Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Governador Valadares

For one person, living is cheaper in Governador Valadares: $691 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $12,000 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
33

Cost of Living Index in Governador Valadares
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Governador Valadares Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Governador Valadares

🇧🇷 Brazil

$691

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Governador Valadares

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,692 in Medellin versus $691 in Governador Valadares.

Medellin $1,692
Governador Valadares $691

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,471 in Medellin versus $1,185 in Governador Valadares.

Medellin $2,471
Governador Valadares $1,185

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,249 in Medellin versus $1,679 in Governador Valadares.

Medellin $3,249
Governador Valadares $1,679

Living in Medellin is roughly 145% more expensive than in Governador Valadares, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 25% above, Governador Valadares is 49% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 26.9K

$4.55 R$25.04

83.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.3K

$26.54 R$146

75.32%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.6K

$8.45 R$46.49

12.07%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.1K

$2.02 R$11.11

54.95%

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

$1.77 COP 5,704

$0.96 R$5.30

84.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,600

$0.36 R$1.98

294.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$1.46 R$8.03

115.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.4K

$2.28 R$12.57

150.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,949

$0.89 R$4.90

71.91%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,399

$1.36 R$7.48

68.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,281

$1.69 R$9.29

14.79%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,902

$2.06 R$11.32

49.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.3K

$7.42 R$40.82

34.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.7K

$3.58 R$19.69

191.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.1K

$6.15 R$33.84

126.99%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$1.88 R$10.33

115.43%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,936

$1.18 R$6.51

29.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,795

$1.17 R$6.44

79.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,407

$1.48 R$8.13

54.73%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,812

$1.03 R$5.66

104.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,519

$0.96 R$5.31

78.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,779

$0.76 R$4.19

53.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,102

$0.78 R$4.27

102.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.6K

$1.14 R$6.27

242.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.4K

$6.03 R$33.21

132.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,689

$1.17 R$6.46

50.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,758

$2.50 R$13.74

8.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,810

$0.87 R$4.80

35.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 246.4K

$42.49 R$234

79.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,835

$0.95 R$5.23

90.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,876

$0.67 R$3.71

217.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.3K

$5.85 R$32.20

38.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,118

$1.08 R$5.96

18.52%

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

$34.4K COP 111.2M

$21.8K R$120.0K

57.93%

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

$34.1K COP 110.2M

$25.4K R$139.8K

34.42%

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

$178 COP 573.9K

$46.79 R$258

279.85%

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

$13.89 COP 44.8K

$7.31 R$40.22

90.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.3K

$19.83 R$109

55.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 135.4K

$22.30 R$123

88.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.3K

$25.78 R$142

-34.83%

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.1K

$7.48 R$41.17

-0.13%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$110 R$607

616.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.7M

$12.9K R$70.9K

-4.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 278.8K

$21.32 R$117

304.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 191.4K

$37.96 R$209

56.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 446.7K

$93.3 R$513

48.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 319.1K

$66.5 R$366

48.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$225 R$1,241

494.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$163 R$898

309.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$648 R$3,567

204.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$466 R$2,562

121.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.2M

$1,314 R$7,232

211.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$1,419 R$7,811

36.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

$337 R$1,853

91.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

11.25

-2.76%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Governador Valadares: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Governador Valadares

$163 23.6% 75.6% $504

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Governador Valadares

$165 23.9% 46.4% $143

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Governador Valadares

$74 10.7% 66.8% $148

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Governador Valadares

$103 14.9% 40.3% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Governador Valadares

$99 14.3% 42.8% $74

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Governador Valadares

$50 7.3% 46.2% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Governador Valadares

$37 5.4% 34.5% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,341 in Medellin and $225 in Governador Valadares. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays 92% 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 $27 in Governador Valadares for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $307 vs $165 per month, with Governador Valadares cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇧🇷 Governador Valadares

🕒 Local time

14:41 2:41 PM

16:41 4:41 PM

2 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

257,171

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 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 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,609 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 5.5 BRL (1 BRL = 0.182 USD). 1 EUR = 6.15 BRL (1 BRL = 0.163 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Medellin Governador Valadares 4,630 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

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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 Governador Valadares: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Governador Valadares is about 59% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 92% 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: $1,341 in Medellin versus $225 in Governador Valadares. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 86% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Governador Valadares – a meal for two runs $27 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $691 in Governador Valadares versus $1,692 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Governador Valadares but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Governador Valadares 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 Governador Valadares gentler on the wallet – expenses run 59% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.