Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Costa Rica

Name: Costa Rica
Address: CR

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,589 a month against $1,735 in Costa Rica, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. The total is higher in Costa Rica despite lower rent and utilities.

77

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Costa Rica
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Costa Rica Living Index

Jump to prices

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,589

/mo nomad

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,735

/mo nomad

🙂 Solo nomad: Medellin is 20.2% cheaper than Costa Rica without rent, and 8.4% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Medellin is 19.4% cheaper than Costa Rica without rent, and 14.8% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.01 COP 25.5K

$11.78 ₡5,312

-32.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 COP 148.3K

$55.5 ₡25.0K

-16.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.43 COP 30.1K

$10.72 ₡4,831

-12.03%

Cappuccino

$2.91 COP 9,277

$4.49 ₡2,023

-35.19%

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

$1.75 COP 5,585

$2.33 ₡1,051

-24.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.32 COP 4,218

$1.81 ₡815

-27.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.13 COP 9,969

$3.23 ₡1,455

-3.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.55 COP 17.7K

$4.42 ₡1,992

25.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 COP 4,495

$2.30 ₡1,037

-38.70%

White Bread (500g)

$2.44 COP 7,777

$3.55 ₡1,600

-31.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.63 COP 5,191

$2.71 ₡1,221

-39.85%

Eggs

$2.82 COP 8,990

$4.05 ₡1,825

-30.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.69 COP 30.9K

$9.92 ₡4,473

-2.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.32 COP 29.7K

$10.49 ₡4,729

-11.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.46 COP 42.9K

$13.56 ₡6,111

-0.74%

Apples (1kg)

$4.00 COP 12.8K

$5.13 ₡2,312

-22.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.48 COP 4,719

$1.68 ₡758

-11.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.12 COP 6,768

$3.63 ₡1,639

-41.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.25 COP 7,178

$3.24 ₡1,463

-30.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.91 COP 6,092

$3.40 ₡1,534

-43.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.62 COP 5,160

$3.09 ₡1,394

-47.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,658

$1.11 ₡501

3.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 COP 4,021

$2.64 ₡1,192

-52.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.82 COP 12.2K

$5.43 ₡2,446

-29.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.11 COP 41.8K

$15.63 ₡7,048

-16.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.60 COP 5,083

$2.75 ₡1,238

-41.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,188

$3.27 ₡1,472

-30.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,731

$1.07 ₡480

9.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$75.0 COP 239.0K

$65.3 ₡29.4K

14.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,056

$2.18 ₡981

-41.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,531

$2.03 ₡916

0.99%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.20 COP 26.1K

$8.82 ₡3,977

-7.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 COP 4,046

$1.53 ₡688

-16.99%

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

$26.8K COP 85.3M

$32.8K ₡14.8M

-18.30%

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

$34.4K COP 109.6M

$36.0K ₡16.2M

-4.37%

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

$162 COP 516.9K

$93.4 ₡42.1K

73.67%

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

$13.12 COP 41.8K

$30.19 ₡13.6K

-56.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.09 COP 89.5K

$57.1 ₡25.7K

-50.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.33 COP 141.2K

$65.1 ₡29.3K

-31.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.33 COP 52.0K

$22.13 ₡9,976

-26.21%

Cinema Ticket

$6.09 COP 19.4K

$8.09 ₡3,645

-24.72%

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

$764 COP 2.4M

$740 ₡333.8K

3.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,904 COP 28.4M

$12.6K ₡5.7M

-29.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$85.0 COP 270.8K

$75.5 ₡34.0K

12.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.5 COP 183.2K

$54.6 ₡24.6K

5.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$132 COP 419.8K

$127 ₡57.4K

3.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.8 COP 305.1K

$107 ₡48.3K

-10.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 COP 3.3M

$833 ₡375.3K

23.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$604 COP 1.9M

$641 ₡289.1K

-5.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,802 COP 5.7M

$1,776 ₡800.8K

1.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$993 COP 3.2M

$1,191 ₡536.9K

-16.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,921 COP 12.5M

$2,437 ₡1.1M

60.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,639 COP 5.2M

$1,631 ₡735.2K

0.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$626 COP 2.0M

$1,033 ₡465.8K

-39.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

9.56

14.44%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 6, 2026

Last update for Costa Rica: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$604 38.3%

Costa Rica

$641 36.7% 6.1% $37

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$288 18.3%

Costa Rica

$379 21.7% 31.4% $91

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$203 12.9%

Costa Rica

$181 10.3% 11.2% $23

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$166 10.6%

Costa Rica

$164 9.4% 1.4% $2.4

Eating Out

Medellin

$166 10.6%

Costa Rica

$222 12.7% 33.3% $55

Getting Around

Medellin

$91 5.8%

Costa Rica

$82 4.7% 10.2% $9.3

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.6%

Costa Rica

$81 4.6% 43.8% $25

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

🕒 Local time

04:56 4:56 AM

03:56 3:56 AM

1 h behind Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

5,044,197

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.14 USD

10,000 COP = 2.8 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3,187 COP (10,000 COP = 3.14 USD). 1 EUR = 3,571 COP (10,000 COP = 2.8 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 505 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Costa Rica 1,020 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Costa Rica

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 other spots: cost of living compared

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