Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Cartago

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,614 a month against $1,713 in Cartago, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. The total is higher in Cartago despite lower rent and utilities.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Cartago
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Cartago Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Cartago

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,713

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Cartago

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,614 in Medellin versus $1,713 in Cartago.

Medellin $1,614
Cartago $1,713

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,402 in Medellin versus $2,362 in Cartago.

Medellin $2,402
Cartago $2,362

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,190 in Medellin versus $3,011 in Cartago.

Medellin $3,190
Cartago $3,011

Living in Medellin costs roughly 6% less than in Cartago, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Cartago 27% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.93 COP 25.2K

$8.64 ₡3,882

-8.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.13 COP 146.7K

$34.53 ₡15.5K

33.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.2K

$9.92 ₡4,458

-4.23%

Cappuccino

$3.11 COP 9,897

$4.54 ₡2,040

-31.50%

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

$1.83 COP 5,818

$2.13 ₡957

-14.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,373

$1.36 ₡611

1.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 COP 9,702

$2.15 ₡966

41.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.50 COP 17.5K

$4.06 ₡1,823

35.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 COP 4,614

$2.39 ₡1,075

-39.33%

White Bread (500g)

$2.36 COP 7,519

$2.37 ₡1,067

-0.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,345

$2.47 ₡1,112

-31.98%

Eggs

$2.86 COP 9,106

$3.57 ₡1,604

-19.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.4K

$8.61 ₡3,868

18.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 COP 30.3K

$10.38 ₡4,664

-8.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.04 COP 44.7K

$13.94 ₡6,265

0.72%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 COP 12.9K

$5.24 ₡2,356

-22.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,757

$1.29 ₡580

16.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 COP 6,913

$4.49 ₡2,018

-51.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 COP 7,333

$2.91 ₡1,309

-20.62%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 COP 6,132

$2.24 ₡1,006

-13.84%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,212

$2.17 ₡973

-24.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,582

$1.09 ₡488

3.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 COP 3,966

$2.18 ₡979

-42.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 COP 12.7K

$6.07 ₡2,728

-34.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 COP 42.5K

$15.16 ₡6,810

-11.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 COP 5,400

$2.89 ₡1,298

-41.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,548

$2.03 ₡914

16.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 COP 3,839

$1.37 ₡614

-11.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 243.3K

$73.2 ₡32.9K

4.51%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 COP 4,192

$1.33 ₡600

-0.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,795

$1.56 ₡703

37.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 COP 26.9K

$8.95 ₡4,023

-5.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 COP 4,127

$1.51 ₡679

-13.91%

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

$28.0K COP 89.0M

$21.7K ₡9.7M

29.03%

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

$35.4K COP 112.6M

$35.1K ₡15.8M

0.84%

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

$172 COP 547.3K

$52.4 ₡23.6K

228.23%

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

$13.37 COP 42.5K

$35.12 ₡15.8K

-61.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.73 COP 91.4K

$59.9 ₡26.9K

-52.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 COP 143.9K

$73.8 ₡33.1K

-38.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.2K

$77.8 ₡34.9K

-78.09%

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 COP 20.0K

$7.27 ₡3,268

-13.62%

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

$770 COP 2.4M

$549 ₡246.6K

40.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.7M

$7,878 ₡3.5M

14.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.4 COP 274.8K

$70.1 ₡31.5K

23.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 COP 181.7K

$56.5 ₡25.4K

1.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 434.3K

$121 ₡54.5K

12.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 311.4K

$87.7 ₡39.4K

11.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 COP 3.4M

$923 ₡415.0K

14.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$616 COP 2.0M

$704 ₡316.5K

-12.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

$1,869 ₡839.7K

1.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.3M

$724 ₡325.4K

41.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

$1,344 ₡604.0K

-51.47%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

8.62

26.91%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Last update for Cartago: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$616 38.2%

Cartago

$704 41.1% 14.4% $89

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$295 18.3%

Cartago

$348 20.3% 18.2% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$214 13.3%

Cartago

$147 8.6% 31.2% $67

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$170 10.5%

Cartago

$151 8.8% 11.2% $19

Eating Out

Medellin

$168 10.4%

Cartago

$186 10.9% 10.6% $18

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.8%

Cartago

$88 5.1% 5.9% $5.5

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.6%

Cartago

$88 5.2% 52.8% $31

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,055 in Medellin and $923 in Cartago. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cartago pays 106% 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: $46.00 in Medellin vs $35.00 in Cartago. Groceries flip the comparison at $295 vs $348, with Medellin cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇷 Cartago

🕒 Local time

01:04 1:04 AM

00:04 12:04 AM

1 h behind Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

110,000

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.14 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 3,181 COP (10,000 COP = 3.14 USD). 1 EUR = 3,561 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 449 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 503 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Between locations

Medellin Cartago 1,000 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Cartago

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 Cartago: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 6% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 106% lower in Cartago. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,055 in Medellin versus $923 in Cartago. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Medellin runs roughly 5% less than in Cartago. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $770 in Medellin versus $549 in Cartago. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,614 in Medellin versus $1,713 in Cartago, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Medellin but tight or insufficient in Cartago. The gap between the two cities makes Medellin the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Medellin is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Cartago, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Medellin and Cartago are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Medellin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Cartago. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.