Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Imbituba

For one person, living is cheaper in Imbituba: $795 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $10,800 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
38

Cost of Living Index in Imbituba
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Imbituba Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Imbituba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$795

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Imbituba

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,692 in Medellin versus $795 in Imbituba.

Medellin $1,692
Imbituba $795

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,471 in Medellin versus $1,262 in Imbituba.

Medellin $2,471
Imbituba $1,262

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,249 in Medellin versus $1,729 in Imbituba.

Medellin $3,249
Imbituba $1,729

Living in Medellin is roughly 113% more expensive than in Imbituba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 25% above, Imbituba is 41% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 26.8K

$4.73 R$25.83

76.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 149.7K

$28.27 R$154

64.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.5K

$6.38 R$34.85

48.43%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.1K

$1.79 R$9.76

74.86%

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

$1.77 COP 5,681

$1.06 R$5.78

66.98%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,582

$0.49 R$2.66

189.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.1K

$2.20 R$12.05

43.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.3K

$2.26 R$12.33

152.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,930

$0.93 R$5.10

64.52%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,370

$1.15 R$6.30

99.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,257

$0.87 R$4.73

122.99%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,864

$2.05 R$11.19

49.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.1K

$7.55 R$41.25

32.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.6K

$2.95 R$16.10

254.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 44.9K

$6.19 R$33.81

125.53%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.0K

$1.47 R$8.04

175.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,916

$0.77 R$4.20

98.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,769

$1.14 R$6.25

84.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,378

$0.77 R$4.22

197.40%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,785

$0.72 R$3.96

193.06%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,498

$1.18 R$6.44

44.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,764

$1.38 R$7.52

-15.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,083

$0.93 R$5.07

69.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.6K

$3.01 R$16.45

29.90%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.2K

$8.63 R$47.15

62.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,667

$1.07 R$5.87

64.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,724

$2.99 R$16.35

-9.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,795

$0.92 R$5.05

28.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 245.4K

$41.53 R$227

83.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,812

$1.89 R$10.35

-4.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,849

$1.51 R$8.25

41.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.2K

$9.12 R$49.86

-10.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,102

$1.22 R$6.66

4.92%

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

$34.4K COP 110.8M

$22.5K R$123.0K

52.91%

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

$34.1K COP 109.8M

$31.6K R$172.4K

8.16%

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

$178 COP 571.7K

$57.4 R$313

209.90%

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

$13.89 COP 44.7K

$10.64 R$58.2

30.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 98.9K

$19.85 R$108

54.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 134.9K

$24.31 R$133

72.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.0K

$25.89 R$141

-35.11%

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.0K

$8.34 R$45.56

-10.43%

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

$790 COP 2.5M

$301 R$1,642

162.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.6M

$6,099 R$33.3K

101.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 277.7K

$42.34 R$231

103.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 190.6K

$85.8 R$469

-30.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 445.0K

$84.1 R$459

64.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 317.8K

$64.5 R$352

53.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$330 R$1,801

306.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.1M

$228 R$1,246

192.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$631 R$3,450

212.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$441 R$2,410

134.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.2M

$1,549 R$8,460

164.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.2M

$1,156 R$6,315

67.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

10.5

4.19%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Imbituba: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Imbituba

$228 28.7% 65.8% $439

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Imbituba

$159 20% 48.4% $149

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Imbituba

$88 11.1% 60.5% $135

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Imbituba

$100 12.6% 42% $73

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Imbituba

$125 15.7% 27.7% $48

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Imbituba

$55 6.9% 41.5% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Imbituba

$41 5.2% 27.9% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,341 in Medellin and $330 in Imbituba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $28 in Imbituba for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $307 vs $159 per month, with Imbituba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇧🇷 Imbituba

🕒 Local time

20:17 8:17 PM

22:17 10:17 PM

2 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

52,579

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.11 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

1 BRL = 0.183 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 = 3,217 COP (10,000 COP = 3.11 USD). 1 EUR = 3,611 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 5.46 BRL (1 BRL = 0.183 USD). 1 EUR = 6.13 BRL (1 BRL = 0.163 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Medellin Imbituba 4,800 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

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Medellin
Imbituba

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 Imbituba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Imbituba is about 53% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $2,538 in Medellin and $1,192 in Imbituba to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,341 in Medellin versus $330 in Imbituba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 94% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Imbituba – a meal for two runs $28 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $795 in Imbituba versus $1,692 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Imbituba but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Imbituba 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 Imbituba gentler on the wallet – expenses run 53% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.