Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Araraquara

For one person, living is cheaper in Araraquara: $620 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $12,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
30

Cost of Living Index in Araraquara
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Araraquara Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Araraquara

🇧🇷 Brazil

$620

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Araraquara

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $620 in Araraquara.

Medellin $1,639
Araraquara $620

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $1,027 in Araraquara.

Medellin $2,413
Araraquara $1,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $1,434 in Araraquara.

Medellin $3,186
Araraquara $1,434

Living in Medellin is roughly 164% more expensive than in Araraquara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Araraquara is 54% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$5.59 R$29.91

44.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$22.50 R$120

109.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$6.70 R$35.82

41.79%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$2.10 R$11.23

43.33%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$1.54 R$8.21

16.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$0.79 R$4.20

78.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$1.90 R$10.16

67.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$3.76 R$20.12

52.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$0.82 R$4.41

84.15%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$1.19 R$6.39

100.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$1.07 R$5.70

65.42%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$2.32 R$12.39

24.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$6.24 R$33.35

63.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$3.20 R$17.10

208.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$5.75 R$30.75

143.30%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$1.29 R$6.88

207.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$0.88 R$4.71

76.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$0.84 R$4.50

159.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$1.17 R$6.28

86.32%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$0.79 R$4.24

148.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$0.70 R$3.77

127.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$0.58 R$3.08

98.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$0.69 R$3.70

79.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$1.90 R$10.18

108.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$4.75 R$25.41

188.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,221

$0.91 R$4.89

82.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,103

$1.51 R$8.09

49.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$1.01 R$5.42

15.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

$24.46 R$131

216.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$1.18 R$6.33

7.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$0.97 R$5.21

111.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$8.84 R$47.24

-3.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$1.09 R$5.84

23.85%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$21.7K R$116.3K

56.68%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$22.4K R$119.9K

54.60%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$40.58 R$217

318.06%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$9.21 R$49.24

47.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$16.87 R$90.2

66.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$24.45 R$131

78.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

$18.70 R$100.0

-8.07%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$3.73 R$19.95

85.25%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$280 R$1,495

184.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$7,013 R$37.5K

29.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$43.26 R$231

95.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$41.02 R$219

41.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$86.8 R$464

55.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$51.2 R$274

91.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$212 R$1,135

469.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$132 R$708

384.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$465 R$2,487

335.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$322 R$1,721

214.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

$1,288 R$6,888

223.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$430 R$2,300

52.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

11.12

-1.62%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Araraquara: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Araraquara

$132 21.4% 79.4% $509

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Araraquara

$138 22.3% 53.5% $159

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Araraquara

$67 10.8% 68.4% $145

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Araraquara

$116 18.8% 31.4% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Araraquara

$100 16.1% 40.8% $69

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Araraquara

$35 5.6% 63% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Araraquara

$32 5.2% 44.5% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $212 in Araraquara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays 53% 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: $47 in Medellin vs $22 in Araraquara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $138 per month, with Araraquara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇧🇷 Araraquara

🕒 Local time

18:08 6:08 PM

20:08 8:08 PM

2 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

242,228

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

1 BRL = 0.187 USD

1 BRL = 0.168 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

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).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 5.35 BRL (1 BRL = 0.187 USD). 1 EUR = 5.95 BRL (1 BRL = 0.168 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Araraquara 4,320 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Araraquara

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

Medellin vs Araraquara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $620 in Araraquara, so Araraquara is about 62% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 53% higher in Medellin, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,208 in Medellin versus $212 in Araraquara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 115% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Araraquara – a meal for two runs $22 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $620 in Araraquara versus $1,639 in Medellin, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Araraquara but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Araraquara 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 Araraquara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 62% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.