Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Jaco Beach

For one person, living is cheaper in Jaco Beach: $1,445 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $2,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Medellin outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
70

Cost of Living Index in Jaco Beach
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Jaco Beach Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Jaco Beach

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,445

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Jaco Beach

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $1,445 in Jaco Beach.

Medellin $1,639
Jaco Beach $1,445

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $2,296 in Jaco Beach.

Medellin $2,413
Jaco Beach $2,296

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $3,147 in Jaco Beach.

Medellin $3,186
Jaco Beach $3,147

Living in Medellin is roughly 13% more expensive than in Jaco Beach, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Jaco Beach 6% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$11.32 ₡5,106

-28.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$43.14 ₡19.5K

9.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$10.22 ₡4,612

-7.05%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$3.99 ₡1,799

-24.56%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$2.40 ₡1,085

-25.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$1.87 ₡844

-24.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$3.19 ₡1,441

-0.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$4.33 ₡1,954

32.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$1.98 ₡892

-23.74%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$2.19 ₡989

8.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$2.39 ₡1,078

-25.94%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$2.60 ₡1,175

11.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$10.78 ₡4,865

-5.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$8.88 ₡4,008

11.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$12.11 ₡5,466

15.52%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$4.95 ₡2,233

-19.80%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$1.66 ₡748

-6.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$4.75 ₡2,141

-54.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$3.42 ₡1,544

-36.26%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$1.50 ₡676

30.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$1.42 ₡641

11.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$0.99 ₡447

16.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$1.99 ₡900

-37.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$6.01 ₡2,711

-34.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$13.81 ₡6,231

-0.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,221

$2.64 ₡1,192

-37.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,103

$2.18 ₡985

3.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$2.49 ₡1,125

-49.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$1.63 ₡735

25.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$8.53 ₡3,848

0.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$1.57 ₡707

-14.01%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$33.9K ₡15.3M

0.52%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$42.6K ₡19.2M

-18.65%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$79.6 ₡35.9K

113.26%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$23.88 ₡10.8K

-43.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$47.69 ₡21.5K

-41.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$52.0 ₡23.4K

-15.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$7.72 ₡3,483

-10.49%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$479 ₡216.3K

66.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$7,442 ₡3.4M

22.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$25.50 ₡11.5K

232.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$56.2 ₡25.4K

3.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$127 ₡57.3K

6.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$133 ₡59.8K

-26.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$748 ₡337.6K

61.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$526 ₡237.2K

22.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$1,984 ₡895.4K

2.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$1,099 ₡495.8K

-7.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$402 ₡181.3K

63.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

8.62

26.91%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Jaco Beach: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Jaco Beach

$526 36.4% 18.1% $116

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Jaco Beach

$326 22.6% 9.8% $29

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Jaco Beach

$151 10.5% 28.5% $60

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Jaco Beach

$211 14.6% 24.3% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Jaco Beach

$154 10.6% 9.1% $15

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Jaco Beach

$11 * 0.7% 88.6% $83

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Jaco Beach

$67 4.7% 17.1% $9.9

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $748 in Jaco Beach. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays 64% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $43 in Jaco Beach. Groceries flip the comparison at $297 vs $326, with Medellin cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇷 Jaco Beach

🕒 Local time

13:45 1:45 PM

12:45 12:45 PM

1 h behind Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, 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 = 3,502 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Jaco Beach 1,060 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Jaco Beach

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 Jaco Beach: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Jaco Beach is cheaper overall, especially in transport and clothing. The 13% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 64% 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 $748 in Jaco Beach. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $797 in Medellin versus $479 in Jaco Beach. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Jaco Beach – a meal for two runs $43 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

For families, Jaco Beach is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Medellin, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

It comes down to priorities – Jaco Beach wins on affordability, Medellin on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.