Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Bagé

For one person, living is cheaper in Bagé: $823 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 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
40

Cost of Living Index in Bagé
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Bagé Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Bagé

🇧🇷 Brazil

$823

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Bagé

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $823 in Bagé.

Medellin $1,639
Bagé $823

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $1,300 in Bagé.

Medellin $2,413
Bagé $1,300

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $1,777 in Bagé.

Medellin $3,186
Bagé $1,777

Living in Medellin is roughly 99% more expensive than in Bagé, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Bagé is 40% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$5.49 R$29.38

47.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$25.60 R$137

83.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$6.41 R$34.30

48.21%

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

$1.18 R$6.29

52.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$0.84 R$4.48

67.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$1.60 R$8.56

98.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$2.61 R$13.97

120.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$0.99 R$5.30

52.53%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$1.55 R$8.28

53.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$1.16 R$6.23

52.59%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$2.01 R$10.76

43.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$8.78 R$46.93

16.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$4.04 R$21.61

144.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$8.95 R$47.85

56.31%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$1.95 R$10.44

103.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$1.19 R$6.37

30.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$1.02 R$5.45

113.73%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$1.54 R$8.24

41.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$1.21 R$6.48

61.98%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$0.99 R$5.30

60.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$0.74 R$3.94

55.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$0.83 R$4.44

49.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$2.04 R$10.92

94.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$7.17 R$38.34

90.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,221

$1.37 R$7.34

21.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,103

$1.96 R$10.49

15.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$0.94 R$5.00

24.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

$36.39 R$195

112.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$1.39 R$7.44

-8.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$0.86 R$4.59

138.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$7.98 R$42.65

7.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$1.17 R$6.27

15.38%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$22.8K R$122.1K

49.18%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$35.3K R$189.0K

-1.92%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$72.4 R$387

134.42%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$11.56 R$61.8

17.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$19.41 R$104

44.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$24.35 R$130

79.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

$29.62 R$158

-41.96%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$6.59 R$35.26

4.86%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$263 R$1,404

203.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$7,560 R$40.4K

20.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$52.1 R$278

62.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$46.85 R$251

23.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$83.0 R$444

62.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$67.0 R$358

46.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$331 R$1,767

265.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$231 R$1,234

178.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$642 R$3,432

215.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$448 R$2,396

125.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

$1,569 R$8,391

165.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$1,152 R$6,159

65.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

-0.55%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Bagé: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Bagé

$231 28% 64% $411

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Bagé

$184 22.3% 38.1% $113

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Bagé

$103 12.6% 51.1% $108

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Bagé

$110 13.3% 35.3% $60

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Bagé

$112 13.6% 33.7% $57

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Bagé

$46 5.6% 51% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Bagé

$38 4.6% 34.7% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $331 in Bagé. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $26 in Bagé for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $184 per month, with Bagé cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇧🇷 Bagé

🕒 Local time

19:12 7:12 PM

21:12 9:12 PM

2 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

117,938

💱 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 29, 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 29, 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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Between locations

Medellin Bagé 4,760 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Bagé

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 Bagé: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bagé wins on cost – living expenses run 50% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Bagé the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $2,459 in Medellin and $1,234 in Bagé 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,208 in Medellin versus $331 in Bagé. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $797 in Medellin versus $263 in Bagé. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 62% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Bagé is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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 Bagé gentler on the wallet – expenses run 50% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.