Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Guadalajara and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Guadalajara: $1,302 a month against $1,589 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $3,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

64

Cost of Living Index in Guadalajara
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Guadalajara Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Guadalajara

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,302

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,589

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,302 in Guadalajara versus $1,589 in Medellin.

Guadalajara $1,302
Medellin $1,589

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,119 in Guadalajara versus $2,364 in Medellin.

Guadalajara $2,119
Medellin $2,364

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,936 in Guadalajara versus $3,139 in Medellin.

Guadalajara $2,936
Medellin $3,139

Living in Guadalajara costs roughly 18% less than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Guadalajara is 3% below, Medellin is 19% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.67 MX$251

$8.01 COP 25.5K

70.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.72 MX$821

$46.55 COP 148.3K

-3.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.08 MX$167

$9.43 COP 30.1K

-3.71%

Cappuccino

$3.90 MX$71.5

$2.91 COP 9,277

34.02%

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

$1.67 MX$30.69

$1.75 COP 5,585

-4.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.17 MX$21.56

$1.32 COP 4,218

-11.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.71 MX$49.70

$3.13 COP 9,969

-13.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.88 MX$89.6

$5.55 COP 17.7K

-12.07%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.76 MX$32.38

$1.41 COP 4,495

24.82%

White Bread (500g)

$2.62 MX$48.12

$2.44 COP 7,777

7.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.73 MX$31.68

$1.63 COP 5,191

6.13%

Eggs

$2.48 MX$45.56

$2.82 COP 8,990

-12.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.99 MX$165

$9.69 COP 30.9K

-7.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.95 MX$183

$9.32 COP 29.7K

6.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.52 MX$211

$13.46 COP 42.9K

-14.41%

Apples (1kg)

$2.92 MX$53.6

$4.00 COP 12.8K

-27.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.60 MX$29.35

$1.48 COP 4,719

8.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.37

$2.12 COP 6,768

-3.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.76 MX$32.27

$2.25 COP 7,178

-21.78%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 MX$36.77

$1.91 COP 6,092

4.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.03

$1.62 COP 5,160

11.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.49 MX$27.41

$1.15 COP 3,658

29.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 MX$19.87

$1.26 COP 4,021

-14.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.63 MX$84.9

$3.82 COP 12.2K

21.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.82 MX$199

$13.11 COP 41.8K

-17.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.94 MX$35.55

$1.60 COP 5,083

21.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.38 MX$62.1

$2.26 COP 7,188

49.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.58 MX$10.65

$1.17 COP 3,731

-50.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.62 MX$562

$75.0 COP 239.0K

-59.18%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.20 MX$40.31

$1.27 COP 4,056

73.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.41 MX$25.86

$2.05 COP 6,531

-31.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.36 MX$227

$8.20 COP 26.1K

50.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$27.90

$1.27 COP 4,046

19.69%

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

$21.1K MX$387.5K

$26.8K COP 85.3M

-21.17%

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

$24.1K MX$442.2K

$34.4K COP 109.6M

-30.00%

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

$49.59 MX$911

$162 COP 516.9K

-69.43%

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

$22.94 MX$421

$13.12 COP 41.8K

74.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.15 MX$572

$28.09 COP 89.5K

10.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.66 MX$526

$44.33 COP 141.2K

-35.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.30 MX$207

$16.33 COP 52.0K

-30.80%

Cinema Ticket

$6.57 MX$121

$6.09 COP 19.4K

7.88%

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

$253 MX$4,645

$764 COP 2.4M

-66.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.9K MX$199.8K

$8,904 COP 28.4M

22.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.1 MX$1,104

$85.0 COP 270.8K

-29.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.27 MX$739

$57.5 COP 183.2K

-29.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$1,983

$132 COP 419.8K

-18.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.1 MX$1,525

$95.8 COP 305.1K

-13.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$856 MX$15.7K

$1,028 COP 3.3M

-16.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$497 MX$9,123

$604 COP 1.9M

-17.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,571 MX$28.8K

$1,802 COP 5.7M

-12.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,009 MX$18.5K

$993 COP 3.2M

1.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,101 MX$56.9K

$3,921 COP 12.5M

-20.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,953 MX$35.9K

$1,639 COP 5.2M

19.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$776 MX$14.2K

$626 COP 2.0M

23.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.68

10.94

6.76%

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

Last update for Guadalajara: October 6, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Guadalajara

$497 37.8%

Medellin

$604 38.3% 21.6% $108

Groceries & Markets

Guadalajara

$280 21.3%

Medellin

$288 18.3% 3.1% $8.7

Eating Out

Guadalajara

$218 16.6%

Medellin

$166 10.6% 23.7% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Guadalajara

$131 10%

Medellin

$166 10.6% 26.9% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Guadalajara

$104 7.9%

Medellin

$203 12.9% 96.2% $100

Getting Around

Guadalajara

$42 3.2%

Medellin

$91 5.8% 116% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Guadalajara

$42 3.2%

Medellin

$57 3.6% 35.2% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $856 in Guadalajara and $1,028 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Guadalajara pays 24% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $45.00 in Guadalajara vs $47.00 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $280 vs $288 per month, with Guadalajara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Guadalajara

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

04:40 4:40 AM

05:40 5:40 AM

1 h ahead of Guadalajara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,385,629

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.14 USD

10,000 COP = 2.8 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.57 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3,187 COP (10,000 COP = 3.14 USD). 1 EUR = 3,571 COP (10,000 COP = 2.8 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Guadalajara Medellin 3,390 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Guadalajara
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

Guadalajara vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Guadalajara wins on cost – living expenses run 22% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Guadalajara the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 24% higher in Guadalajara, 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: $856 in Guadalajara versus $1,028 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 3% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Guadalajara – a meal for two runs $45.00 versus $47.00 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,302 in Guadalajara versus $1,589 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Guadalajara but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Guadalajara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Guadalajara delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,302 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Guadalajara hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Guadalajara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 22% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.