Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Machala and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Machala: $656 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

32

Cost of Living Index in Machala
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Machala Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Machala

🇪🇨 Ecuador

$656

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $656 in Machala versus $1,639 in Medellin.

Machala $656
Medellin $1,639

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,046 in Machala versus $2,413 in Medellin.

Machala $1,046
Medellin $2,413

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,435 in Machala versus $3,186 in Medellin.

Machala $1,435
Medellin $3,186

Living in Machala costs roughly 60% less than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Machala is 52% below, Medellin is 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.81 $2.81

$8.09 COP 25.4K

-65.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$25.28 $25.28

$47.05 COP 148.0K

-46.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.21 $5.21

$9.50 COP 29.9K

-45.16%

Cappuccino

$2.68 $2.68

$3.01 COP 9,485

-10.96%

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

$0.86 $0.86

$1.80 COP 5,660

-52.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.72 $0.72

$1.41 COP 4,443

-48.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.03 $2.03

$3.18 COP 9,990

-36.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 $3.69

$5.75 COP 18.1K

-35.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.04 $1.04

$1.51 COP 4,751

-31.13%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 $1.05

$2.38 COP 7,480

-55.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.91 $0.91

$1.77 COP 5,573

-48.59%

Eggs

$1.49 $1.49

$2.89 COP 9,093

-48.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.23 $3.23

$10.19 COP 32.1K

-68.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.17 $4.17

$9.87 COP 31.1K

-57.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.72 $4.72

$13.99 COP 44.0K

-66.26%

Apples (1kg)

$1.47 $1.47

$3.97 COP 12.5K

-62.97%

Banana (1kg)

$0.59 $0.59

$1.55 COP 4,883

-61.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.77 $0.77

$2.18 COP 6,867

-64.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.58 $0.58

$2.18 COP 6,870

-73.39%

Potato (1kg)

$0.41 $0.41

$1.96 COP 6,174

-79.08%

Onion (1kg)

$0.48 $0.48

$1.59 COP 5,000

-69.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.39 $0.39

$1.15 COP 3,604

-66.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 $0.99

$1.24 COP 3,911

-20.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.37 $4.37

$3.96 COP 12.5K

10.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.64 $7.64

$13.68 COP 43.0K

-44.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.57 $1.57

$1.66 COP 5,221

-5.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 $2.22

$2.26 COP 7,103

-1.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 $0.34

$1.17 COP 3,674

-70.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.09 $22.09

$77.4 COP 243.4K

-71.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.53 $1.53

$1.27 COP 3,989

20.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.73 $1.73

$2.05 COP 6,442

-15.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.11 $8.11

$8.55 COP 26.9K

-5.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.61 $0.61

$1.35 COP 4,237

-54.81%

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

$17.7K $17.7K

$34.1K COP 107.2M

-48.00%

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

$22.0K $22.0K

$34.7K COP 109.1M

-36.52%

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

$52.2 $52.2

$170 COP 533.7K

-69.24%

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

$14.97 $14.97

$13.55 COP 42.6K

10.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.58 $26.58

$28.07 COP 88.3K

-5.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.15 $42.15

$43.70 COP 137.5K

-3.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.74 $29.74

$17.19 COP 54.1K

73.01%

Cinema Ticket

$4.89 $4.89

$6.91 COP 21.7K

-29.23%

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

$133 $133

$797 COP 2.5M

-83.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,675 $5,675

$9,112 COP 28.7M

-37.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.5 $64.5

$84.7 COP 266.5K

-23.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.94 $39.94

$58.0 COP 182.3K

-31.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.9 $80.9

$135 COP 424.6K

-40.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.6 $68.6

$97.9 COP 307.9K

-29.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$190 $190

$1,208 COP 3.8M

-84.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$133 $133

$642 COP 2.0M

-79.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$353 $353

$2,028 COP 6.4M

-82.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$264 $264

$1,012 COP 3.2M

-73.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$444 $444

$657 COP 2.1M

-32.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

-54.30%

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

Last update for Machala: October 24, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Machala

$135 20.6%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 119% $162

Accommodation & Living

Machala

$133 20.3%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 381% $508

Clothing & Footwear

Machala

$114 17.4%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 47.9% $55

Eating Out

Machala

$94 14.3%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 80.1% $75

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Machala

$94 14.3%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 125% $118

Sport & Entertainment

Machala

$52 7.9%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 10.8% $5.6

Getting Around

Machala

$34 5.1%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 178% $60

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $190 in Machala and $1,208 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays 48% 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: $25 in Machala vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $135 vs $297 per month, with Machala cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇨 Machala

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

17:27 5:27 PM

Same time as Machala

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

231,260

2,486,723

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 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 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,502 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

COP to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Machala Medellin 1,160 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Machala
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

Machala vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Machala is about 60% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 33% lower in Machala. 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: $190 in Machala versus $1,208 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Machala – a meal for two runs $25 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $656 per month in Machala versus $1,639 in Medellin – Machala is about 60% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $656 in Machala versus $1,639 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Machala but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Machala 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 Machala gentler on the wallet – expenses run 60% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.