,769

-41.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.31 MX$489

$77.4 COP 249.7K

-65.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.84 MX$34.25

$1.27 COP 4,092

44.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.68 MX$31.25

$2.05 COP 6,608

-18.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.65 MX$198

$8.55 COP 27.6K

24.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 MX$24.06

$1.35 COP 4,346

-3.70%

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

$24.4K MX$452.8K

$34.1K COP 109.9M

-28.42%

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

$23.5K MX$435.6K

$34.7K COP 111.9M

-32.35%

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

$95.4 MX$1,771

$170 COP 547.5K

-43.80%

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

$27.91 MX$518

$13.55 COP 43.7K

105.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.31 MX$581

$28.07 COP 90.6K

11.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.63 MX$606

$43.70 COP 141.0K

-25.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.11 MX$373

$17.19 COP 55.5K

16.99%

Cinema Ticket

$3.68 MX$68.3

$6.91 COP 22.3K

-46.74%

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

$293 MX$5,446

$797 COP 2.6M

-63.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,826 MX$89.6K

$9,112 COP 29.4M

-47.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.53 MX$808

$84.7 COP 273.4K

-48.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.76 MX$608

$58.0 COP 187.0K

-43.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$64.7 MX$1,201

$135 COP 435.5K

-52.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$65.7 MX$1,220

$97.9 COP 315.8K

-32.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$609 MX$11.3K

$1,208 COP 3.9M

-49.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$420 MX$7,802

$642 COP 2.1M

-34.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,134 MX$21.1K

$2,028 COP 6.5M

-44.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$660 MX$12.3K

$1,012 COP 3.3M

-34.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,882 MX$35.0K

$4,170 COP 13.5M

-54.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,110 MX$20.6K

$1,910 COP 6.2M

-41.88%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,175 MX$21.8K

$657 COP 2.1M

78.83%

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 Ciudad Obregon: October 25, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ciudad Obregon

$420 37.2%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 52.7% $221

Groceries & Markets

Ciudad Obregon

$206 18.3%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 44.2% $91

Eating Out

Ciudad Obregon

$176 15.6%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 3.4% $6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ciudad Obregon

$155 13.7%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 36.7% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Ciudad Obregon

$93 8.2%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 81.7% $76

Sport & Entertainment

Ciudad Obregon

$40 3.5%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 43.9% $18

Getting Around

Ciudad Obregon

$39 3.5%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 138% $54

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $609 in Ciudad Obregon and $1,208 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ciudad Obregon pays 79% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $36 in Ciudad Obregon vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $297 per month, with Ciudad Obregon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Ciudad Obregon

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

20:02 8:02 PM

22:02 10:02 PM

2 h ahead of Ciudad Obregon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

329,404

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 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 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.57 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.8 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 3,227 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,617 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Between locations

Ciudad Obregon Medellin 4,320 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Ciudad Obregon
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

Ciudad Obregon vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ciudad Obregon wins on cost – living expenses run 31% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Ciudad Obregon the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 79% higher in Ciudad Obregon, 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: $609 in Ciudad Obregon versus $1,208 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Ciudad Obregon – a meal for two runs $36 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,129 per month in Ciudad Obregon versus $1,639 in Medellin – Ciudad Obregon is about 31% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Ciudad Obregon is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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 Ciudad Obregon gentler on the wallet – expenses run 31% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.