Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Ciudad Lerdo

For one person, living is cheaper in Ciudad Lerdo: $892 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $9,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Ciudad Lerdo
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Ciudad Lerdo Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Ciudad Lerdo

🇲🇽 Mexico

$892

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Ciudad Lerdo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $892 in Ciudad Lerdo.

Medellin $1,639
Ciudad Lerdo $892

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $1,347 in Ciudad Lerdo.

Medellin $2,413
Ciudad Lerdo $1,347

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $1,803 in Ciudad Lerdo.

Medellin $3,186
Ciudad Lerdo $1,803

Living in Medellin is roughly 84% more expensive than in Ciudad Lerdo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Ciudad Lerdo is 34% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$5.27 MX$97.9

53.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.8K

$25.18 MX$468

86.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$6.28 MX$117

51.27%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,729

$1.64 MX$30.52

83.54%

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

$1.80 COP 5,806

$0.78 MX$14.55

130.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,558

$0.53 MX$9.78

166.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.2K

$1.39 MX$25.75

128.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$2.65 MX$49.18

116.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,873

$1.06 MX$19.75

42.45%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,673

$1.37 MX$25.40

73.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,716

$1.10 MX$20.44

60.91%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,327

$1.59 MX$29.57

81.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$3.78 MX$70.3

169.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$3.75 MX$69.6

163.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.1K

$6.48 MX$120

115.90%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$1.38 MX$25.61

187.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,009

$0.77 MX$14.38

101.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,044

$0.85 MX$15.77

156.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,047

$0.77 MX$14.31

183.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,333

$0.84 MX$15.59

133.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,129

$0.83 MX$15.35

91.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,696

$0.55 MX$10.23

109.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,012

$0.63 MX$11.72

96.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$3.74 MX$69.4

5.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$6.52 MX$121

109.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,356

$1.10 MX$20.48

50.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,286

$1.33 MX$24.61

69.92%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,769

$0.62 MX$11.61

88.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.7K

$30.44 MX$565

154.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,092

$1.16 MX$21.48

9.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,608

$1.90 MX$35.22

7.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$5.45 MX$101

56.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,346

$1.22 MX$22.57

10.66%

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

$34.1K COP 109.9M

$17.8K MX$330.5K

91.41%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$20.2K MX$374.9K

71.75%

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

$170 COP 547.5K

$32.11 MX$596

428.34%

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

$13.55 COP 43.7K

$13.36 MX$248

1.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$21.50 MX$399

30.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.0K

$32.77 MX$609

33.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

$19.77 MX$367

-13.05%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$3.66 MX$68.0

88.80%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$136 MX$2,522

486.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$2,689 MX$49.9K

238.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.4K

$26.43 MX$491

220.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.0K

$21.78 MX$404

166.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.5K

$54.4 MX$1,010

148.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 315.8K

$43.35 MX$805

125.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$607 MX$11.3K

98.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$439 MX$8,145

46.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$1,040 MX$19.3K

94.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$752 MX$14.0K

34.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$1,865 MX$34.6K

123.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$1,110 MX$20.6K

72.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$213 MX$3,949

209.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

10.53

3.89%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Ciudad Lerdo: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Ciudad Lerdo

$439 49.2% 31.6% $203

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Ciudad Lerdo

$139 15.5% 53.4% $158

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Ciudad Lerdo

$67 7.5% 68.3% $144

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Ciudad Lerdo

$98 11% 42.1% $71

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Ciudad Lerdo

$66 7.4% 61.1% $103

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Ciudad Lerdo

$44 4.9% 53.4% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Ciudad Lerdo

$40 4.5% 30.3% $17

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $607 in Ciudad Lerdo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays about 3.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $25 in Ciudad Lerdo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $139 per month, with Ciudad Lerdo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇲🇽 Ciudad Lerdo

🕒 Local time

02:25 2:25 AM

01:25 1:25 AM

1 h behind Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

96,243

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

100 MXN = 5.38 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 November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 3,227 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,613 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.57 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.79 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Medellin Ciudad Lerdo 3,660 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Ciudad Lerdo

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 Ciudad Lerdo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ciudad Lerdo wins on cost – living expenses run 46% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Ciudad Lerdo the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Medellin is about 3.1 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,208 in Medellin versus $607 in Ciudad Lerdo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Ciudad Lerdo runs roughly 61% less than in Medellin. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $797 in Medellin versus $136 in Ciudad Lerdo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Ciudad Lerdo is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

Expats usually find Ciudad Lerdo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 46% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.