Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Atsugi

For one person, living is cheaper in Atsugi: $1,265 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 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
61

Cost of Living Index in Atsugi
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Atsugi Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Atsugi

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,265

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Atsugi

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $1,265 in Atsugi.

Medellin $1,639
Atsugi $1,265

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $2,187 in Atsugi.

Medellin $2,413
Atsugi $2,187

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $3,108 in Atsugi.

Medellin $3,186
Atsugi $3,108

Living in Medellin is roughly 30% more expensive than in Atsugi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Atsugi is 7% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$7.85 ¥1,239

3.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$25.21 ¥3,975

86.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$5.11 ¥805

85.91%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$1.92 ¥303

56.77%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$0.98 ¥155

83.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$0.71 ¥113

98.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$2.64 ¥416

20.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$3.14 ¥495

83.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$1.58 ¥250

-4.43%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$1.55 ¥245

53.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$4.06 ¥640

-56.40%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$2.05 ¥324

40.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$16.16 ¥2,548

-36.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$4.53 ¥715

117.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$12.36 ¥1,950

13.19%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$5.51 ¥868

-27.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$2.01 ¥316

-22.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$3.84 ¥605

-43.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$2.80 ¥442

-22.14%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$2.69 ¥424

-27.14%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$1.97 ¥310

-19.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$1.14 ¥180

0.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$0.90 ¥142

37.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$3.47 ¥548

14.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$9.73 ¥1,534

40.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$1.62 ¥256

2.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$2.12 ¥334

6.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

$2.60 ¥410

-55.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$56.8 ¥8,962

36.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$3.11 ¥490

-59.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$2.82 ¥444

-27.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$9.34 ¥1,473

-8.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$1.07 ¥169

26.17%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$12.9K ¥2.0M

163.77%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$15.3K ¥2.4M

126.26%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$236 ¥37.2K

-28.03%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$14.20 ¥2,240

-4.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$31.14 ¥4,911

-9.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$52.3 ¥8,246

-16.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

$7.77 ¥1,224

121.24%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$12.66 ¥1,997

-45.42%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$314 ¥49.5K

153.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$6,091 ¥960.5K

49.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$41.57 ¥6,554

103.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$24.45 ¥3,856

137.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$54.5 ¥8,600

147.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$31.86 ¥5,023

207.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$554 ¥87.4K

117.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$333 ¥52.6K

92.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$1,036 ¥163.3K

95.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$1,264 ¥199.3K

-19.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$4,039 ¥636.9K

3.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$2,650 ¥417.8K

-27.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$3,703 ¥583.9K

-82.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

2.02

441.58%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Atsugi: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Atsugi

$333 26.4% 48% $308

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Atsugi

$292 23.1% 1.6% $4.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Atsugi

$281 22.2% 33% $70

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Atsugi

$127 10.1% 24.9% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Atsugi

$69 5.4% 59.4% $100

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Atsugi

$84 6.7% 9.7% $9.1

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Atsugi

$78 6.1% 34.9% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $554 in Atsugi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Atsugi pays about 5.6 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $25 in Atsugi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $292 per month, with Atsugi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇯🇵 Atsugi

🕒 Local time

08:47 8:47 AM

22:47 10:47 PM

14 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

223,705

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.34 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.68 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,603 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.34 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.68 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Medellin Atsugi 14,110 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

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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 Atsugi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $1,265 in Atsugi, so Atsugi is about 23% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 82% 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: $1,208 in Medellin versus $554 in Atsugi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Atsugi runs roughly 27% less than in Medellin. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

All in, you’ll spend $1,639 per month in Medellin versus $1,265 in Atsugi – Atsugi is about 23% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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

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.