Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Arouca

For one person, living is cheaper in Arouca: $766 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $10,200 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
37

Cost of Living Index in Arouca
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Arouca Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Arouca

🇹🇹 Trinidad And Tobago

$766

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Arouca

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 Arouca actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,614 in Medellin versus $766 in Arouca.

Medellin $1,614
Arouca $766

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,402 in Medellin versus $1,313 in Arouca.

Medellin $2,402
Arouca $1,313

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,190 in Medellin versus $1,861 in Arouca.

Medellin $3,190
Arouca $1,861

Living in Medellin is roughly 111% more expensive than in Arouca, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Arouca is 43% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.93 COP 25.2K

$10.26 TTD 69.0

-22.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.13 COP 146.3K

$59.2 TTD 398

-22.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$8.10 TTD 54.5

17.28%

Cappuccino

$3.11 COP 9,866

$3.75 TTD 25.22

-17.07%

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

$1.83 COP 5,800

$1.04 TTD 6.96

75.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,360

$0.77 TTD 5.16

79.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 COP 9,672

$1.79 TTD 12.02

70.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.50 COP 17.4K

$2.51 TTD 16.87

119.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 COP 4,600

$2.06 TTD 13.85

-29.61%

White Bread (500g)

$2.36 COP 7,496

$2.26 TTD 15.20

4.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,328

$2.82 TTD 18.98

-40.43%

Eggs

$2.86 COP 9,077

$3.79 TTD 25.47

-24.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.3K

$6.81 TTD 45.84

49.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 COP 30.2K

$10.25 TTD 68.9

-7.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.04 COP 44.5K

$8.80 TTD 59.2

59.55%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 COP 12.9K

$5.43 TTD 36.54

-25.05%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,742

$2.50 TTD 16.81

-40.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 COP 6,891

$3.76 TTD 25.27

-42.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 COP 7,310

$4.33 TTD 29.14

-46.65%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 COP 6,113

$0.78 TTD 5.22

147.44%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,196

$0.72 TTD 4.84

127.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,571

$1.47 TTD 9.88

-23.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 COP 3,954

$1.16 TTD 7.77

7.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 COP 12.6K

$5.48 TTD 36.89

-27.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 COP 42.3K

$17.73 TTD 119

-24.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 COP 5,384

$1.54 TTD 10.34

10.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,525

$3.10 TTD 20.82

-23.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 COP 3,827

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 COP 4,179

$0.93 TTD 6.28

41.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,774

$0.85 TTD 5.71

151.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 COP 26.8K

$14.93 TTD 100

-43.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 COP 4,114

$1.15 TTD 7.76

13.04%

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

$28.0K COP 88.7M

$36.3K TTD 244.5K

-23.00%

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

$35.4K COP 112.3M

$40.7K TTD 273.7K

-12.97%

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

$172 COP 545.6K

$44.13 TTD 297

289.96%

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

$13.37 COP 42.4K

$42.57 TTD 286

-68.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.73 COP 91.1K

$45.30 TTD 305

-36.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 COP 143.5K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 COP 19.9K

$8.69 TTD 58.5

-27.73%

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

$770 COP 2.4M

$392 TTD 2,636

96.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.6M

$10.8K TTD 72.3K

-16.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.4 COP 274.0K

$55.2 TTD 371

56.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 COP 181.1K

$36.42 TTD 245

56.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 432.9K

$86.9 TTD 584

57.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 310.4K

$87.7 TTD 590

11.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 COP 3.3M

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$616 COP 2.0M

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.2M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.75

90.26%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Last update for Arouca: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$616 38.2%

Arouca

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$295 18.3%

Arouca

$319 41.7% 8.4% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$214 13.3%

Arouca

$132 17.2% 38.4% $82

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$170 10.5%

Arouca

$120 15.6% 29.6% $50

Eating Out

Medellin

$168 10.4%

Arouca

$173 22.5% 2.5% $4.2

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.8%

Arouca

$5.2 * 0.7% 94.4% $88

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.6%

Arouca

$17 * 2.3% 69.9% $40

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $46.00 in Medellin vs $59.0 in Arouca for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $295 vs $319 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇹🇹 Arouca

🕒 Local time

15:30 3:30 PM

16:30 4:30 PM

1 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

12,054

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar TTD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

1 TTD = 0.149 USD

1 TTD = 0.132 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TTD, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 6.73 TTD (1 TTD = 0.149 USD). 1 EUR = 7.56 TTD (1 TTD = 0.132 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Arouca 1,640 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Arouca

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 Arouca: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin and Arouca differ by about 111% in total monthly costs ($1,614 vs $766 including rent). Arouca is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,421 in Medellin and $1,149 in Arouca to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $770 in Medellin versus $392 in Arouca. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Arouca – a meal for two runs $59.0 versus $46.00 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $766 in Arouca versus $1,614 in Medellin, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Arouca but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Arouca 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 Arouca gentler on the wallet – expenses run 111% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.