Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cotabato City and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Cotabato City: $738 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $10,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

36

Cost of Living Index in Cotabato City
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Cotabato City Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index

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Cotabato City

🇵🇭 Philippines

$738

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $738 in Cotabato City versus $1,639 in Medellin.

Cotabato City $738
Medellin $1,639

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,139 in Cotabato City versus $2,413 in Medellin.

Cotabato City $1,139
Medellin $2,413

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,539 in Cotabato City versus $3,186 in Medellin.

Cotabato City $1,539
Medellin $3,186

Living in Cotabato City costs roughly 55% less than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cotabato City is 46% below, Medellin is 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.81 ₱307

$8.09 COP 25.4K

-40.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.14 ₱1,031

$47.05 COP 148.0K

-65.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.97 ₱254

$9.50 COP 29.9K

-58.21%

Cappuccino

$2.17 ₱139

$3.01 COP 9,485

-27.91%

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

$1.06 ₱67.6

$1.80 COP 5,660

-41.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 ₱39.75

$1.41 COP 4,443

-56.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.14 ₱73.1

$3.18 COP 9,990

-64.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 ₱133

$5.75 COP 18.1K

-63.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.01 ₱128

$1.51 COP 4,751

33.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.08 ₱68.8

$2.38 COP 7,480

-54.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.75 ₱48.19

$1.77 COP 5,573

-57.63%

Eggs

$1.90 ₱121

$2.89 COP 9,093

-34.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.44 ₱411

$10.19 COP 32.1K

-36.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.59 ₱293

$9.87 COP 31.1K

-53.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.44 ₱603

$13.99 COP 44.0K

-32.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.76 ₱176

$3.97 COP 12.5K

-30.48%

Banana (1kg)

$1.10 ₱70.0

$1.55 COP 4,883

-29.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.40 ₱153

$2.18 COP 6,867

10.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.17 ₱74.7

$2.18 COP 6,870

-46.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 ₱126

$1.96 COP 6,174

0.51%

Onion (1kg)

$3.30 ₱211

$1.59 COP 5,000

107.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.24 ₱78.9

$1.15 COP 3,604

7.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 ₱42.15

$1.24 COP 3,911

-46.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.40 ₱154

$3.96 COP 12.5K

-39.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.03 ₱513

$13.68 COP 43.0K

-41.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 ₱80.9

$1.66 COP 5,221

-23.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 ₱105

$2.26 COP 7,103

-27.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.22 ₱13.98

$1.17 COP 3,674

-81.20%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.32 ₱723

$77.4 COP 243.4K

-85.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.76 ₱48.30

$1.27 COP 3,989

-40.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 ₱13.97

$2.05 COP 6,442

-89.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.85 ₱118

$8.55 COP 26.9K

-78.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ₱70.2

$1.35 COP 4,237

-18.52%

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

$20.8K ₱1.3M

$34.1K COP 107.2M

-38.89%

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

$18.8K ₱1.2M

$34.7K COP 109.1M

-45.87%

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

$108 ₱6,875

$170 COP 533.7K

-36.58%

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

$18.43 ₱1,178

$13.55 COP 42.6K

36.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.97 ₱1,978

$28.07 COP 88.3K

10.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.96 ₱1,978

$43.70 COP 137.5K

-29.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.25 ₱335

$17.19 COP 54.1K

-69.46%

Cinema Ticket

$4.73 ₱302

$6.91 COP 21.7K

-31.55%

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

$105 ₱6,684

$797 COP 2.5M

-86.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,282 ₱465.3K

$9,112 COP 28.7M

-20.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$32.48 ₱2,075

$84.7 COP 266.5K

-61.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.49 ₱1,246

$58.0 COP 182.3K

-66.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.5 ₱4,438

$135 COP 424.6K

-48.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.5 ₱3,862

$97.9 COP 307.9K

-38.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$224 ₱14.3K

$1,208 COP 3.8M

-81.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$153 ₱9,753

$642 COP 2.0M

-76.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$447 ₱28.6K

$2,028 COP 6.4M

-77.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$333 ₱21.3K

$1,012 COP 3.2M

-67.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,692 ₱172.0K

$4,170 COP 13.1M

-35.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,003 ₱64.1K

$1,910 COP 6.0M

-47.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.31

10.94

-24.04%

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

Last update for Cotabato City: October 26, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Cotabato City

$199 26.9%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 49.3% $98

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cotabato City

$157 21.3%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 34.6% $54

Accommodation & Living

Cotabato City

$153 20.7%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 320% $489

Eating Out

Cotabato City

$93 12.6%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 82.2% $77

Clothing & Footwear

Cotabato City

$82 11.1%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 107% $87

Sport & Entertainment

Cotabato City

$40 5.5%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 42.4% $17

Getting Around

Cotabato City

$14 1.9%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 566% $80

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $224 in Cotabato City and $1,208 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $16 in Cotabato City vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $199 vs $297 per month, with Cotabato City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cotabato City

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

07:02 7:02 AM

18:02 6:02 PM

13 h behind Cotabato City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

325,079

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 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 October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 63.89 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.13 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,502 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cotabato City Medellin 17,350 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Cotabato City
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

Cotabato City vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cotabato City wins on cost – living expenses run 55% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Cotabato City the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,107 in Cotabato City and $2,459 in Medellin to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $224 in Cotabato City versus $1,208 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $738 per month in Cotabato City versus $1,639 in Medellin – Cotabato City is about 55% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Cotabato City runs roughly 85% less than in Medellin. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your 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 Cotabato City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 55% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.