Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Imperatriz and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Imperatriz: $854 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $10,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Imperatriz
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Imperatriz Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index

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Imperatriz

🇧🇷 Brazil

$854

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $854 in Imperatriz versus $1,692 in Medellin.

Imperatriz $854
Medellin $1,692

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,356 in Imperatriz versus $2,471 in Medellin.

Imperatriz $1,356
Medellin $2,471

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,859 in Imperatriz versus $3,249 in Medellin.

Imperatriz $1,859
Medellin $3,249

Living in Imperatriz costs roughly 50% less than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Imperatriz is 37% below, Medellin is 25% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.59 R$30.51

$8.34 COP 26.9K

-32.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.30 R$176

$46.53 COP 150.1K

-30.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.75 R$42.33

$9.47 COP 30.5K

-18.16%

Cappuccino

$1.85 R$10.08

$3.13 COP 10.1K

-40.89%

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

$1.35 R$7.38

$1.77 COP 5,696

-23.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.45 R$2.45

$1.42 COP 4,594

-68.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.01 R$11.00

$3.15 COP 10.2K

-36.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.03 R$16.54

$5.70 COP 18.4K

-46.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.14 R$6.24

$1.53 COP 4,943

-25.49%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 R$7.88

$2.29 COP 7,389

-37.12%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.27 R$6.92

$1.94 COP 6,273

-34.54%

Eggs

$2.32 R$12.64

$3.07 COP 9,889

-24.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.41 R$40.43

$9.99 COP 32.2K

-25.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.52 R$19.23

$10.45 COP 33.7K

-66.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.81 R$48.09

$13.96 COP 45.0K

-36.89%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 R$12.54

$4.05 COP 13.1K

-43.21%

Banana (1kg)

$1.21 R$6.63

$1.53 COP 4,929

-20.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.93 R$5.06

$2.10 COP 6,786

-55.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.42 R$7.75

$2.29 COP 7,397

-37.99%

Potato (1kg)

$1.11 R$6.09

$2.11 COP 6,803

-47.39%

Onion (1kg)

$1.14 R$6.25

$1.71 COP 5,512

-33.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 R$4.16

$1.17 COP 3,774

-35.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 R$3.95

$1.58 COP 5,096

-54.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.96 R$10.72

$3.91 COP 12.6K

-49.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.48 R$35.38

$14.04 COP 45.3K

-53.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 R$5.87

$1.76 COP 5,682

-38.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 R$10.39

$2.71 COP 8,746

-29.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.83 R$4.52

$1.18 COP 3,805

-29.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$43.87 R$240

$76.3 COP 246.0K

-42.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.23 R$6.71

$1.81 COP 5,827

-32.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.74 R$4.05

$2.13 COP 6,867

-65.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.59 R$41.45

$8.13 COP 26.2K

-6.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.14 R$6.22

$1.28 COP 4,113

-10.94%

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

$22.8K R$124.6K

$34.4K COP 111.1M

-33.73%

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

$30.2K R$164.9K

$34.1K COP 110.1M

-11.53%

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

$65.1 R$355

$178 COP 573.2K

-63.39%

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

$12.79 R$69.8

$13.89 COP 44.8K

-7.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.61 R$107

$30.74 COP 99.1K

-36.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$23.65 R$129

$41.94 COP 135.3K

-43.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.82 R$136

$16.80 COP 54.2K

47.74%

Cinema Ticket

$6.04 R$33.00

$7.47 COP 24.1K

-19.14%

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

$266 R$1,452

$790 COP 2.5M

-66.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,987 R$32.7K

$12.3K COP 39.7M

-51.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.69 R$249

$86.3 COP 278.4K

-47.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.81 R$256

$59.3 COP 191.1K

-21.01%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.5 R$483

$138 COP 446.2K

-36.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.6 R$374

$98.8 COP 318.7K

-30.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$288 R$1,575

$1,341 COP 4.3M

-78.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$268 R$1,460

$667 COP 2.2M

-59.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$612 R$3,340

$1,976 COP 6.4M

-69.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$505 R$2,756

$1,033 COP 3.3M

-51.13%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,613 R$8,809

$4,098 COP 13.2M

-60.63%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,168 R$6,379

$1,940 COP 6.3M

-39.78%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

0.55%

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

Last update for Imperatriz: October 31, 2026

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Imperatriz

$268 31.3%

Medellin

$667 39.4% 149% $400

Groceries & Markets

Imperatriz

$176 20.6%

Medellin

$307 18.2% 75.1% $132

Eating Out

Imperatriz

$113 13.3%

Medellin

$173 10.2% 52.2% $59

Clothing & Footwear

Imperatriz

$112 13.2%

Medellin

$172 10.2% 53.4% $60

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Imperatriz

$97 11.4%

Medellin

$222 13.1% 128% $125

Getting Around

Imperatriz

$52 6.1%

Medellin

$93 5.5% 79.3% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Imperatriz

$36 4.2%

Medellin

$57 3.4% 59.2% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $288 in Imperatriz and $1,341 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32 in Imperatriz vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $176 vs $307 per month, with Imperatriz cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Imperatriz

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

06:41 6:41 AM

04:41 4:41 AM

2 h behind Imperatriz

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

273,110

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.183 USD

1 BRL = 0.163 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 5.46 BRL (1 BRL = 0.183 USD). 1 EUR = 6.14 BRL (1 BRL = 0.163 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 3,225 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,624 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

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

From you

Imperatriz
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

Imperatriz vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Imperatriz is about 50% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,281 in Imperatriz and $2,538 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: $288 in Imperatriz versus $1,341 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 75% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Imperatriz – a meal for two runs $32 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $854 in Imperatriz versus $1,692 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Imperatriz but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Imperatriz the clear choice for anyone on this 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 Imperatriz gentler on the wallet – expenses run 50% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.