Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Davao and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Davao: $839 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $9,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Davao
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Davao Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Davao

🇵🇭 Philippines

$839

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $839 in Davao versus $1,639 in Medellin.

Davao $839
Medellin $1,639

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,275 in Davao versus $2,413 in Medellin.

Davao $1,275
Medellin $2,413

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,712 in Davao versus $3,186 in Medellin.

Davao $1,712
Medellin $3,186

Living in Davao costs roughly 49% less than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Davao is 38% below, Medellin is 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.71 ₱300

$8.09 COP 26.1K

-41.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.33 ₱1,677

$47.05 COP 151.9K

-44.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.83 ₱244

$9.50 COP 30.7K

-59.68%

Cappuccino

$2.53 ₱161

$3.01 COP 9,735

-15.95%

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

$1.06 ₱67.5

$1.80 COP 5,809

-41.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 ₱39.75

$1.41 COP 4,561

-56.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.53 ₱97.3

$3.18 COP 10.3K

-51.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 ₱151

$5.75 COP 18.6K

-58.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.96 ₱125

$1.51 COP 4,876

29.80%

White Bread (500g)

$1.07 ₱68.2

$2.38 COP 7,678

-55.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.91 ₱58.1

$1.77 COP 5,720

-48.59%

Eggs

$1.84 ₱117

$2.89 COP 9,333

-36.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.41 ₱408

$10.19 COP 32.9K

-37.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.59 ₱293

$9.87 COP 31.9K

-53.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.97 ₱572

$13.99 COP 45.2K

-35.88%

Apples (1kg)

$2.68 ₱171

$3.97 COP 12.8K

-32.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 ₱67.5

$1.55 COP 5,012

-31.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.43 ₱155

$2.18 COP 7,048

11.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.14 ₱72.5

$2.18 COP 7,051

-47.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 ₱126

$1.96 COP 6,337

1.53%

Onion (1kg)

$3.35 ₱214

$1.59 COP 5,132

110.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.24 ₱78.9

$1.15 COP 3,699

7.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.71 ₱45.16

$1.24 COP 4,014

-42.74%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.46 ₱157

$3.96 COP 12.8K

-37.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.99 ₱509

$13.68 COP 44.2K

-41.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 ₱80.7

$1.66 COP 5,359

-23.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.58 ₱101

$2.26 COP 7,291

-30.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.21 ₱13.37

$1.17 COP 3,771

-82.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$13.16 ₱838

$77.4 COP 249.8K

-82.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.81 ₱51.5

$1.27 COP 4,094

-36.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.24 ₱15.37

$2.05 COP 6,612

-88.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.83 ₱117

$8.55 COP 27.6K

-78.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.22 ₱77.4

$1.35 COP 4,349

-9.63%

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

$21.3K ₱1.4M

$34.1K COP 110.0M

-37.37%

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

$19.0K ₱1.2M

$34.7K COP 111.9M

-45.07%

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

$105 ₱6,681

$170 COP 547.8K

-38.17%

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

$19.14 ₱1,219

$13.55 COP 43.8K

41.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.17 ₱1,921

$28.07 COP 90.6K

7.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.37 ₱2,189

$43.70 COP 141.1K

-21.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.44 ₱219

$17.19 COP 55.5K

-79.99%

Cinema Ticket

$4.75 ₱303

$6.91 COP 22.3K

-31.26%

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

$104 ₱6,643

$797 COP 2.6M

-86.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,536 ₱480.0K

$9,112 COP 29.4M

-17.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.0 ₱3,888

$84.7 COP 273.5K

-27.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.74 ₱1,958

$58.0 COP 187.2K

-46.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.7 ₱4,438

$135 COP 435.8K

-48.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.1 ₱3,827

$97.9 COP 316.0K

-38.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$350 ₱22.3K

$1,208 COP 3.9M

-71.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$229 ₱14.6K

$642 COP 2.1M

-64.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$723 ₱46.0K

$2,028 COP 6.5M

-64.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$404 ₱25.7K

$1,012 COP 3.3M

-60.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,584 ₱100.9K

$4,170 COP 13.5M

-62.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,364 ₱86.9K

$1,910 COP 6.2M

-28.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$207 ₱13.2K

$657 COP 2.1M

-68.49%

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 Davao: October 26, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Davao

$229 27.3%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 180% $412

Groceries & Markets

Davao

$197 23.5%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 50.6% $100

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Davao

$154 18.4%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 37% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Davao

$100 11.9%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 69.5% $69

Eating Out

Davao

$99 11.8%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 72% $71

Sport & Entertainment

Davao

$44 5.2%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 31.1% $14

Getting Around

Davao

$16 1.9%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 484% $78

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $350 in Davao and $1,208 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays about 3.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $26 in Davao vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $197 vs $297 per month, with Davao cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Davao

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

15:13 3:13 PM

02:13 2:13 AM

13 h behind Davao

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,632,991

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 = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 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 November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 63.69 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.12 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,605 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Davao Medellin 17,230 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Davao
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

Davao vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Davao is about 49% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, transport, and eating out. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 68% lower in Davao. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $350 in Davao 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 Davao – a meal for two runs $26 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $839 per month in Davao versus $1,639 in Medellin – Davao is about 49% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $839 in Davao versus $1,639 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Davao but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Davao the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Davao is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Medellin, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Davao gentler on the wallet – expenses run 49% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.