Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Hamamatsu

For one person, living is cheaper in Hamamatsu: $783 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $10,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
38

Cost of Living Index in Hamamatsu
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Hamamatsu Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Hamamatsu

🇯🇵 Japan

$783

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Hamamatsu

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $783 in Hamamatsu.

Medellin $1,639
Hamamatsu $783

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $1,266 in Hamamatsu.

Medellin $2,413
Hamamatsu $1,266

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $1,750 in Hamamatsu.

Medellin $3,186
Hamamatsu $1,750

Living in Medellin is roughly 109% more expensive than in Hamamatsu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Hamamatsu is 42% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$3.90 ¥614

107.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$41.78 ¥6,588

12.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$5.19 ¥819

83.04%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$3.41 ¥538

-11.73%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$1.10 ¥174

63.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$0.75 ¥118

88.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$2.61 ¥411

21.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$3.11 ¥490

84.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$1.08 ¥170

39.81%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$1.70 ¥267

40.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$3.67 ¥578

-51.77%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$1.68 ¥265

72.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$10.25 ¥1,616

-0.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$6.17 ¥972

59.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$14.24 ¥2,245

-1.76%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$5.80 ¥915

-31.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$2.84 ¥447

-45.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$2.95 ¥465

-26.10%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$4.30 ¥679

-49.30%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$2.61 ¥412

-24.90%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$2.59 ¥408

-38.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$1.29 ¥204

-10.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$0.66 ¥104

87.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$3.89 ¥613

1.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$6.39 ¥1,007

114.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$1.82 ¥287

-8.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$2.10 ¥331

7.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$50.1 ¥7,904

54.34%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$3.11 ¥490

-59.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$2.63 ¥414

-22.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$20.62 ¥3,252

-58.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$1.06 ¥167

27.36%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$21.6K ¥3.4M

57.74%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$15.8K ¥2.5M

119.01%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$130 ¥20.6K

30.08%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$8.59 ¥1,354

57.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$32.78 ¥5,169

-14.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

$17.40 ¥2,744

-1.21%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$13.08 ¥2,062

-47.17%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$819 ¥129.2K

-2.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$14.8K ¥2.3M

-38.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$63.6 ¥10.0K

33.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$37.10 ¥5,850

56.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$61.3 ¥9,665

120.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$103 ¥16.3K

-5.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$7,787 ¥1.2M

-46.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$5,298 ¥835.4K

-63.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$1,602 ¥252.7K

-58.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

2.64

314.39%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Hamamatsu: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Hamamatsu

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Hamamatsu

$285 36.4% 4% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Hamamatsu

$172 21.9% 18.7% $39

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Hamamatsu

$114 14.6% 32.6% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Hamamatsu

$119 15.2% 29.4% $50

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Hamamatsu

$66 * 8.5% 29% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Hamamatsu

$26 * 3.3% 54.5% $31

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

Cost Breakdown

Hamamatsu pays about 2.4 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $42 in Hamamatsu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $285 per month, with Hamamatsu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇯🇵 Hamamatsu

🕒 Local time

20:47 8:47 PM

10:47 10:47 AM

14 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

797,033

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.34 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.68 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,605 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.34 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.68 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Hamamatsu 14,270 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Hamamatsu

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 Hamamatsu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $783 in Hamamatsu, so Hamamatsu is about 52% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 59% lower in Medellin. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Supermarket bills run roughly 4% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Hamamatsu – a meal for two runs $42 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $783 in Hamamatsu versus $1,639 in Medellin, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Hamamatsu but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Hamamatsu 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.