Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Barreiro

For one person, living costs are similar in Medellin and in Barreiro: $1,614 and $1,672 a month, rent and utilities included.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Barreiro
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Barreiro Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Barreiro

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,672

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Barreiro

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

A single person spends $1,614 per month in Medellin vs $1,672 in Barreiro, rent included.

Medellin $1,614
Barreiro $1,672

A couple spends around $2,402 per month in Medellin vs $2,346 in Barreiro, rent included.

Medellin $2,402
Barreiro $2,346

A family of three spends $3,190 per month in Medellin vs $3,019 in Barreiro, rent included.

Medellin $3,190
Barreiro $3,019

Medellin is about 3% cheaper than Barreiro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Medellin and Barreiro sit above the global median – Medellin by 20%, Barreiro by 24%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.93 COP 25.2K

$15.77 €14.03

-49.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.13 COP 146.3K

$44.47 €39.56

3.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$9.68 €8.61

-1.86%

Cappuccino

$3.11 COP 9,866

$2.46 €2.19

26.42%

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

$1.83 COP 5,800

$2.14 €1.91

-14.49%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,360

$2.18 €1.94

-36.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 COP 9,672

$3.32 €2.96

-8.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.50 COP 17.4K

$3.27 €2.91

68.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 COP 4,600

$1.04 €0.93

39.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.36 COP 7,496

$1.46 €1.30

61.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,328

$1.63 €1.45

3.07%

Eggs

$2.86 COP 9,077

$3.30 €2.93

-13.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.3K

$9.12 €8.11

11.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 COP 30.2K

$7.99 €7.11

19.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.04 COP 44.5K

$15.17 €13.49

-7.45%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 COP 12.9K

$2.76 €2.46

47.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,742

$1.32 €1.17

13.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 COP 6,891

$2.04 €1.82

6.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 COP 7,310

$1.48 €1.31

56.08%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 COP 6,113

$1.61 €1.43

19.88%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,196

$1.64 €1.46

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,571

$1.69 €1.50

-33.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 COP 3,954

$0.68 €0.60

83.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 COP 12.6K

$5.78 €5.14

-30.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 COP 42.3K

$6.19 €5.50

115.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 COP 5,384

$1.26 €1.12

34.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,525

$1.10 €0.98

115.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 COP 3,827

$1.42 €1.27

-14.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

$44.31 €39.41

72.62%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 COP 4,179

$2.29 €2.03

-42.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,774

$0.76 €0.68

181.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 COP 26.8K

$17.02 €15.14

-50.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 COP 4,114

$2.04 €1.82

-36.27%

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

$28.0K COP 88.7M

$34.2K €30.4K

-18.06%

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

$35.4K COP 112.3M

$37.7K €33.5K

-6.06%

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

$172 COP 545.6K

$110 €97.7

56.73%

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

$13.37 COP 42.4K

$21.19 €18.85

-36.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.73 COP 91.1K

$35.54 €31.62

-19.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 COP 143.5K

$36.97 €32.89

22.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

$13.55 €12.05

25.76%

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 COP 19.9K

$8.88 €7.90

-29.28%

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

$770 COP 2.4M

$604 €538

27.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.6M

$11.1K €9,914

-19.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.4 COP 274.0K

$77.7 €69.1

11.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 COP 181.1K

$37.19 €33.08

53.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 432.9K

$84.9 €75.5

60.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 310.4K

$105 €93.2

-6.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 COP 3.3M

$958 €852

10.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$616 COP 2.0M

$794 €706

-22.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

$1,473 €1,311

28.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.2M

$1,044 €929

-2.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

$3,877 €3,449

4.68%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

$2,745 €2,442

-38.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

$910 €810

-28.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

3.67

198.09%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Last update for Barreiro: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$616 38.2%

Barreiro

$794 47.5% 28.9% $178

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$295 18.3%

Barreiro

$239 14.3% 19% $56

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$214 13.3%

Barreiro

$167 10% 22.2% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$170 10.5%

Barreiro

$137 8.2% 19.4% $33

Eating Out

Medellin

$168 10.4%

Barreiro

$225 13.5% 33.7% $57

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.8%

Barreiro

$56 3.4% 39.9% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.6%

Barreiro

$55 3.3% 5.3% $3.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,055 in Medellin versus $958 in Barreiro. 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 40% higher in Barreiro, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $46.00 in Medellin versus $44.00 in Barreiro. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $295 vs $239 – making Barreiro the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇵🇹 Barreiro

🕒 Local time

09:38 9:38 AM

15:38 3:38 PM

6 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

78,359

💱 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 19, 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 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Barreiro 7,540 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Barreiro

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 Barreiro: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,614 in Medellin, $1,672 in Barreiro – roughly 4% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,421 per month in Medellin and $2,508 in Barreiro. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,614 in Medellin and $1,672 in Barreiro. That's a gap of about 4%.

Public transport costs about 73% less in Medellin. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Medellin, where all-in costs run around $1,614, than in Barreiro at $1,672. In Medellin it covers expenses comfortably, while in Barreiro it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Medellin has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,614 in Medellin to $1,672 in Barreiro. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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 Medellin. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Barreiro makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.