Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mar del Plata and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Mar del Plata: $1,038 a month against $1,589 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

42

Cost of Living Index in Mar del Plata
Learn more

Mar del Plata Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index

Jump to prices

Mar del Plata

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,038

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,589

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,038 in Mar del Plata versus $1,589 in Medellin.

Mar del Plata $1,038
Medellin $1,589

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,787 in Mar del Plata versus $2,364 in Medellin.

Mar del Plata $1,787
Medellin $2,364

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,536 in Mar del Plata versus $3,139 in Medellin.

Mar del Plata $2,536
Medellin $3,139

Living in Mar del Plata costs roughly 35% less than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mar del Plata is 23% below, Medellin is 19% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.74 ARS 29.9K

$8.01 COP 25.5K

146.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.3 ARS 91.4K

$46.55 COP 148.3K

29.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.52 ARS 19.0K

$9.43 COP 30.1K

32.77%

Cappuccino

$3.13 ARS 4,743

$2.91 COP 9,277

7.56%

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

$2.51 ARS 3,813

$1.75 COP 5,585

43.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 ARS 3,071

$1.32 COP 4,218

53.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.06 ARS 6,151

$3.13 COP 9,969

29.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.02 ARS 4,585

$5.55 COP 17.7K

-45.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.08 ARS 1,634

$1.41 COP 4,495

-23.40%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 ARS 3,330

$2.44 COP 7,777

-9.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.16 ARS 4,785

$1.63 COP 5,191

93.87%

Eggs

$2.36 ARS 3,575

$2.82 COP 8,990

-16.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.86 ARS 8,885

$9.69 COP 30.9K

-39.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 ARS 10.1K

$9.32 COP 29.7K

-28.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.52 ARS 19.0K

$13.46 COP 42.9K

-6.98%

Apples (1kg)

$3.32 ARS 5,030

$4.00 COP 12.8K

-17.00%

Banana (1kg)

$2.43 ARS 3,687

$1.48 COP 4,719

64.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.48 ARS 2,242

$2.12 COP 6,768

-30.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ARS 3,115

$2.25 COP 7,178

-8.89%

Potato (1kg)

$1.91 COP 6,092

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 ARS 1,532

$1.62 COP 5,160

-37.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,658

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 COP 4,021

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 ARS 5,463

$3.82 COP 12.2K

-5.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$2.94 ARS 4,457

$13.11 COP 41.8K

-77.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.60 COP 5,083

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,188

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.29 ARS 1,954

$1.17 COP 3,731

10.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$75.0 COP 239.0K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.63 ARS 2,468

$1.27 COP 4,056

28.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 ARS 967

$2.05 COP 6,531

-68.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.40 ARS 9,707

$8.20 COP 26.1K

-21.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 ARS 2,064

$1.27 COP 4,046

7.09%

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

$26.8K COP 85.3M

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

$34.4K COP 109.6M

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

$79.0 ARS 119.8K

$162 COP 516.9K

-51.29%

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

$8.23 ARS 12.5K

$13.12 COP 41.8K

-37.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.10 ARS 45.6K

$28.09 COP 89.5K

7.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.31 ARS 47.5K

$44.33 COP 141.2K

-29.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.33 COP 52.0K

Cinema Ticket

$10.07 ARS 15.3K

$6.09 COP 19.4K

65.35%

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

$304 ARS 460.4K

$764 COP 2.4M

-60.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,904 COP 28.4M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 ARS 133.1K

$85.0 COP 270.8K

3.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.5 COP 183.2K

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 ARS 184.2K

$132 COP 419.8K

-7.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$54.8 ARS 83.1K

$95.8 COP 305.1K

-42.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$328 ARS 497.2K

$1,028 COP 3.3M

-68.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$253 ARS 383.9K

$604 COP 1.9M

-58.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$801 ARS 1.2M

$1,802 COP 5.7M

-55.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$654 ARS 992.3K

$993 COP 3.2M

-34.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,921 COP 12.5M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,639 COP 5.2M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$610 ARS 925.5K

$626 COP 2.0M

-2.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

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

Last update for Mar del Plata: October 4, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Eating Out

Mar del Plata

$278 27%

Medellin

$166 10.6% 40.1% $111

Accommodation & Living

Mar del Plata

$253 24.7%

Medellin

$604 38.3% 139% $351

Groceries & Markets

Mar del Plata

$198 * 19.3%

Medellin

$288 18.3% 45.4% $90

Clothing & Footwear

Mar del Plata

$119 * 11.6%

Medellin

$166 10.6% 40.1% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mar del Plata

$117 11.4%

Medellin

$203 12.9% 73.4% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Mar del Plata

$51 5%

Medellin

$57 3.6% 9.8% $5

Getting Around

Mar del Plata

$10 * 1%

Medellin

$91 5.8% 815% $81

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 $328 in Mar del Plata and $1,028 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays 3% 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: $60.0 in Mar del Plata vs $47.00 in Medellin. Groceries flip the comparison at $198 vs $288, with Mar del Plata cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Mar del Plata

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

07:40 7:40 AM

05:40 5:40 AM

2 h behind Mar del Plata

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

593,337

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.14 USD

10,000 COP = 2.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,699 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3,187 COP (10,000 COP = 3.14 USD). 1 EUR = 3,571 COP (10,000 COP = 2.8 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mar del Plata Medellin 5,270 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Mar del Plata
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

Mar del Plata vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mar del Plata wins on cost – living expenses run 53% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Mar del Plata the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 3% lower in Medellin. 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: $328 in Mar del Plata versus $1,028 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 45% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,038 per month in Mar del Plata versus $1,589 in Medellin – a 53% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,038 in Mar del Plata versus $1,589 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Mar del Plata but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Mar del Plata the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Mar del Plata delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,038 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Mar del Plata hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Mar del Plata and Medellin are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Mar del Plata gentler on the wallet – expenses run 53% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.