Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Barbacena

For one person, living is cheaper in Barbacena: $798 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $10,100 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
38

Cost of Living Index in Barbacena
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Barbacena Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Barbacena

🇧🇷 Brazil

$798

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Barbacena

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $798 in Barbacena.

Medellin $1,639
Barbacena $798

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $1,216 in Barbacena.

Medellin $2,413
Barbacena $1,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $1,634 in Barbacena.

Medellin $3,186
Barbacena $1,634

Living in Medellin is roughly 106% more expensive than in Barbacena, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Barbacena is 41% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.6K

$5.08 R$27.15

59.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.9K

$19.42 R$104

142.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$5.72 R$30.56

66.08%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,540

$1.55 R$8.29

94.19%

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

$1.80 COP 5,693

$1.42 R$7.59

26.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,469

$0.80 R$4.29

76.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.0K

$1.22 R$6.55

160.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.2K

$2.00 R$10.70

187.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,778

$1.07 R$5.70

41.12%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,524

$1.99 R$10.62

19.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,606

$1.17 R$6.28

51.28%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,146

$2.21 R$11.82

30.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.2K

$10.04 R$53.7

1.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.2K

$4.25 R$22.71

132.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.3K

$8.98 R$48.00

55.79%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.6K

$2.72 R$14.55

45.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,911

$1.62 R$8.66

-4.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,907

$1.47 R$7.88

48.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,910

$1.76 R$9.41

23.86%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,210

$1.18 R$6.30

66.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,029

$1.01 R$5.39

57.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,625

$0.70 R$3.77

64.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,934

$0.62 R$3.30

100.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$2.72 R$14.53

45.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.3K

$7.51 R$40.12

82.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,252

$1.09 R$5.84

52.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,145

$2.32 R$12.39

-2.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,696

$0.94 R$5.00

24.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 244.8K

$40.71 R$218

90.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,013

$1.17 R$6.24

8.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,480

$0.80 R$4.26

156.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.1K

$8.52 R$45.56

0.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,262

$1.21 R$6.49

11.57%

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

$34.1K COP 107.8M

$21.9K R$116.8K

55.90%

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

$34.7K COP 109.7M

$32.1K R$171.3K

8.17%

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

$170 COP 536.8K

$125 R$668

35.84%

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

$13.55 COP 42.9K

$10.19 R$54.5

32.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.8K

$21.67 R$116

29.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 138.3K

$22.66 R$121

92.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.4K

$28.16 R$151

-38.96%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.9K

$7.61 R$40.70

-9.20%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$552 R$2,952

44.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.8M

$12.1K R$64.5K

-24.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 268.1K

$39.68 R$212

113.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 183.4K

$45.40 R$243

27.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 427.1K

$69.3 R$370

94.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 309.7K

$61.9 R$331

58.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$218 R$1,167

453.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$159 R$852

302.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$401 R$2,145

405.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$293 R$1,568

245.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.2M

$1,641 R$8,774

154.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$1,139 R$6,087

67.78%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

11.93

-8.30%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Barbacena: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Barbacena

$159 20% 75.2% $482

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Barbacena

$201 25.2% 32.2% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Barbacena

$157 19.7% 25.8% $55

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Barbacena

$95 12% 43.8% $74

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Barbacena

$97 12.2% 42.4% $72

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Barbacena

$50 6.2% 47% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Barbacena

$38 4.8% 34.1% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $218 in Barbacena. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $19 in Barbacena for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $201 per month, with Barbacena cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇧🇷 Barbacena

🕒 Local time

03:18 3:18 AM

05:18 5:18 AM

2 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

125,317

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.16 USD

10,000 COP = 2.83 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 = 3,164 COP (10,000 COP = 3.16 USD). 1 EUR = 3,531 COP (10,000 COP = 2.83 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 5.35 BRL (1 BRL = 0.187 USD). 1 EUR = 5.97 BRL (1 BRL = 0.168 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Between locations

Medellin Barbacena 4,630 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Barbacena

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 Barbacena: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $798 in Barbacena, so Barbacena is about 51% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,459 in Medellin and $1,196 in Barbacena 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 $218 in Barbacena. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,639 per month in Medellin versus $798 in Barbacena – Barbacena is about 51% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Barbacena runs roughly 47% less than in Medellin. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $798 in Barbacena versus $1,639 in Medellin, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Barbacena but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Barbacena 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 Barbacena gentler on the wallet – expenses run 51% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.