Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Leticia

For one person, living is cheaper in Leticia: $1,386 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 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
66

Cost of Living Index in Leticia
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Leticia Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Leticia

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,386

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Leticia

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,692 in Medellin versus $1,386 in Leticia.

Medellin $1,692
Leticia $1,386

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,471 in Medellin versus $2,092 in Leticia.

Medellin $2,471
Leticia $2,092

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,249 in Medellin versus $2,799 in Leticia.

Medellin $3,249
Leticia $2,799

Living in Medellin is roughly 22% more expensive than in Leticia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 25% above, Leticia 3% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 26.9K

$7.27 COP 23.5K

14.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.3K

$47.28 COP 152.7K

-1.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.6K

$9.18 COP 29.6K

3.16%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.1K

$2.68 COP 8,656

16.79%

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

$1.77 COP 5,705

$1.44 COP 4,649

22.92%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,601

$1.08 COP 3,490

31.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$3.18 COP 10.3K

-0.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.4K

$3.67 COP 11.9K

55.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,950

$1.46 COP 4,701

4.79%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,401

$2.48 COP 8,004

-7.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,282

$1.70 COP 5,502

14.12%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,905

$3.18 COP 10.3K

-3.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.3K

$8.00 COP 25.8K

24.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.7K

$9.93 COP 32.1K

5.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.1K

$12.68 COP 41.0K

10.09%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$3.64 COP 11.8K

11.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,937

$1.50 COP 4,834

2.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,797

$2.01 COP 6,477

4.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,409

$1.93 COP 6,224

18.65%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,813

$1.55 COP 4,997

36.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,521

$1.53 COP 4,954

11.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,780

$1.19 COP 3,842

-1.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,104

$1.15 COP 3,717

37.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.6K

$4.23 COP 13.7K

-7.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.4K

$13.45 COP 43.4K

4.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,690

$1.46 COP 4,730

20.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,760

$2.31 COP 7,447

17.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,811

$1.09 COP 3,512

8.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 246.4K

$66.1 COP 213.6K

15.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,836

$1.55 COP 4,996

16.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,878

$2.03 COP 6,550

4.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.3K

$8.22 COP 26.5K

-1.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,119

$1.30 COP 4,206

-1.54%

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

$34.4K COP 111.2M

$35.1K COP 113.5M

-1.98%

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

$34.1K COP 110.3M

$34.7K COP 112.1M

-1.62%

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

$178 COP 574.1K

$127 COP 408.9K

40.40%

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

$13.89 COP 44.9K

$13.51 COP 43.6K

2.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.3K

$28.73 COP 92.8K

7.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 135.5K

$37.11 COP 119.9K

13.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.3K

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.1K

$7.19 COP 23.2K

3.89%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$589 COP 1.9M

34.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.7M

$8,253 COP 26.7M

49.00%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 278.9K

$86.7 COP 280.0K

-0.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 191.4K

$52.1 COP 168.3K

13.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 446.9K

$136 COP 438.2K

1.98%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 319.2K

$100 COP 323.1K

-1.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$721 COP 2.3M

86.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$483 COP 1.6M

38.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$1,401 COP 4.5M

41.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$794 COP 2.6M

30.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.2M

$2,258 COP 7.3M

81.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$1,754 COP 5.7M

10.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

-8.83%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Leticia: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Leticia

$483 34.9% 27.6% $184

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Leticia

$281 20.2% 8.7% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Leticia

$169 12.2% 24.1% $54

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Leticia

$151 10.9% 12.4% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Leticia

$169 12.2% 2.2% $3.7

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Leticia

$82 5.9% 12.1% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Leticia

$51 3.7% 9.5% $5.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,341 in Medellin and $721 in Leticia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $47 in Leticia. Groceries flip the comparison at $307 vs $281, with Leticia cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇴 Leticia

🕒 Local time

04:08 4:08 AM

Same time as Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

66,000

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Medellin Leticia 1,320 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

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Medellin
Leticia

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 Leticia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Leticia wins on cost – living expenses run 18% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Leticia the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $2,538 in Medellin and $2,079 in Leticia 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 $721 in Leticia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 10% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,692 per month in Medellin versus $1,386 in Leticia – Leticia is about 18% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Leticia is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.