Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Boca del Rio

For one person, living is cheaper in Boca del Rio: $1,167 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 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
58

Cost of Living Index in Boca del Rio
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Boca del Rio Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Boca del Rio

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,167

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Boca del Rio

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 Boca del Rio actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $1,167 in Boca del Rio, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Boca del Rio $1,167

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,904 in Boca del Rio, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Boca del Rio $1,904

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $2,641 in Boca del Rio, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Boca del Rio $2,641

Medellin costs about 40% more than Boca del Rio, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Boca del Rio is 14% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$10.98 MX$206

-26.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$43.22 MX$810

8.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$8.56 MX$160

10.98%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,734

$3.59 MX$67.3

-16.16%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$1.33 MX$24.85

35.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,560

$1.04 MX$19.58

35.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$2.35 MX$44.12

35.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$3.93 MX$73.7

46.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,875

$1.47 MX$27.61

2.72%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,677

$2.66 MX$49.93

-10.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,719

$1.75 MX$32.74

1.14%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,332

$2.51 MX$46.94

15.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$8.15 MX$153

25.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$8.11 MX$152

21.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$11.70 MX$219

19.57%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$2.45 MX$45.83

62.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,011

$1.69 MX$31.64

-8.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,047

$1.66 MX$31.16

31.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,050

$1.78 MX$33.43

22.47%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,336

$2.24 MX$42.05

-12.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,131

$1.75 MX$32.78

-9.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,698

$1.34 MX$25.06

-14.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$0.96 MX$18.08

29.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$3.82 MX$71.7

3.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$9.62 MX$180

42.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$1.92 MX$35.90

-13.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,290

$3.28 MX$61.5

-31.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,770

$0.68 MX$12.68

72.06%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$33.89 MX$635

128.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$2.80 MX$52.6

-54.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,611

$2.10 MX$39.35

-2.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$9.32 MX$175

-8.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,348

$1.40 MX$26.19

-3.57%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$22.7K MX$425.5K

50.04%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$22.6K MX$422.8K

53.67%

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

$170 COP 547.7K

$55.1 MX$1,032

208.06%

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

$13.55 COP 43.7K

$24.45 MX$458

-44.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$25.52 MX$478

9.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$33.45 MX$627

30.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

$19.12 MX$358

-10.09%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$5.88 MX$110

17.52%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$201 MX$3,765

296.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$4,612 MX$86.4K

97.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$59.4 MX$1,113

42.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.1K

$36.15 MX$677

60.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.7K

$105 MX$1,963

28.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$95.8 MX$1,795

2.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$622 MX$11.7K

94.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$389 MX$7,287

64.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$1,056 MX$19.8K

91.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$819 MX$15.3K

23.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$2,000 MX$37.5K

108.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$1,169 MX$21.9K

63.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

11.31

-3.27%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Boca del Rio: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Boca del Rio

$389 33.3% 39.4% $253

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Boca del Rio

$259 22.2% 12.8% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Boca del Rio

$105 9% 50.3% $106

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Boca del Rio

$186 15.9% 9.5% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Boca del Rio

$133 11.4% 21.2% $36

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Boca del Rio

$50 4.3% 46.7% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Boca del Rio

$45 3.9% 21.4% $12

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $622 in Boca del Rio. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $43 in Boca del Rio. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $259 – making Boca del Rio the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇲🇽 Boca del Rio

🕒 Local time

16:04 4:04 PM

15:04 3:04 PM

1 h behind Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, 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 = 3,619 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.74 MXN (100 MXN = 5.34 USD). 1 EUR = 21 MXN (100 MXN = 4.76 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Boca del Rio 2,640 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Boca del Rio

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 Boca del Rio: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,639 in Medellin, $1,167 in Boca del Rio – Boca del Rio comes out roughly 29% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $1,750 in Boca del Rio. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Boca del Rio, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $622 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $1,167 in Boca del Rio. That makes Boca del Rio about 29% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 56% less in Boca del Rio. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,639 in Medellin and $1,167 in Boca del Rio, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Boca del Rio – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

For expats, Boca del Rio is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 29% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.