Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Duque de Caxias

For one person, living is cheaper in Duque de Caxias: $754 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $11,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
36

Cost of Living Index in Duque de Caxias
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Duque de Caxias Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Duque de Caxias

🇧🇷 Brazil

$754

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Duque de Caxias

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 Duque de Caxias actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,692 per month in Medellin vs $754 in Duque de Caxias, rent included.

Medellin $1,692
Duque de Caxias $754

A couple spends around $2,471 per month in Medellin vs $1,296 in Duque de Caxias, rent included.

Medellin $2,471
Duque de Caxias $1,296

A family of three spends $3,249 per month in Medellin vs $1,839 in Duque de Caxias, rent included.

Medellin $3,249
Duque de Caxias $1,839

Medellin costs about 124% more than Duque de Caxias, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 25% above the global median, while Duque de Caxias is 44% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 27.0K

$6.59 R$36.19

26.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.9K

$36.94 R$203

25.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.7K

$7.86 R$43.14

20.48%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.2K

$2.09 R$11.46

49.76%

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

$1.77 COP 5,728

$1.37 R$7.53

29.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,620

$0.96 R$5.30

47.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$1.97 R$10.81

59.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.5K

$3.25 R$17.84

75.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,971

$1.07 R$5.88

42.99%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,431

$1.82 R$9.96

25.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,308

$1.06 R$5.81

83.02%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,945

$2.13 R$11.68

44.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.4K

$8.20 R$44.98

21.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.9K

$4.14 R$22.71

152.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.3K

$8.90 R$48.83

56.85%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$2.52 R$13.82

60.71%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,957

$1.63 R$8.94

-6.13%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,825

$1.52 R$8.32

38.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,439

$1.74 R$9.53

31.61%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,841

$1.12 R$6.16

88.39%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,543

$0.99 R$5.44

72.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,795

$0.70 R$3.83

67.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,125

$0.60 R$3.28

163.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.7K

$2.50 R$13.73

56.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.6K

$7.58 R$41.57

85.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,714

$1.12 R$6.13

57.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,796

$2.21 R$12.14

22.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,826

$0.97 R$5.34

21.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 247.4K

$42.19 R$232

80.82%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,860

$1.17 R$6.43

54.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,906

$1.23 R$6.77

73.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.4K

$6.80 R$37.31

19.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,136

$1.17 R$6.40

9.40%

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

$34.4K COP 111.7M

$21.7K R$119.3K

58.48%

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

$34.1K COP 110.7M

$30.9K R$169.7K

10.38%

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

$178 COP 576.4K

$45.63 R$250

289.50%

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

$13.89 COP 45.0K

$9.89 R$54.3

40.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.7K

$17.20 R$94.4

78.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 136.0K

$23.82 R$131

76.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.5K

$26.25 R$144

-36.00%

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.2K

$7.24 R$39.74

3.18%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$393 R$2,159

100.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.9M

$6,949 R$38.1K

76.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 280.0K

$38.02 R$209

127.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 192.2K

$45.08 R$247

31.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 448.7K

$90.2 R$495

53.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 320.5K

$76.7 R$421

28.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$279 R$1,532

380.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$159 R$874

319.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$730 R$4,006

170.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$415 R$2,278

148.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.3M

$1,182 R$6,487

246.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$538 R$2,953

260.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

$274 R$1,505

135.56%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

11.12

-1.62%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Duque de Caxias: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Duque de Caxias

$159 21.1% 76.1% $508

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Duque de Caxias

$191 25.3% 37.8% $116

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Duque de Caxias

$73 9.6% 67.3% $150

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Duque de Caxias

$127 16.9% 26.4% $46

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Duque de Caxias

$113 14.9% 34.7% $60

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Duque de Caxias

$53 7.1% 42.8% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Duque de Caxias

$38 5.1% 32.7% $19

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,341 in Medellin versus $279 in Duque de Caxias. 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 2.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $37 in Duque de Caxias. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $307 vs $191 – making Duque de Caxias the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇧🇷 Duque de Caxias

🕒 Local time

03:30 3:30 AM

05:30 5:30 AM

2 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

808,161

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.08 USD

10,000 COP = 2.75 EUR

1 BRL = 0.182 USD

1 BRL = 0.163 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 November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 3,243 COP (10,000 COP = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 3,636 COP (10,000 COP = 2.75 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 5.49 BRL (1 BRL = 0.182 USD). 1 EUR = 6.15 BRL (1 BRL = 0.163 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Duque de Caxias 4,760 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Duque de Caxias

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 Duque de Caxias: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin costs about 124% more than Duque de Caxias, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,538 per month in Medellin and $1,132 in Duque de Caxias. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Duque de Caxias, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $279 there versus $1,341 in Medellin.

Groceries cost about 61% more in Medellin, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $37 in Duque de Caxias. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

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