Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Kota

For one person, living is cheaper in Kota: $338 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $15,600 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
16

Cost of Living Index in Kota
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Kota Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Kota

🇮🇳 India

$338

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Kota

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $338 in Kota.

Medellin $1,639
Kota $338

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $539 in Kota.

Medellin $2,413
Kota $539

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $739 in Kota.

Medellin $3,186
Kota $739

Living in Medellin is roughly 385% more expensive than in Kota, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Kota is 75% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$2.05 ₹195

294.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.7K

$7.94 ₹754

492.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.6K

$2.69 ₹255

253.16%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,722

$0.70 ₹66.6

330.00%

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

$1.80 COP 5,801

$0.36 ₹33.93

400.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,554

$0.19 ₹17.71

642.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.2K

$1.61 ₹153

97.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.5K

$3.23 ₹307

78.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,869

$0.61 ₹57.5

147.54%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,667

$0.44 ₹42.20

440.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,712

$0.68 ₹64.8

160.29%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,320

$0.83 ₹78.9

248.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$4.41 ₹418

131.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.8K

$2.66 ₹253

271.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.1K

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$1.55 ₹147

156.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,005

$0.49 ₹46.13

216.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,039

$0.67 ₹63.9

225.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,041

$0.41 ₹38.58

431.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,328

$0.35 ₹33.55

460.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,125

$0.40 ₹38.24

297.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,694

$0.31 ₹29.06

270.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,009

$0.28 ₹26.29

342.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$4.21 ₹399

-5.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.1K

$7.66 ₹728

78.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,352

$1.54 ₹146

7.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,281

$1.86 ₹177

21.51%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$4.82 ₹458

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,766

$0.51 ₹48.25

129.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.5K

$25.77 ₹2,447

200.23%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,089

$0.33 ₹31.39

284.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,603

$0.22 ₹20.92

831.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$1.06 ₹101

706.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,343

$1.12 ₹106

20.54%

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

$34.1K COP 109.8M

$11.3K ₹1.1M

201.63%

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

$34.7K COP 111.8M

$17.2K ₹1.6M

101.77%

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

$170 COP 547.0K

$13.27 ₹1,260

1178.45%

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

$13.55 COP 43.7K

$2.58 ₹245

425.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.5K

$6.15 ₹584

356.42%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 140.9K

$10.33 ₹981

323.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.4K

$4.26 ₹404

303.52%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$3.18 ₹302

117.30%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$34.18 ₹3,246

2230.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$655 ₹62.2K

1290.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.2K

$22.28 ₹2,116

280.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 186.9K

$33.09 ₹3,142

75.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.2K

$34.97 ₹3,320

285.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 315.6K

$20.80 ₹1,975

370.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$135 ₹12.8K

793.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$79.1 ₹7,507

711.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$248 ₹23.6K

716.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$175 ₹16.6K

478.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.4M

$558 ₹52.9K

647.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$344 ₹32.7K

454.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$422 ₹40.1K

55.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

7.5

45.87%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Kota: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Kota

$79 23.4% 87.7% $562

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Kota

$92 27.1% 69.2% $205

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Kota

$22 6.5% 89.6% $189

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Kota

$50 14.7% 70.7% $120

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Kota

$50 14.8% 70.4% $119

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Kota

$29 8.6% 68.7% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Kota

$17 4.9% 71% $41

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $135 in Kota. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays 56% 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 $8 in Kota for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $92 per month, with Kota cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇮🇳 Kota

🕒 Local time

19:56 7:56 PM

06:26 6:26 AM

10 h 30 min ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

1,001,400

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,224 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,600 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 94.95 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Kota 15,350 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Kota

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 Kota: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $338 in Kota, so Kota is about 79% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 56% 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 $135 in Kota. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 224% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Kota – a meal for two runs $8 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $338 in Kota versus $1,639 in Medellin, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Kota but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Kota 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 Kota gentler on the wallet – expenses run 79% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.