Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Calamba

For one person, living is cheaper in Calamba: $510 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $13,500 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
25

Cost of Living Index in Calamba
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Calamba Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Calamba

🇵🇭 Philippines

$510

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Calamba

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $510 in Calamba.

Medellin $1,639
Calamba $510

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $752 in Calamba.

Medellin $2,413
Calamba $752

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $994 in Calamba.

Medellin $3,186
Calamba $994

Living in Medellin is roughly 221% more expensive than in Calamba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Calamba is 62% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$3.82 ₱243

111.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$11.63 ₱741

304.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$2.68 ₱171

254.48%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$1.75 ₱111

72.00%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$0.59 ₱37.70

205.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$0.30 ₱19.36

370.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$0.92 ₱58.6

245.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$1.60 ₱102

259.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$1.66 ₱106

-9.04%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$1.13 ₱72.0

110.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$0.94 ₱60.1

88.30%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$1.99 ₱127

45.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$4.89 ₱312

108.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$3.42 ₱218

188.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$7.51 ₱479

86.28%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$2.25 ₱143

76.44%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$1.50 ₱95.4

3.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$2.30 ₱146

-5.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$1.02 ₱64.7

113.73%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$1.67 ₱106

17.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$1.75 ₱111

-9.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$0.64 ₱40.80

79.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$0.51 ₱32.70

143.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$2.87 ₱183

37.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$8.66 ₱551

57.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$0.95 ₱60.4

74.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$2.03 ₱129

11.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$0.80 ₱50.8

58.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$0.24 ₱15.32

754.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$1.86 ₱119

359.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$0.90 ₱57.1

50.00%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$20.6K ₱1.3M

65.77%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$18.8K ₱1.2M

84.67%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$137 ₱8,713

24.01%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$17.32 ₱1,103

-21.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$23.37 ₱1,489

20.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$5.12 ₱326

34.96%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$129 ₱8,201

518.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$10.6K ₱674.5K

-13.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$27.97 ₱1,781

202.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$19.17 ₱1,221

202.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$71.4 ₱4,546

89.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$54.7 ₱3,482

79.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$249 ₱15.9K

163.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

6.75

62.07%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Calamba: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Calamba

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Calamba

$172 33.7% 42.1% $125

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Calamba

$178 34.8% 16% $34

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Calamba

$71 13.9% 58.2% $99

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Calamba

$78 15.3% 53.9% $91

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Calamba

$2 * 0.4% 97.9% $92

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Calamba

$10 * 2% 82.2% $47

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Medellin pays about 2.6 times more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $12 in Calamba for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $172 per month, with Calamba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇵🇭 Calamba

🕒 Local time

11:45 11:45 AM

00:45 12:45 AM

13 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

539,671

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, 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).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 63.69 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.08 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Calamba 17,080 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Calamba

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 Calamba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Calamba wins on cost – living expenses run 69% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Calamba the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Medellin is about 2.6 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Supermarket bills run roughly 73% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,639 per month in Medellin versus $510 in Calamba – Calamba is about 69% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $510 in Calamba versus $1,639 in Medellin, a $800 budget is realistic in Calamba but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Calamba 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.

It comes down to priorities – Calamba wins on affordability, Medellin on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.