Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Cuiaba

For one person, living is cheaper in Cuiaba: $1,081 a month against $1,589 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
53

Cost of Living Index in Cuiaba
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Cuiaba Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,589

/mo nomad

Cuiaba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,081

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Cuiaba

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,589 in Medellin versus $1,081 in Cuiaba.

Medellin $1,589
Cuiaba $1,081

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,364 in Medellin versus $1,618 in Cuiaba.

Medellin $2,364
Cuiaba $1,618

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,139 in Medellin versus $2,155 in Cuiaba.

Medellin $3,139
Cuiaba $2,155

Living in Medellin is roughly 47% more expensive than in Cuiaba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 19% above, Cuiaba is 19% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.01 COP 25.5K

$5.03 R$25.12

59.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 COP 148.3K

$35.60 R$178

30.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.43 COP 30.1K

$7.90 R$39.43

19.37%

Cappuccino

$2.91 COP 9,277

$1.85 R$9.21

57.30%

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

$1.75 COP 5,585

$1.48 R$7.37

18.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.32 COP 4,218

$0.78 R$3.89

69.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.13 COP 9,969

$2.03 R$10.15

54.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.55 COP 17.7K

$2.62 R$13.10

111.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 COP 4,495

$1.23 R$6.14

14.63%

White Bread (500g)

$2.44 COP 7,777

$1.60 R$7.98

52.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.63 COP 5,191

$1.91 R$9.55

-14.66%

Eggs

$2.82 COP 8,990

$3.08 R$15.36

-8.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.69 COP 30.9K

$17.15 R$85.6

-43.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.32 COP 29.7K

$4.82 R$24.04

93.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.46 COP 42.9K

$11.36 R$56.7

18.49%

Apples (1kg)

$4.00 COP 12.8K

$2.39 R$11.91

67.36%

Banana (1kg)

$1.48 COP 4,719

$2.40 R$12.00

-38.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.12 COP 6,768

$2.50 R$12.49

-15.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.25 COP 7,178

$3.01 R$15.02

-25.25%

Potato (1kg)

$1.91 COP 6,092

$2.55 R$12.72

-25.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.62 COP 5,160

$2.11 R$10.51

-23.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,658

$1.65 R$8.23

-30.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 COP 4,021

$1.43 R$7.15

-11.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.82 COP 12.2K

$2.29 R$11.45

66.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.11 COP 41.8K

$11.63 R$58.1

12.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.60 COP 5,083

$2.07 R$10.31

-22.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,188

$3.06 R$15.28

-26.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,731

$1.02 R$5.11

14.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$75.0 COP 239.0K

$38.30 R$191

95.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,056

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,531

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.20 COP 26.1K

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 COP 4,046

$1.31 R$6.53

-3.05%

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

$26.8K COP 85.3M

$29.9K R$149.2K

-10.44%

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

$34.4K COP 109.6M

$33.5K R$167.3K

2.65%

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

$162 COP 516.9K

$178 R$888

-8.81%

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

$13.12 COP 41.8K

$19.31 R$96.4

-32.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.09 COP 89.5K

$27.04 R$135

3.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.33 COP 141.2K

$26.15 R$131

69.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.33 COP 52.0K

$19.84 R$99.0

-17.69%

Cinema Ticket

$6.09 COP 19.4K

$6.17 R$30.80

-1.30%

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

$764 COP 2.4M

$432 R$2,158

76.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,904 COP 28.4M

$9,696 R$48.4K

-8.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$85.0 COP 270.8K

$76.8 R$383

10.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.5 COP 183.2K

$49.06 R$245

17.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$132 COP 419.8K

$155 R$775

-15.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.8 COP 305.1K

$71.2 R$356

34.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 COP 3.3M

$336 R$1,679

205.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$604 COP 1.9M

$233 R$1,163

159.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,802 COP 5.7M

$660 R$3,295

173.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$993 COP 3.2M

$370 R$1,848

168.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,921 COP 12.5M

$1,370 R$6,838

186.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,639 COP 5.2M

$793 R$3,958

106.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$626 COP 2.0M

$399 R$1,992

56.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

16.1

-32.05%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 6, 2026

Last update for Cuiaba: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$604 38.3%

Cuiaba

$233 21.3% 61.4% $371

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$288 18.3%

Cuiaba

$285 26.1% 1.3% $3.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$203 12.9%

Cuiaba

$224 20.5% 10.2% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$166 10.6%

Cuiaba

$159 14.5% 4.8% $7.9

Eating Out

Medellin

$166 10.6%

Cuiaba

$111 10.1% 33.6% $56

Getting Around

Medellin

$91 5.8%

Cuiaba

$42 * 3.9% 53.5% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.6%

Cuiaba

$38 3.5% 31.9% $18

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,028 in Medellin and $336 in Cuiaba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays 57% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $47.00 in Medellin vs $36.00 in Cuiaba for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $288 vs $285 per month, with Cuiaba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇧🇷 Cuiaba

🕒 Local time

03:08 3:08 AM

04:08 4:08 AM

1 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

650,877

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.14 USD

10,000 COP = 2.8 EUR

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 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 October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3,187 COP (10,000 COP = 3.14 USD). 1 EUR = 3,574 COP (10,000 COP = 2.8 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.99 BRL (1 BRL = 0.2 USD). 1 EUR = 5.6 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Cuiaba 3,240 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Cuiaba

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 Cuiaba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cuiaba wins on cost – living expenses run 47% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Cuiaba the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 57% higher in Medellin, 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: $1,028 in Medellin versus $336 in Cuiaba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Cuiaba – a meal for two runs $36.00 versus $47.00 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,589 per month in Medellin versus $1,081 in Cuiaba – a 47% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,081 in Cuiaba versus $1,589 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Cuiaba but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Cuiaba the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Cuiaba delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,081 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Cuiaba hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Cuiaba gentler on the wallet – expenses run 47% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.