Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between La Paz and Cali

For one person, living is cheaper in La Paz: $497 a month against $1,060 in Cali, rent and utilities included – about $6,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

24

Cost of Living Index in La Paz
Learn more

La Paz Living Index
52

Cost of Living Index in Cali
Learn more

Cali Living Index

Jump to prices

La Paz

🇧🇴 Bolivia

$497

/mo nomad

Cali

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,060

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in La Paz and in Cali

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in La Paz and in Cali actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $497 in La Paz versus $1,060 in Cali.

La Paz $497
Cali $1,060

Estimated couple costs with rent: $755 in La Paz versus $1,626 in Cali.

La Paz $755
Cali $1,626

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,012 in La Paz versus $2,192 in Cali.

La Paz $1,012
Cali $2,192

Living in La Paz costs roughly 53% less than in Cali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: La Paz 63% lower, Cali 21% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.09 BOB 24.23

$7.32 COP 23.2K

-71.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$9.26 BOB 108

$37.35 COP 118.4K

-75.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.06 BOB 47.08

$8.32 COP 26.4K

-51.20%

Cappuccino

$1.72 BOB 19.97

$1.52 COP 4,832

13.16%

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

$0.67 BOB 7.74

$1.23 COP 3,885

-45.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.43 BOB 5.04

$0.86 COP 2,728

-50.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.23 BOB 14.30

$3.11 COP 9,872

-60.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 BOB 26.35

$3.80 COP 12.1K

-40.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.74 BOB 8.63

$1.54 COP 4,891

-51.95%

White Bread (500g)

$0.84 BOB 9.73

$1.96 COP 6,203

-57.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.73 BOB 8.49

$1.48 COP 4,701

-50.68%

Eggs

$1.22 BOB 14.11

$2.91 COP 9,242

-58.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.56 BOB 41.37

$6.31 COP 20.0K

-43.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.37 BOB 39.17

$6.85 COP 21.7K

-50.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.46 BOB 51.8

$10.22 COP 32.4K

-56.36%

Apples (1kg)

$1.68 BOB 19.46

$3.45 COP 10.9K

-51.30%

Banana (1kg)

$0.50 BOB 5.85

$1.40 COP 4,433

-64.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.49 BOB 5.72

$1.79 COP 5,668

-72.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.77 BOB 8.89

$1.65 COP 5,223

-53.33%

Potato (1kg)

$0.56 BOB 6.50

$1.43 COP 4,539

-60.84%

Onion (1kg)

$0.48 BOB 5.52

$1.55 COP 4,917

-69.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.53 BOB 6.18

$1.14 COP 3,613

-53.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 BOB 7.87

$0.94 COP 2,983

-27.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.88 BOB 21.82

$3.79 COP 12.0K

-50.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$2.94 BOB 34.11

$12.94 COP 41.0K

-77.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 BOB 15.28

$1.43 COP 4,539

-7.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 BOB 18.62

$2.55 COP 8,079

-37.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.20 BOB 2.33

$1.07 COP 3,387

-81.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.66 BOB 193

$30.29 COP 96.0K

-45.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.03 BOB 11.97

$0.78 COP 2,488

32.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.87 BOB 10.12

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.60 BOB 99.9

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.49 BOB 5.72

$1.34 COP 4,245

-63.43%

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

$9,427 BOB 109.4K

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

$11.9K BOB 137.7K

$35.4K COP 112.1M

-66.47%

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

$23.37 BOB 271

$110 COP 347.5K

-78.68%

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

$14.42 BOB 167

$12.96 COP 41.1K

11.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.78 BOB 218

$30.06 COP 95.3K

-37.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$15.76 BOB 183

$28.81 COP 91.3K

-45.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.62 BOB 112

Cinema Ticket

$4.11 BOB 47.71

$8.40 COP 26.6K

-51.07%

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

$126 BOB 1,468

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,288 BOB 15.0K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$15.80 BOB 183

$78.4 COP 248.5K

-79.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.79 BOB 299

$53.2 COP 168.8K

-51.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$41.15 BOB 478

$126 COP 398.3K

-67.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.03 BOB 418

$111 COP 351.4K

-67.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$252 BOB 2,927

$655 COP 2.1M

-61.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$165 BOB 1,921

$288 COP 914.6K

-42.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$393 BOB 4,567

$1,558 COP 4.9M

-74.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$297 BOB 3,450

$498 COP 1.6M

-40.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,213 BOB 14.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$507 BOB 5,887

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$247 BOB 2,870

$585 COP 1.9M

-57.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.94

11.58

-31.43%

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

Last update for La Paz: October 12, 2026

Last update for Cali: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

La Paz

$165 33.3%

Cali

$288 27.2% 74.3% $123

Groceries & Markets

La Paz

$110 22.2%

Cali

$239 22.5% 117% $129

Eating Out

La Paz

$65 13%

Cali

$133 12.6% 106% $69

Monthly Utilities & Internet

La Paz

$57 11.4%

Cali

$153 14.4% 170% $96

Clothing & Footwear

La Paz

$53 10.8%

Cali

$166 15.6% 210% $112

Sport & Entertainment

La Paz

$24 4.8%

Cali

$46 4.3% 90.2% $22

Getting Around

La Paz

$23 4.6%

Cali

$35 * 3.3% 54.7% $12

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $252 in La Paz and $655 in Cali. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cali pays 137% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $9.00 in La Paz vs $37.00 in Cali for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $110 vs $239 per month, with La Paz cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇴 La Paz

🇨🇴 Cali

🕒 Local time

04:26 4:26 AM

03:26 3:26 AM

1 h behind La Paz

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

715,900 Capital

2,568,609

💱 Currency

Bolivian Boliviano BOB Bs.

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 BOB = 8.61 USD

100 BOB = 7.66 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to BOB – Bolivian Boliviano Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇴 Bolivian Boliviano (Bs.)

Bolivian Boliviano exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 11.61 BOB (100 BOB = 8.61 USD). 1 EUR = 13.05 BOB (100 BOB = 7.66 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 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 BOB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

La Paz Cali 2,400 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

La Paz
Cali

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

La Paz vs Cali: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

La Paz is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 113% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 137% lower in Cali. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $252 in La Paz versus $655 in Cali. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in La Paz – a meal for two runs $9.00 versus $37.00 in Cali. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

A monthly transit pass in La Paz runs roughly 82% less than in Cali. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $497 in La Paz versus $1,060 in Cali, a $2,000 budget is realistic in La Paz but tight or insufficient in Cali. The gap between the two cities makes La Paz the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, La Paz is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Cali, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find La Paz gentler on the wallet – expenses run 113% less than in Cali. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.