Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Cavite

For one person, living is cheaper in Cavite: $564 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $12,900 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
27

Cost of Living Index in Cavite
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Cavite Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Cavite

🇵🇭 Philippines

$564

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Cavite

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $564 in Cavite, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Cavite $564

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $879 in Cavite, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Cavite $879

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $1,194 in Cavite, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Cavite $1,194

Medellin costs about 191% more than Cavite, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Cavite is 59% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$2.34 ₱149

245.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$15.86 ₱1,010

196.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$2.26 ₱144

320.35%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$1.77 ₱113

70.06%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$0.58 ₱37.20

210.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$0.33 ₱21.12

327.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$0.95 ₱60.3

234.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$1.54 ₱98.4

273.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$1.38 ₱87.8

9.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$1.09 ₱69.4

118.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$0.89 ₱56.7

98.88%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$1.95 ₱124

48.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$5.10 ₱325

99.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$3.40 ₱217

190.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$6.12 ₱390

128.59%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$2.03 ₱130

95.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$1.06 ₱67.5

46.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$2.34 ₱149

-6.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$1.05 ₱67.2

107.62%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$1.66 ₱106

18.07%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$1.45 ₱92.1

9.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$0.49 ₱31.13

134.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$0.48 ₱30.54

158.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$1.99 ₱127

98.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$4.61 ₱294

196.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$0.92 ₱58.6

80.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$1.27 ₱81.1

77.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$13.30 ₱847

481.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$0.65 ₱41.61

95.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$0.24 ₱15.31

754.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$1.93 ₱123

343.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$1.17 ₱74.3

15.38%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$20.6K ₱1.3M

65.69%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$19.2K ₱1.2M

80.24%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$88.2 ₱5,616

92.41%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$13.52 ₱861

0.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$23.40 ₱1,491

19.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$46.02 ₱2,931

-5.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$5.03 ₱320

37.38%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$131 ₱8,360

506.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$10.6K ₱677.6K

-14.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$28.81 ₱1,835

194.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$19.03 ₱1,212

204.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$71.4 ₱4,549

88.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$54.4 ₱3,466

79.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$134 ₱8,528

802.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$81.0 ₱5,161

691.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$238 ₱15.2K

751.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$191 ₱12.2K

429.24%

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

$222 ₱14.1K

196.18%

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 Cavite: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Cavite

$81 14.4% 87.4% $561

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Cavite

$150 26.6% 49.5% $147

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Cavite

$125 22.2% 40.8% $86

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Cavite

$58 10.3% 65.7% $111

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Cavite

$78 13.9% 53.8% $91

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Cavite

$15 * 2.7% 83.8% $78

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Cavite

$56 10% 2.5% $1.5

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $134 in Cavite. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Medellin are about 3 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $16 in Cavite. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $150 – making Cavite the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇵🇭 Cavite

🕒 Local time

23:42 11:42 PM

12:42 12:42 PM

13 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

100,674

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 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 = 3,605 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 63.69 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.12 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Cavite 17,080 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Cavite

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 Cavite: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 191%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $845 in Cavite. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cavite, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $134 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $564 in Cavite. That makes Cavite about 66% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 83% less in Cavite. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cavite, where all-in costs run around $564, than in Medellin at $1,639. In Cavite it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Cavite – 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 Cavite. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Medellin makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.