Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Kawasaki

For one person, living is cheaper in Kawasaki: $1,473 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 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
71

Cost of Living Index in Kawasaki
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Kawasaki Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Kawasaki

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,473

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Kawasaki

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

A single person spends $1,692 per month in Medellin vs $1,473 in Kawasaki, rent included.

Medellin $1,692
Kawasaki $1,473

A couple spends around $2,471 per month in Medellin vs $2,239 in Kawasaki, rent included.

Medellin $2,471
Kawasaki $2,239

A family of three spends $3,249 per month in Medellin vs $3,006 in Kawasaki, rent included.

Medellin $3,249
Kawasaki $3,006

Medellin costs about 15% more than Kawasaki, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Medellin and Kawasaki sit above the global median – Medellin by 25%, Kawasaki by 9%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 26.9K

$7.62 ¥1,200

9.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.3K

$37.55 ¥5,914

23.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.6K

$4.96 ¥781

90.93%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.1K

$2.60 ¥410

20.38%

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

$1.77 COP 5,705

$1.69 ¥266

4.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,601

$0.92 ¥146

54.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$3.12 ¥491

0.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.4K

$3.23 ¥509

76.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,950

$1.49 ¥235

2.68%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,401

$1.48 ¥233

54.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,282

$4.38 ¥690

-55.71%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,905

$2.13 ¥335

44.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.3K

$11.41 ¥1,796

-12.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.7K

$6.69 ¥1,054

56.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.1K

$16.69 ¥2,629

-16.36%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$4.94 ¥779

-18.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,937

$2.82 ¥445

-45.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,797

$4.94 ¥778

-57.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,409

$5.10 ¥803

-55.10%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,813

$3.16 ¥497

-33.23%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,521

$3.24 ¥510

-47.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,780

$1.19 ¥188

-1.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,104

$0.84 ¥132

88.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.6K

$3.83 ¥603

2.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.4K

$9.22 ¥1,452

52.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,690

$2.28 ¥359

-22.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,760

$2.76 ¥435

-1.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,811

$1.87 ¥295

-36.90%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 246.4K

$51.6 ¥8,118

47.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,836

$3.08 ¥485

-41.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,878

$3.16 ¥498

-32.59%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.3K

$19.32 ¥3,043

-57.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,119

$1.05 ¥166

21.90%

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

$34.4K COP 111.2M

$21.8K ¥3.4M

57.71%

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

$34.1K COP 110.3M

$14.9K ¥2.4M

128.63%

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

$178 COP 574.1K

$127 ¥20.0K

40.04%

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

$13.89 COP 44.9K

$23.96 ¥3,774

-42.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.3K

$31.45 ¥4,953

-2.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 135.5K

$54.8 ¥8,630

-23.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.3K

$6.38 ¥1,004

163.32%

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.1K

$12.63 ¥1,990

-40.86%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$728 ¥114.7K

8.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.7M

$22.1K ¥3.5M

-44.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 278.9K

$53.1 ¥8,363

62.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 191.4K

$33.24 ¥5,235

78.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 446.9K

$66.1 ¥10.4K

109.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 319.2K

$72.9 ¥11.5K

35.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$766 ¥120.6K

75.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$565 ¥89.0K

18.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$1,264 ¥199.1K

56.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$1,019 ¥160.5K

1.37%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.2M

$4,741 ¥746.7K

-13.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$3,255 ¥512.6K

-40.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

$2,542 ¥400.4K

-74.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

2.02

441.58%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Kawasaki: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Kawasaki

$565 38.4% 15.3% $102

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Kawasaki

$327 22.2% 6.2% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Kawasaki

$182 12.4% 18% $40

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Kawasaki

$140 9.5% 19.1% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Kawasaki

$101 6.9% 41.1% $71

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Kawasaki

$78 5.3% 16.6% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Kawasaki

$80 5.4% 40.7% $23

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,341 in Medellin versus $766 in Kawasaki. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Kawasaki are about 3.9 times higher, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $38 in Kawasaki. Groceries tell a different story – $307 in Medellin vs $327 in Kawasaki – so Medellin wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇯🇵 Kawasaki

🕒 Local time

11:50 11:50 AM

01:50 1:50 AM

14 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

1,538,262

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.35 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.65 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 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3,230 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,628 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 157 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.35 USD). 1 EUR = 177 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.65 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Kawasaki 14,080 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Kawasaki

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 Kawasaki: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin costs about 15% more than Kawasaki, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,538 per month in Medellin and $2,209 in Kawasaki. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kawasaki, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $766 there versus $1,341 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $38 in Kawasaki. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,692 in Medellin and $1,473 in Kawasaki. That makes Kawasaki about 13% cheaper.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,692 in Medellin and $1,473 in Kawasaki. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Kawasaki costs $1,473 versus $1,692 in Medellin. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.