Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Arcos de Valdevez

For one person, living is cheaper in Arcos de Valdevez: $1,540 a month against $1,625 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $1,000 less a year. The total is higher in Medellin despite lower rent and utilities.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Arcos de Valdevez
Learn more

Arcos de Valdevez Living Index

Jump to prices

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,625

/mo nomad

Arcos de Valdevez

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,540

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Arcos de Valdevez

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 Arcos de Valdevez actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,625 per month in Medellin vs $1,540 in Arcos de Valdevez, rent included.

Medellin $1,625
Arcos de Valdevez $1,540

A couple spends around $2,412 per month in Medellin vs $2,260 in Arcos de Valdevez, rent included.

Medellin $2,412
Arcos de Valdevez $2,260

A family of three spends $3,199 per month in Medellin vs $2,981 in Arcos de Valdevez, rent included.

Medellin $3,199
Arcos de Valdevez $2,981

Medellin costs about 5% more than Arcos de Valdevez, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Medellin and Arcos de Valdevez sit above the global median – Medellin by 20%, Arcos de Valdevez by 14%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.30 COP 26.3K

$9.04 €8.04

-8.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.91 COP 148.7K

$42.22 €37.56

11.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.24 COP 29.3K

$8.20 €7.29

12.68%

Cappuccino

$3.05 COP 9,676

$1.82 €1.62

67.58%

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

$1.80 COP 5,707

$1.49 €1.33

20.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,382

$1.14 €1.01

21.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 COP 10.3K

$2.26 €2.01

43.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.56 COP 17.6K

$2.82 €2.51

97.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 COP 4,760

$1.15 €1.03

30.43%

White Bread (500g)

$2.37 COP 7,508

$1.78 €1.58

33.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 COP 5,377

$1.41 €1.25

20.57%

Eggs

$2.96 COP 9,379

$2.27 €2.02

30.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.22 COP 32.4K

$8.69 €7.73

17.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.74 COP 30.9K

$8.11 €7.21

20.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.90 COP 44.1K

$14.33 €12.75

-3.00%

Apples (1kg)

$4.13 COP 13.1K

$1.92 €1.70

115.10%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,839

$1.47 €1.31

4.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 COP 7,052

$1.76 €1.56

26.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.27 COP 7,194

$2.29 €2.04

-0.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 COP 6,311

$1.84 €1.64

8.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 COP 5,285

$1.66 €1.47

0.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 COP 3,742

$1.02 €0.91

15.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,919

$0.58 €0.52

113.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.87 COP 12.3K

$5.74 €5.11

-32.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.78 COP 43.7K

$4.42 €3.93

211.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,256

$1.13 €1.01

46.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 COP 7,615

$1.72 €1.53

39.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.24 COP 3,944

$2.25 €2.00

-44.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.2 COP 248.0K

$42.01 €37.37

86.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 COP 4,044

$4.51 €4.01

-71.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.15 COP 6,803

$1.48 €1.31

45.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.37 COP 26.5K

$20.86 €18.55

-59.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,288

$2.14 €1.91

-36.92%

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

$34.8K COP 110.2M

$27.5K €24.5K

26.41%

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

$34.7K COP 110.0M

$37.9K €33.7K

-8.41%

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

$167 COP 528.4K

$101 €90.0

64.80%

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

$13.62 COP 43.2K

$16.68 €14.84

-18.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.12 COP 92.3K

$33.36 €29.67

-12.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.09 COP 143.0K

$41.30 €36.73

9.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.18 COP 54.5K

$16.41 €14.60

4.69%

Cinema Ticket

$6.97 COP 22.1K

$8.80 €7.83

-20.80%

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

$790 COP 2.5M

$458 €408

72.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,041 COP 28.7M

$6,421 €5,711

40.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.8 COP 278.4K

$95.2 €84.7

-7.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.2 COP 184.4K

$35.80 €31.85

62.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$139 COP 440.7K

$76.5 €68.0

81.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.9 COP 313.5K

$102 €90.4

-2.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 COP 3.3M

$961 €855

6.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$620 COP 2.0M

$753 €670

-17.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,881 COP 6.0M

$1,519 €1,351

23.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 COP 3.2M

$1,193 €1,061

-15.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,988 COP 12.6M

$3,051 €2,714

30.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,702 COP 5.4M

$2,210 €1,966

-22.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$663 COP 2.1M

$1,919 €1,707

-65.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

3.7

195.68%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 19, 2026

Last update for Arcos de Valdevez: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$619 38.1%

Arcos de Valdevez

$753 48.9% 21.6% $134

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$298 18.3%

Arcos de Valdevez

$228 14.8% 23.4% $70

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$209 12.9%

Arcos de Valdevez

$151 9.8% 27.8% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$173 10.6%

Arcos de Valdevez

$139 9% 19.5% $34

Eating Out

Medellin

$171 10.5%

Arcos de Valdevez

$146 9.5% 14.4% $25

Getting Around

Medellin

$95 5.9%

Arcos de Valdevez

$63 4.1% 33.9% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$59 3.6%

Arcos de Valdevez

$59 3.8% 0.2% $0.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,028 in Medellin versus $961 in Arcos de Valdevez. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 189% higher in Arcos de Valdevez, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47.00 in Medellin versus $42.00 in Arcos de Valdevez. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $298 vs $228 – making Arcos de Valdevez the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇵🇹 Arcos de Valdevez

🕒 Local time

19:15 7:15 PM

01:15 1:15 AM

6 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

20,720

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Arcos de Valdevez 7,660 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Arcos de Valdevez

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 Arcos de Valdevez: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin costs about 5% more than Arcos de Valdevez, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,437 per month in Medellin and $2,310 in Arcos de Valdevez. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Arcos de Valdevez, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $790 per month in Medellin and $458 in Arcos de Valdevez. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 30% more in Medellin, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Arcos de Valdevez, where all-in costs run around $1,540, than in Medellin at $1,625. In Arcos de Valdevez it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Arcos de Valdevez costs $1,540 versus $1,625 in Medellin. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Arcos de Valdevez. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Medellin makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.