Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Goa

For one person, living is cheaper in Goa: $517 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $13,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index
25

Cost of Living Index in Goa
Learn more

Goa Living Index

Jump to prices

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Goa

🇮🇳 India

$517

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Goa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $517 in Goa.

Medellin $1,639
Goa $517

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $815 in Goa.

Medellin $2,413
Goa $815

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $1,112 in Goa.

Medellin $3,186
Goa $1,112

Living in Medellin is roughly 217% more expensive than in Goa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Goa is 62% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$3.23 ₹308

150.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$16.07 ₹1,529

192.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$5.62 ₹534

69.04%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$1.20 ₹114

150.83%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$0.35 ₹33.75

414.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$0.16 ₹15.27

781.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$1.18 ₹112

169.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$2.64 ₹251

117.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$0.70 ₹66.8

115.71%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$0.54 ₹51.5

340.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$0.68 ₹64.9

160.29%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$0.84 ₹80.0

244.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$7.27 ₹692

40.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$3.02 ₹287

226.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$1.74 ₹166

128.16%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$0.74 ₹70.5

109.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$1.59 ₹151

37.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$0.42 ₹39.52

419.05%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$0.31 ₹29.14

532.26%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$0.41 ₹38.96

287.80%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$0.52 ₹49.20

121.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$0.30 ₹28.74

313.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$4.94 ₹470

-19.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$6.67 ₹634

105.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,222

$0.84 ₹79.5

97.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,104

$2.94 ₹280

-23.13%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$4.88 ₹464

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$0.25 ₹23.57

368.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

$9.83 ₹935

687.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$1.03 ₹97.8

23.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$0.34 ₹32.46

502.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$1.50 ₹143

470.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$1.08 ₹102

25.00%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$11.1K ₹1.1M

205.91%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$30.3K ₹2.9M

14.46%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$25.85 ₹2,459

556.29%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$3.01 ₹286

350.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$9.54 ₹907

194.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$17.25 ₹1,640

153.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

$1.02 ₹97.0

1585.29%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$3.16 ₹301

118.67%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$111 ₹10.5K

620.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$1,683 ₹160.1K

441.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$32.10 ₹3,052

163.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$34.70 ₹3,300

67.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$58.3 ₹5,543

131.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$28.56 ₹2,716

242.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$211 ₹20.1K

472.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$195 ₹18.5K

229.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$575 ₹54.7K

252.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$384 ₹36.5K

163.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

$1,472 ₹140.0K

183.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$1,087 ₹103.4K

75.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$353 ₹33.6K

86.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

9.12

19.96%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Goa: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Goa

$195 37.6% 69.7% $447

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Goa

$108 20.9% 63.7% $189

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Goa

$38 7.4% 81.8% $173

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Goa

$70 13.6% 58.5% $99

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Goa

$69 13.4% 59.1% $100

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Goa

$14 2.6% 85.5% $80

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Goa

$24 4.6% 59% $34

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $211 in Goa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays 86% 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 in Medellin vs $16 in Goa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $108 per month, with Goa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇮🇳 Goa

🕒 Local time

11:50 11:50 AM

22:20 10:20 PM

10 h 30 min ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

1,458,545

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.51 USD

1,000 INR = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR 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 = 3,501 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 95.1 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.45 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Goa 15,900 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Goa

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 Goa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin and Goa differ by about 217% in total monthly costs ($1,639 vs $517 including rent). Goa is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 86% 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: $1,208 in Medellin versus $211 in Goa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 175% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Goa – a meal for two runs $16 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $517 in Goa versus $1,639 in Medellin, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Goa but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Goa the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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 Goa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 68% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.