Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Manizales and Calgary

For one person, living is cheaper in Manizales: $1,173 a month against $2,297 in Calgary, rent and utilities included – about $13,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

56

Cost of Living Index in Manizales
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Manizales Living Index
110

Cost of Living Index in Calgary
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Calgary Living Index

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Manizales

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,173

/mo nomad

Calgary

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,297

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Manizales and in Calgary

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,173 in Manizales versus $2,297 in Calgary.

Manizales $1,173
Calgary $2,297

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,849 in Manizales versus $3,378 in Calgary.

Manizales $1,849
Calgary $3,378

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,525 in Manizales versus $4,459 in Calgary.

Manizales $2,525
Calgary $4,459

Living in Manizales costs roughly 49% less than in Calgary, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Manizales is 13% below, Calgary is 70% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.09 COP 22.9K

$17.94 CA$25.15

-60.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.83 COP 138.4K

$68.9 CA$96.5

-37.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.10 COP 32.6K

$10.94 CA$15.33

-7.68%

Cappuccino

$1.68 COP 5,420

$3.70 CA$5.19

-54.59%

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

$1.36 COP 4,399

$2.07 CA$2.90

-34.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.91 COP 2,947

$2.04 CA$2.86

-55.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.68 COP 5,438

$5.74 CA$8.05

-70.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.43 COP 7,839

$5.70 CA$7.99

-57.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.75 COP 2,429

$1.98 CA$2.77

-62.12%

White Bread (500g)

$2.32 COP 7,498

$2.65 CA$3.71

-12.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.89 COP 6,100

$5.84 CA$8.18

-67.64%

Eggs

$3.40 COP 11.0K

$3.81 CA$5.35

-10.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.85 COP 25.4K

$10.81 CA$15.15

-27.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.34 COP 23.7K

$11.02 CA$15.45

-33.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.29 COP 33.2K

$17.87 CA$25.06

-42.42%

Apples (1kg)

$3.48 COP 11.2K

$4.88 CA$6.84

-28.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$1.45 CA$2.03

22.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.90 COP 6,123

$4.15 CA$5.82

-54.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.83 COP 5,926

$3.99 CA$5.59

-54.14%

Potato (1kg)

$1.43 COP 4,630

$2.93 CA$4.10

-51.19%

Onion (1kg)

$1.43 COP 4,631

$3.02 CA$4.24

-52.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.32 COP 4,272

$2.67 CA$3.74

-50.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 COP 3,871

$1.57 CA$2.20

-23.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.29 COP 13.9K

$14.11 CA$19.77

-69.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.39 COP 40.0K

$15.45 CA$21.66

-19.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 COP 4,861

$2.50 CA$3.51

-40.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.07 COP 9,907

$3.18 CA$4.45

-3.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.99 COP 3,195

$2.85 CA$3.99

-65.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$57.1 COP 184.5K

$90.2 CA$126

-36.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.13 COP 3,654

$3.16 CA$4.43

-64.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.55 COP 1,761

$1.41 CA$1.97

-60.99%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.28 COP 23.5K

$27.46 CA$38.49

-73.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 COP 4,105

$1.18 CA$1.66

7.63%

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

$34.5K COP 111.4M

$27.9K CA$39.1K

23.85%

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

$34.9K COP 112.6M

$21.1K CA$29.5K

65.63%

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

$127 COP 410.8K

$182 CA$255

-30.03%

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

$11.72 COP 37.9K

$36.01 CA$50.5

-67.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.40 COP 98.2K

$48.80 CA$68.4

-37.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.21 COP 104.0K

$48.78 CA$68.4

-33.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.15 CA$25.45

Cinema Ticket

$7.68 COP 24.8K

$14.52 CA$20.35

-47.11%

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

$551 COP 1.8M

$542 CA$760

1.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,609 COP 21.3M

$21.2K CA$29.7K

-68.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$85.1 COP 274.9K

$59.1 CA$82.8

44.10%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.46 COP 153.3K

$42.34 CA$59.4

12.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$144 COP 464.7K

$94.2 CA$132

52.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 COP 340.7K

$109 CA$152

-2.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$398 COP 1.3M

$1,214 CA$1,702

-67.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$337 COP 1.1M

$1,036 CA$1,453

-67.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,089 COP 3.5M

$2,045 CA$2,867

-46.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$687 COP 2.2M

$1,655 CA$2,319

-58.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,511 COP 8.1M

$3,653 CA$5,121

-31.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,798 COP 5.8M

$3,183 CA$4,462

-43.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,226 COP 4.0M

$3,219 CA$4,512

-61.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.43

170.88%

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

Last update for Manizales: November 1, 2026

Last update for Calgary: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Manizales

$337 28.7%

Calgary

$1K 45.1% 208% $700

Groceries & Markets

Manizales

$253 21.6%

Calgary

$390 17% 54% $137

Clothing & Footwear

Manizales

$172 14.7%

Calgary

$137 6% 20.4% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Manizales

$169 14.4%

Calgary

$267 11.6% 57.5% $97

Eating Out

Manizales

$129 11%

Calgary

$277 12.1% 114% $148

Getting Around

Manizales

$65 5.5%

Calgary

$112 4.9% 72.2% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Manizales

$48 4.1%

Calgary

$78 3.4% 63.6% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $398 in Manizales and $1,214 in Calgary. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Calgary pays about 2.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $43 in Manizales vs $69 in Calgary for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $253 vs $390 per month, with Manizales cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Manizales

🇨🇦 Calgary

🕒 Local time

02:41 2:41 AM

01:41 1:41 AM

1 h behind Manizales

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

458,442

1,267,344

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

1 CAD = 0.713 USD

1 CAD = 0.635 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3,230 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,628 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.713 USD). 1 EUR = 1.57 CAD (1 CAD = 0.635 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Between locations

Manizales Calgary 6,230 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Manizales
Calgary

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

Manizales vs Calgary: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Manizales is about 49% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 62% lower in Manizales. 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: $398 in Manizales versus $1,214 in Calgary. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Manizales – a meal for two runs $43 versus $69 in Calgary. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,173 per month in Manizales versus $2,297 in Calgary – Manizales is about 49% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,173 in Manizales versus $2,297 in Calgary, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Manizales but tight or insufficient in Calgary. The gap between the two cities makes Manizales 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 Manizales gentler on the wallet – expenses run 49% less than in Calgary. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.