Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Cosenza

For one person, living is cheaper in Cosenza: $1,413 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Medellin outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
68

Cost of Living Index in Cosenza
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Cosenza Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Cosenza

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,413

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Cosenza

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $1,413 in Cosenza.

Medellin $1,639
Cosenza $1,413

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $2,170 in Cosenza.

Medellin $2,413
Cosenza $2,170

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $2,928 in Cosenza.

Medellin $3,186
Cosenza $2,928

Living in Medellin is roughly 16% more expensive than in Cosenza, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Cosenza 4% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$17.02 €15.29

-52.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$55.4 €49.74

-15.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$11.01 €9.89

-13.71%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$1.76 €1.58

71.02%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$2.47 €2.22

-27.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$1.15 €1.03

22.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$5.66 €5.09

-43.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$4.34 €3.90

32.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$1.12 €1.01

34.82%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$1.86 €1.67

27.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$2.55 €2.29

-30.59%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$3.33 €2.99

-13.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$12.59 €11.31

-19.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$11.02 €9.90

-10.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$15.50 €13.93

-9.74%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$2.49 €2.23

59.44%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$2.04 €1.84

-24.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$2.24 €2.01

-2.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$3.25 €2.92

-32.92%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$1.32 €1.19

48.48%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$1.79 €1.60

-11.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$1.43 €1.29

-19.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$0.44 €0.40

181.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$6.64 €5.96

-40.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$6.34 €5.70

115.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,222

$1.84 €1.65

-9.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,104

$2.99 €2.69

-24.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$1.30 €1.17

-10.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

$30.81 €27.68

151.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$4.58 €4.11

-72.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$1.22 €1.10

68.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$22.65 €20.35

-62.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$2.00 €1.80

-32.50%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$30.3K €27.2K

12.34%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$30.3K €27.2K

14.54%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$201 €181

-15.75%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$9.08 €8.16

49.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$31.07 €27.91

-9.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$45.72 €41.08

-4.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

$16.65 €14.96

3.24%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$8.19 €7.36

-15.63%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$285 €256

179.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$2,777 €2,495

228.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$84.1 €75.6

0.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$40.22 €36.14

44.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$102 €91.9

31.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$115 €104

-15.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$500 €449

141.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$378 €340

69.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$931 €837

117.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$653 €586

55.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

$1,752 €1,574

137.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$1,301 €1,169

46.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$1,506 €1,353

-56.37%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

3.08

255.19%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Cosenza: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Cosenza

$378 26.8% 41.1% $264

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Cosenza

$289 20.5% 2.7% $7.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Cosenza

$242 17.1% 14.3% $30

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Cosenza

$242 17.1% 42.5% $72

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Cosenza

$154 10.9% 9% $15

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Cosenza

$47 3.3% 50.1% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Cosenza

$62 4.4% 7.9% $4.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $500 in Cosenza. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cosenza pays about 2.3 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $55 in Cosenza. Groceries flip the comparison at $297 vs $289, with Cosenza cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇮🇹 Cosenza

🕒 Local time

20:18 8:18 PM

02:18 2:18 AM

6 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

63,693

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.85 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,507 COP (10,000 COP = 2.85 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Cosenza 9,730 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Cosenza

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 Cosenza: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin and Cosenza differ by about 16% in total monthly costs ($1,639 vs $1,413 including rent). Cosenza is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 56% lower in Medellin. 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: $1,208 in Medellin versus $500 in Cosenza. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $797 in Medellin versus $285 in Cosenza. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 3% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Cosenza gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.