Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Manzanillo and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Manzanillo: $1,200 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Manzanillo
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Manzanillo Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Manzanillo

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,200

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,200 in Manzanillo versus $1,692 in Medellin.

Manzanillo $1,200
Medellin $1,692

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,100 in Manzanillo versus $2,471 in Medellin.

Manzanillo $2,100
Medellin $2,471

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,000 in Manzanillo versus $3,249 in Medellin.

Manzanillo $3,000
Medellin $3,249

Living in Manzanillo costs roughly 29% less than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Manzanillo is 11% below, Medellin is 25% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.88 MX$202

$8.34 COP 27.0K

30.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.44 MX$604

$46.53 COP 150.9K

-30.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.92 MX$203

$9.47 COP 30.7K

15.31%

Cappuccino

$3.71 MX$69.1

$3.13 COP 10.2K

18.53%

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

$1.14 MX$21.14

$1.77 COP 5,727

-35.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.12 MX$20.81

$1.42 COP 4,619

-21.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.11 MX$39.23

$3.15 COP 10.2K

-33.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.31 MX$80.2

$5.70 COP 18.5K

-24.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 MX$28.04

$1.53 COP 4,969

-1.31%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 MX$47.10

$2.29 COP 7,429

10.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.16 MX$21.54

$1.94 COP 6,306

-40.21%

Eggs

$2.07 MX$38.50

$3.07 COP 9,942

-32.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.01 MX$149

$9.99 COP 32.4K

-19.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.42 MX$101

$10.45 COP 33.9K

-48.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.44 MX$176

$13.96 COP 45.3K

-32.38%

Apples (1kg)

$2.87 MX$53.4

$4.05 COP 13.1K

-29.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.67

$1.53 COP 4,956

-9.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 MX$32.21

$2.10 COP 6,823

-17.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.46 MX$27.23

$2.29 COP 7,437

-36.24%

Potato (1kg)

$2.31 MX$42.95

$2.11 COP 6,839

9.48%

Onion (1kg)

$1.65 MX$30.77

$1.71 COP 5,542

-3.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.83 MX$34.15

$1.17 COP 3,794

56.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 MX$21.53

$1.58 COP 5,123

-26.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.31 MX$98.9

$3.91 COP 12.7K

35.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.36 MX$118

$14.04 COP 45.5K

-54.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 MX$33.46

$1.76 COP 5,712

2.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 MX$45.32

$2.71 COP 8,793

-9.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 MX$13.94

$1.18 COP 3,825

-36.44%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 247.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.39 MX$44.54

$1.81 COP 5,859

32.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.48 MX$46.14

$2.13 COP 6,904

16.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.20 MX$153

$8.13 COP 26.4K

0.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.16

$1.28 COP 4,135

10.16%

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

$23.9K MX$445.2K

$34.4K COP 111.7M

-30.54%

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

$23.3K MX$434.3K

$34.1K COP 110.7M

-31.62%

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

$64.1 MX$1,193

$178 COP 576.3K

-63.93%

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

$19.79 MX$368

$13.89 COP 45.0K

42.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.60 MX$532

$30.74 COP 99.7K

-6.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$65.8 MX$1,224

$41.94 COP 136.0K

56.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.67 MX$589

$16.80 COP 54.5K

88.51%

Cinema Ticket

$4.34 MX$80.8

$7.47 COP 24.2K

-41.90%

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

$162 MX$3,022

$790 COP 2.6M

-79.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,458 MX$157.4K

$12.3K COP 39.9M

-31.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.68 MX$794

$86.3 COP 279.9K

-50.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.94 MX$464

$59.3 COP 192.2K

-57.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.9 MX$1,376

$138 COP 448.6K

-46.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 MX$2,112

$98.8 COP 320.4K

14.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$660 MX$12.3K

$1,341 COP 4.3M

-50.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$460 MX$8,560

$667 COP 2.2M

-31.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,531 MX$28.5K

$1,976 COP 6.4M

-22.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,322 MX$24.6K

$1,033 COP 3.3M

28.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.3M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$402 MX$7,485

$646 COP 2.1M

-37.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

10.94

3.29%

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

Last update for Manzanillo: November 1, 2026

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Manzanillo

$460 38.3%

Medellin

$667 39.4% 45% $207

Groceries & Markets

Manzanillo

$228 19%

Medellin

$307 18.2% 35% $80

Eating Out

Manzanillo

$193 16.1%

Medellin

$173 10.2% 10.4% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Manzanillo

$115 9.6%

Medellin

$172 10.2% 50.1% $57

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Manzanillo

$112 9.4%

Medellin

$222 13.1% 97.7% $110

Sport & Entertainment

Manzanillo

$74 6.2%

Medellin

$57 3.4% 23.6% $18

Getting Around

Manzanillo

$18 * 1.5%

Medellin

$93 5.5% 425% $76

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 $660 in Manzanillo and $1,341 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays 61% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Manzanillo vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $228 vs $307 per month, with Manzanillo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Manzanillo

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

14:56 2:56 PM

15:56 3:56 PM

1 h ahead of Manzanillo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

159,853

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.08 USD

10,000 COP = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.95 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 3,242 COP (10,000 COP = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 3,650 COP (10,000 COP = 2.74 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Manzanillo Medellin 3,420 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Manzanillo
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

Manzanillo vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,200 in Manzanillo and $1,692 in Medellin, so Manzanillo is about 29% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 38% lower in Manzanillo. 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: $660 in Manzanillo versus $1,341 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 35% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,200 per month in Manzanillo versus $1,692 in Medellin – Manzanillo is about 29% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Manzanillo gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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

It comes down to priorities – Manzanillo wins on affordability, Medellin on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.