Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Cancun

For one person, living is cheaper in Cancun: $1,398 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 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
68

Cost of Living Index in Cancun
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Cancun Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Cancun

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,398

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Cancun

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

A single person spends $1,614 per month in Medellin vs $1,398 in Cancun, rent included.

Medellin $1,614
Cancun $1,398

A couple spends around $2,402 per month in Medellin vs $2,267 in Cancun, rent included.

Medellin $2,402
Cancun $2,267

A family of three spends $3,190 per month in Medellin vs $3,136 in Cancun, rent included.

Medellin $3,190
Cancun $3,136

Medellin costs about 15% more than Cancun, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Medellin and Cancun sit above the global median – Medellin by 20%, Cancun by 4%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.93 COP 25.2K

$10.84 MX$200

-26.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.13 COP 146.3K

$53.8 MX$994

-14.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$11.55 MX$213

-17.75%

Cappuccino

$3.11 COP 9,866

$3.86 MX$71.4

-19.43%

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

$1.83 COP 5,800

$1.34 MX$24.78

36.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,360

$0.84 MX$15.57

64.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 COP 9,672

$3.06 MX$56.6

-0.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.50 COP 17.4K

$4.13 MX$76.3

33.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 COP 4,600

$1.64 MX$30.29

-11.59%

White Bread (500g)

$2.36 COP 7,496

$2.58 MX$47.72

-8.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,328

$1.68 MX$31.12

Eggs

$2.86 COP 9,077

$2.80 MX$51.7

2.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.3K

$9.89 MX$183

3.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 COP 30.2K

$8.81 MX$163

8.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.04 COP 44.5K

$14.21 MX$263

-1.20%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 COP 12.9K

$2.93 MX$54.1

38.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,742

$1.67 MX$30.88

-10.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 COP 6,891

$3.01 MX$55.5

-27.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 COP 7,310

$2.19 MX$40.55

5.48%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 COP 6,113

$1.94 MX$35.91

-0.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,196

$1.96 MX$36.26

-16.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,571

$1.15 MX$21.23

-1.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 COP 3,954

$1.22 MX$22.51

2.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 COP 12.6K

$4.34 MX$80.3

-8.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 COP 42.3K

$10.03 MX$185

33.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 COP 5,384

$1.59 MX$29.38

6.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,525

$2.80 MX$51.8

-15.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 COP 3,827

$0.68 MX$12.66

77.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

$29.10 MX$538

162.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 COP 4,179

$4.33 MX$79.9

-69.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,774

$2.82 MX$52.1

-24.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 COP 26.8K

$13.71 MX$253

-38.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 COP 4,114

$1.53 MX$28.28

-15.03%

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

$28.0K COP 88.7M

$21.3K MX$394.3K

31.18%

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

$35.4K COP 112.3M

$23.8K MX$439.8K

48.79%

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

$172 COP 545.6K

$170 MX$3,149

0.99%

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

$13.37 COP 42.4K

$23.44 MX$433

-42.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.73 COP 91.1K

$38.92 MX$719

-26.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 COP 143.5K

$32.26 MX$596

40.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

$13.21 MX$244

28.99%

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 COP 19.9K

$7.29 MX$135

-13.85%

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

$770 COP 2.4M

$204 MX$3,761

278.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.6M

$5,396 MX$99.7K

66.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.4 COP 274.0K

$54.1 MX$999

59.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 COP 181.1K

$55.3 MX$1,021

3.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 432.9K

$74.0 MX$1,368

84.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 310.4K

$94.0 MX$1,737

4.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 COP 3.3M

$660 MX$12.2K

59.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$616 COP 2.0M

$457 MX$8,445

34.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

$1,404 MX$26.0K

34.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.2M

$1,059 MX$19.6K

-3.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

$1,266 MX$23.4K

220.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

$1,945 MX$35.9K

-13.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

$801 MX$14.8K

-18.60%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

11.45

-4.45%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Last update for Cancun: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$616 38.2%

Cancun

$457 32.7% 25.8% $159

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$295 18.3%

Cancun

$287 20.5% 2.7% $7.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$214 13.3%

Cancun

$233 16.6% 8.7% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$170 10.5%

Cancun

$125 8.9% 26.6% $45

Eating Out

Medellin

$168 10.4%

Cancun

$200 14.3% 18.8% $32

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.8%

Cancun

$50 3.6% 46.2% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.6%

Cancun

$47 3.4% 19% $11

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,055 in Medellin versus $660 in Cancun. 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 23% higher in Cancun, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $46.00 in Medellin versus $54.0 in Cancun. Groceries tell a different story – $295 in Medellin vs $287 in Cancun – so Cancun wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇲🇽 Cancun

🕒 Local time

12:49 12:49 PM

Same time as Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

888,797

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 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 October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.78 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Medellin Cancun 2,050 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Cancun

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 Cancun: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,614 in Medellin, $1,398 in Cancun – roughly 15% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,421 per month in Medellin and $2,098 in Cancun. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Kindergarten costs $770 per month in Medellin and $204 in Cancun. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 3% more in Medellin, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Cancun, where all-in costs run around $1,398, than in Medellin at $1,614. In Cancun it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin 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 $1,398 in Cancun to $1,614 in Medellin. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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