Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Cascavel

For one person, living is cheaper in Cascavel: $650 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $12,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
31

Cost of Living Index in Cascavel
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Cascavel Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Cascavel

🇧🇷 Brazil

$650

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Cascavel

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

A single person spends $1,692 per month in Medellin vs $650 in Cascavel, rent included.

Medellin $1,692
Cascavel $650

A couple spends around $2,471 per month in Medellin vs $974 in Cascavel, rent included.

Medellin $2,471
Cascavel $974

A family of three spends $3,249 per month in Medellin vs $1,297 in Cascavel, rent included.

Medellin $3,249
Cascavel $1,297

Medellin costs about 160% more than Cascavel, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 25% above the global median, while Cascavel is 52% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 26.9K

$8.06 R$44.21

3.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.3K

$22.46 R$123

107.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.6K

$6.37 R$34.95

48.67%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.1K

$1.49 R$8.16

110.07%

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

$1.77 COP 5,705

$1.00 R$5.49

77.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,601

$0.49 R$2.66

189.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$1.08 R$5.95

191.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.4K

$2.03 R$11.15

180.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,950

$1.00 R$5.48

53.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,401

$1.28 R$7.04

78.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,282

$1.51 R$8.30

28.48%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,905

$1.97 R$10.83

55.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.3K

$9.86 R$54.1

1.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.7K

$3.40 R$18.68

207.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.1K

$6.57 R$36.06

112.48%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$2.15 R$11.77

88.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,937

$0.81 R$4.43

88.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,797

$0.53 R$2.88

296.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,409

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,813

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,521

$1.07 R$5.88

59.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,780

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,104

$0.71 R$3.91

122.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.6K

$1.74 R$9.53

124.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.4K

$12.36 R$67.8

13.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,690

$1.72 R$9.43

2.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,760

$2.20 R$12.06

23.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,811

$0.83 R$4.54

42.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 246.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,836

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,878

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.3K

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,119

$1.13 R$6.22

13.27%

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

$34.4K COP 111.2M

$24.1K R$132.5K

42.65%

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

$34.1K COP 110.3M

$30.1K R$165.3K

13.29%

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

$178 COP 574.1K

$54.2 R$297

228.16%

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

$13.89 COP 44.9K

$10.01 R$54.9

38.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.3K

$21.85 R$120

40.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 135.5K

$16.88 R$92.6

148.46%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.3K

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.1K

$5.61 R$30.80

33.16%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$203 R$1,114

288.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.7M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 278.9K

$18.80 R$103

359.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 191.4K

$36.32 R$199

63.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 446.9K

$67.1 R$368

106.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 319.2K

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$300 R$1,646

347.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$192 R$1,053

247.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$482 R$2,643

310.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$289 R$1,585

257.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.2M

$1,394 R$7,648

194.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$923 R$5,067

110.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

$451 R$2,475

43.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Cascavel: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Cascavel

$192 29.5% 71.2% $475

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Cascavel

$169 * 26% 45% $138

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Cascavel

$86 13.2% 61.3% $136

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Cascavel

$117 18% 32.3% $56

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Cascavel

$55 * 8.5% 68.1% $117

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Cascavel

$3.3 * 0.5% 96.5% $90

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Cascavel

$28 4.3% 50.6% $29

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,341 in Medellin versus $300 in Cascavel. 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 43% higher in Medellin, 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 $47 in Medellin versus $22 in Cascavel. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $307 vs $169 – making Cascavel the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇧🇷 Cascavel

🕒 Local time

23:05 11:05 PM

01:05 1:05 AM

2 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

348,051

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

1 BRL = 0.182 USD

1 BRL = 0.162 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3,230 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,626 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 5.49 BRL (1 BRL = 0.182 USD). 1 EUR = 6.16 BRL (1 BRL = 0.162 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Cascavel 4,220 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Cascavel

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 Cascavel: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,692 in Medellin, $650 in Cascavel – Cascavel comes out roughly 62% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,538 per month in Medellin and $976 in Cascavel. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cascavel, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $300 there versus $1,341 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $22 in Cascavel. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 82% more in Medellin, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Cascavel, where all-in costs run around $650, than in Medellin at $1,692. In Cascavel it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

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