Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Joinville and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Joinville: $976 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $8,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Joinville, Brazil
Medellin, Colombia
Joinville
🇧🇷 Brazil
$976
/mo nomad
Medellin
🇨🇴 Colombia
$1,639
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $976 per month in Joinville vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

  • Joinville $976
  • Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $1,496 per month in Joinville vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

  • Joinville $1,496
  • Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $2,016 per month in Joinville vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

  • Joinville $2,016
  • Medellin $3,186

Joinville is about 40% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Joinville sits 28% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Joinville
Medellin
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$7.73 R$42.03
$8.09 COP 26.1K
-4.45%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$46.97 R$255
$47.05 COP 151.7K
-0.17%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$6.59 R$35.83
$9.50 COP 30.6K
-30.63%
Cappuccino
$1.85 R$10.07
$3.01 COP 9,722
-38.54%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.04 R$5.66
$1.80 COP 5,801
-42.22%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.46 R$2.50
$1.41 COP 4,554
-67.38%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.24 R$17.64
$3.18 COP 10.2K
1.89%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.25 R$12.26
$5.75 COP 18.5K
-60.87%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Joinville
Medellin
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$0.95 R$5.14
$1.51 COP 4,869
-37.09%
White Bread (500g)
$1.22 R$6.65
$2.38 COP 7,667
-48.74%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$0.97 R$5.25
$1.77 COP 5,712
-45.20%
Eggs
$2.74 R$14.88
$2.89 COP 9,320
-5.19%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.89 R$42.91
$10.19 COP 32.9K
-22.57%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.07 R$16.68
$9.87 COP 31.8K
-68.90%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$6.22 R$33.81
$13.99 COP 45.1K
-55.54%
Apples (1kg)
$1.71 R$9.30
$3.97 COP 12.8K
-56.93%
Banana (1kg)
$1.09 R$5.92
$1.55 COP 5,005
-29.68%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.32 R$7.16
$2.18 COP 7,039
-39.45%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.61 R$8.74
$2.18 COP 7,041
-26.15%
Potato (1kg)
$1.19 R$6.45
$1.96 COP 6,328
-39.29%
Onion (1kg)
$1.18 R$6.42
$1.59 COP 5,125
-25.79%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.41 R$7.68
$1.15 COP 3,694
22.61%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.92 R$5.03
$1.24 COP 4,009
-25.81%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.03 R$16.50
$3.96 COP 12.8K
-23.48%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.64 R$47.00
$13.68 COP 44.1K
-36.84%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.03 R$5.60
$1.66 COP 5,352
-37.95%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.89 R$15.71
$2.26 COP 7,281
27.88%
🚌 Getting Around
Joinville
Medellin
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.25 R$6.78
$1.17 COP 3,766
6.84%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$56.0 R$305
$77.4 COP 249.5K
-27.62%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.87 R$10.20
$1.27 COP 4,089
47.24%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.45 R$7.88
$2.05 COP 6,603
-29.27%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$9.51 R$51.7
$8.55 COP 27.6K
11.23%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.23 R$6.70
$1.35 COP 4,343
-8.89%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$22.0K R$119.8K
$34.1K COP 109.8M
-35.35%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$32.0K R$173.8K
$34.7K COP 111.8M
-7.82%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Joinville
Medellin
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$55.6 R$302
$170 COP 547.0K
-67.24%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$10.78 R$58.6
$13.55 COP 43.7K
-20.44%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$19.35 R$105
$28.07 COP 90.5K
-31.07%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Joinville
Medellin
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$25.09 R$136
$43.70 COP 140.9K
-42.59%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$26.31 R$143
$17.19 COP 55.4K
53.05%
Cinema Ticket
$8.03 R$43.66
$6.91 COP 22.3K
16.21%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Joinville
Medellin
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$294 R$1,601
$797 COP 2.6M
-63.05%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$6,147 R$33.4K
$9,112 COP 29.4M
-32.54%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Joinville
Medellin
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$43.66 R$238
$84.7 COP 273.2K
-48.47%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$85.2 R$464
$58.0 COP 186.9K
47.02%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$85.6 R$466
$135 COP 435.2K
-36.56%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$64.8 R$352
$97.9 COP 315.6K
-33.82%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Joinville
Medellin
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$383 R$2,085
$1,208 COP 3.9M
-68.27%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$349 R$1,899
$642 COP 2.1M
-45.58%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$997 R$5,424
$2,028 COP 6.5M
-50.83%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$500 R$2,718
$1,012 COP 3.3M
-50.62%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,845 R$10.0K
$4,170 COP 13.4M
-55.75%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,261 R$6,862
$1,910 COP 6.2M
-33.97%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Joinville
Medellin
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$655 R$3,560
$657 COP 2.1M
-0.40%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
10.5
10.94
-4.02%

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

Last update for Joinville: October 25, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Joinville
$349
Medellin
$642 83.7% $292
Groceries & Markets
Joinville
$173
Medellin
$297 71.3% $124
Eating Out
Joinville
$131
Medellin
$170 30% $39
Clothing & Footwear
Joinville
$126
Medellin
$169 34.5% $43
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Joinville
$86
Medellin
$211 147% $126
Getting Around
Joinville
$70
Medellin
$94 33.5% $23
Sport & Entertainment
Joinville
$41
Medellin
$58 39.8% $16

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $383 in Joinville versus $1,208 in Medellin. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Joinville versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $173 vs $297 – making Joinville the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇧🇷 Joinville
🇨🇴 Medellin
🕒 Local time
08:13 8:13 AM
06:13 6:13 AM
2 h behind Joinville
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
616,317
2,486,723
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 5.44 BRL (1 BRL = 0.184 USD). 1 EUR = 6.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.165 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 3,224 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,600 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Joinville Medellin 4,630 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Joinville
  • 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
Joinville vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Joinville or Medellin?
Medellin costs about 68% more than Joinville, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.
How much do you need to earn to live comfortably in Joinville and in Medellin?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,463 per month in Joinville and $2,459 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Where is rent cheaper, Joinville or Medellin?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Joinville, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $383 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.
How much does it cost to live in Joinville compared to Medellin?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $976 in Joinville and $1,639 in Medellin. That makes Joinville about 40% cheaper.
How do childcare costs compare in Joinville and in Medellin?
Kindergarten costs $294 per month in Joinville and $797 in Medellin. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.
Can you live on $800/month in Joinville or in Medellin?
$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $976 in Joinville and $1,639 in Medellin. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.
Which city is better for families?
Families tend to lean toward Joinville – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Joinville vs other spots: cost of living compared

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