Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Guayaquil and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Guayaquil: $1,136 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Guayaquil
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Guayaquil Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Guayaquil

🇪🇨 Ecuador

$1,136

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,136 per month in Guayaquil vs $1,614 in Medellin, rent included.

Guayaquil $1,136
Medellin $1,614

A couple spends around $1,775 per month in Guayaquil vs $2,402 in Medellin, rent included.

Guayaquil $1,775
Medellin $2,402

A family of three spends $2,413 per month in Guayaquil vs $3,190 in Medellin, rent included.

Guayaquil $2,413
Medellin $3,190

Guayaquil is about 30% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Guayaquil sits 16% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.94 $3.94

$7.93 COP 25.2K

-50.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.6 $52.6

$46.13 COP 146.3K

14.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.15 $9.15

$9.50 COP 30.1K

-3.68%

Cappuccino

$2.82 $2.82

$3.11 COP 9,866

-9.32%

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

$0.91 $0.91

$1.83 COP 5,800

-50.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.74 $0.74

$1.38 COP 4,360

-46.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 $3.05

$3.05 COP 9,672

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.15 $4.15

$5.50 COP 17.4K

-24.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 $1.16

$1.45 COP 4,600

-20.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.98 $1.98

$2.36 COP 7,496

-16.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 $1.47

$1.68 COP 5,328

-12.50%

Eggs

$2.07 $2.07

$2.86 COP 9,077

-27.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.02 $7.02

$10.19 COP 32.3K

-31.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.18 $5.18

$9.53 COP 30.2K

-45.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 $9.26

$14.04 COP 44.5K

-34.05%

Apples (1kg)

$1.48 $1.48

$4.07 COP 12.9K

-63.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.14 $1.14

$1.50 COP 4,742

-24.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.98 $0.98

$2.17 COP 6,891

-54.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.94 $0.94

$2.31 COP 7,310

-59.31%

Potato (1kg)

$1.22 $1.22

$1.93 COP 6,113

-36.79%

Onion (1kg)

$0.98 $0.98

$1.64 COP 5,196

-40.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.88 $0.88

$1.13 COP 3,571

-22.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 $0.94

$1.25 COP 3,954

-24.80%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.91 $5.91

$3.99 COP 12.6K

48.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.19 $12.19

$13.35 COP 42.3K

-8.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 $1.55

$1.70 COP 5,384

-8.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 $2.19

$2.37 COP 7,525

-7.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.36 $0.36

$1.21 COP 3,827

-70.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.61 $19.61

$76.5 COP 242.5K

-74.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.77 $2.77

$1.32 COP 4,179

109.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.80 $1.80

$2.14 COP 6,774

-15.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.16 $12.16

$8.47 COP 26.8K

43.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.88 $0.88

$1.30 COP 4,114

-32.31%

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

$21.1K $21.1K

$28.0K COP 88.7M

-24.50%

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

$31.3K $31.3K

$35.4K COP 112.3M

-11.59%

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

$131 $131

$172 COP 545.6K

-23.99%

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

$14.76 $14.76

$13.37 COP 42.4K

10.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.25 $26.25

$28.73 COP 91.1K

-8.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.30 $46.30

$45.24 COP 143.5K

2.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.54 $26.54

$17.04 COP 54.0K

55.75%

Cinema Ticket

$7.29 $7.29

$6.28 COP 19.9K

16.08%

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

$378 $378

$770 COP 2.4M

-50.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,590 $5,590

$9,011 COP 28.6M

-37.97%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$66.2 $66.2

$86.4 COP 274.0K

-23.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.10 $41.10

$57.1 COP 181.1K

-28.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 $124

$137 COP 432.9K

-9.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.8 $93.8

$97.9 COP 310.4K

-4.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$476 $476

$1,055 COP 3.3M

-54.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$401 $401

$616 COP 2.0M

-34.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$800 $800

$1,892 COP 6.0M

-57.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$740 $740

$1,023 COP 3.2M

-27.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,275 $2,275

$4,059 COP 12.9M

-43.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,451 $1,451

$1,678 COP 5.3M

-13.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$612 $612

$652 COP 2.1M

-6.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.05

10.94

-8.14%

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

Last update for Guayaquil: 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

Guayaquil

$401 35.3%

Medellin

$616 38.2% 53.5% $215

Groceries & Markets

Guayaquil

$200 17.6%

Medellin

$295 18.3% 47.2% $95

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Guayaquil

$172 15.1%

Medellin

$214 13.3% 24.7% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Guayaquil

$146 12.9%

Medellin

$170 10.5% 16.4% $24

Eating Out

Guayaquil

$123 10.8%

Medellin

$168 10.4% 36.9% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Guayaquil

$61 5.4%

Medellin

$58 3.6% 5.1% $3.1

Getting Around

Guayaquil

$33 2.9%

Medellin

$93 5.8% 184% $60

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $476 in Guayaquil versus $1,055 in Medellin. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 7% higher in Medellin, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $53.0 in Guayaquil versus $46.00 in Medellin. Groceries tell a different story – $200 in Guayaquil vs $295 in Medellin – so Guayaquil wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇪🇨 Guayaquil

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

16:54 4:54 PM

Same time as Guayaquil

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,500,000

2,486,723

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

COP to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Guayaquil Medellin 1,070 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Guayaquil
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

Guayaquil vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 42%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,704 per month in Guayaquil and $2,421 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Guayaquil, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $378 per month in Guayaquil and $770 in Medellin. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 47% more in Medellin, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Guayaquil, where all-in costs run around $1,136, than in Medellin at $1,614. In Guayaquil it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Guayaquil – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Guayaquil. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Medellin makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.