Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Itajai and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Itajai: $1,002 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $7,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Itajai
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Itajai Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Itajai

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,002

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,002 per month in Itajai vs $1,614 in Medellin, rent included.

Itajai $1,002
Medellin $1,614

A couple spends around $1,225 per month in Itajai vs $2,402 in Medellin, rent included.

Itajai $1,225
Medellin $2,402

A family of three spends $1,448 per month in Itajai vs $3,190 in Medellin, rent included.

Itajai $1,448
Medellin $3,190

Itajai is about 38% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Itajai sits 26% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.87 R$29.75

$7.93 COP 25.2K

-25.98%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.47 R$205

$46.13 COP 146.3K

-12.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.05 R$45.86

$9.50 COP 30.1K

-4.74%

Cappuccino

$2.52 R$12.77

$3.11 COP 9,866

-18.97%

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

$1.16 R$5.88

$1.83 COP 5,800

-36.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.96 R$4.87

$1.38 COP 4,360

-30.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.73 R$13.83

$3.05 COP 9,672

-10.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 R$15.63

$5.50 COP 17.4K

-44.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.97 R$4.93

$1.45 COP 4,600

-33.10%

White Bread (500g)

$1.57 R$7.95

$2.36 COP 7,496

-33.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.03 R$5.22

$1.68 COP 5,328

-38.69%

Eggs

$2.19 R$11.12

$2.86 COP 9,077

-23.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.78 R$49.60

$10.19 COP 32.3K

-4.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.51 R$22.87

$9.53 COP 30.2K

-52.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.78 R$39.44

$14.04 COP 44.5K

-44.59%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R$9.30

$4.07 COP 12.9K

-54.79%

Banana (1kg)

$0.96 R$4.84

$1.50 COP 4,742

-36.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.00 R$5.09

$2.17 COP 6,891

-53.92%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.36 R$6.92

$2.31 COP 7,310

-41.13%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 R$4.20

$1.93 COP 6,113

-56.99%

Onion (1kg)

$0.58 R$2.95

$1.64 COP 5,196

-64.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.75 R$3.79

$1.13 COP 3,571

-33.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 R$3.94

$1.25 COP 3,954

-37.60%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.95 R$14.97

$3.99 COP 12.6K

-26.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.31 R$37.03

$13.35 COP 42.3K

-45.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 R$4.30

$1.70 COP 5,384

-50.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 R$9.65

$2.37 COP 7,525

-19.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 R$4.45

$1.21 COP 3,827

-27.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 R$6.46

$1.32 COP 4,179

-3.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.83 R$4.21

$2.14 COP 6,774

-61.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.10 R$30.93

$8.47 COP 26.8K

-27.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 R$6.81

$1.30 COP 4,114

3.08%

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

$23.6K R$119.8K

$28.0K COP 88.7M

-15.57%

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

$33.4K R$169.3K

$35.4K COP 112.3M

-5.67%

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

$101 R$514

$172 COP 545.6K

-41.14%

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

$11.17 R$56.6

$13.37 COP 42.4K

-16.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.25 R$118

$28.73 COP 91.1K

-19.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.46 R$139

$45.24 COP 143.5K

-39.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

Cinema Ticket

$7.69 R$38.96

$6.28 COP 19.9K

22.45%

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

$283 R$1,435

$770 COP 2.4M

-63.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,139 R$26.1K

$9,011 COP 28.6M

-42.97%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.7 R$369

$86.4 COP 274.0K

-15.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$74.0 R$375

$57.1 COP 181.1K

29.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$97.9 R$496

$137 COP 432.9K

-28.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.9 R$410

$97.9 COP 310.4K

-17.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$498 R$2,524

$1,055 COP 3.3M

-52.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$357 R$1,812

$616 COP 2.0M

-41.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,427 R$7,232

$1,892 COP 6.0M

-24.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.2M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,324 R$11.8K

$4,059 COP 12.9M

-42.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$632 R$3,201

$652 COP 2.1M

-3.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.68

10.94

-2.38%

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

Last update for Itajai: October 13, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Itajai

$357 35.7%

Medellin

$616 38.2% 72.3% $258

Groceries & Markets

Itajai

$178 17.8%

Medellin

$295 18.3% 65.6% $117

Clothing & Footwear

Itajai

$146 14.6%

Medellin

$170 10.5% 16.1% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Itajai

$136 13.6%

Medellin

$214 13.3% 57.8% $78

Eating Out

Itajai

$133 13.2%

Medellin

$168 10.4% 27% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Itajai

$43 4.3%

Medellin

$58 3.6% 35% $15

Getting Around

Itajai

$8.9 * 0.9%

Medellin

$93 5.8% 944% $84

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $498 in Itajai 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 3% 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 $40.00 in Itajai versus $46.00 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $178 vs $295 – making Itajai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Itajai

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

01:08 1:08 AM

23:08 11:08 PM

2 h behind Itajai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

264,054

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 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 October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Itajai Medellin 4,690 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Itajai
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

Itajai vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,002 in Itajai, $1,614 in Medellin – roughly 61% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,503 per month in Itajai 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 Itajai, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,002 in Itajai and $1,614 in Medellin. That's a gap of about 61%.

Kindergarten costs $283 per month in Itajai and $770 in Medellin. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Itajai, where all-in costs run around $1,002, than in Medellin at $1,614. In Itajai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Medellin has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,002 in Itajai to $1,614 in Medellin. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Itajai. 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.