Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,045 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Lima
Learn more

Lima Living Index

Jump to prices

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,045

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Lima

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $1,045 in Lima.

Medellin $1,639
Lima $1,045

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $1,668 in Lima.

Medellin $2,413
Lima $1,668

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $2,292 in Lima.

Medellin $3,186
Lima $2,292

Living in Medellin is roughly 57% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Lima is 23% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$4.25 PEN 14.73

90.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.7K

$35.07 PEN 122

34.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.6K

$7.04 PEN 24.40

34.94%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,722

$3.30 PEN 11.45

-8.79%

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

$1.80 COP 5,801

$1.11 PEN 3.85

62.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,554

$0.62 PEN 2.15

127.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.2K

$2.64 PEN 9.16

20.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.5K

$4.41 PEN 15.30

30.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,869

$1.62 PEN 5.63

-6.79%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,667

$2.59 PEN 8.98

-8.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,712

$1.32 PEN 4.57

34.09%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,320

$2.95 PEN 10.22

-2.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$9.59 PEN 33.25

6.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.8K

$5.70 PEN 19.77

73.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.1K

$9.95 PEN 34.50

40.60%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$1.94 PEN 6.74

104.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,005

$1.03 PEN 3.57

50.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,039

$1.44 PEN 4.98

51.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,041

$1.53 PEN 5.29

42.48%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,328

$0.90 PEN 3.12

117.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,125

$0.89 PEN 3.09

78.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,694

$0.87 PEN 3.03

32.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,009

$0.88 PEN 3.05

40.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$5.64 PEN 19.56

-29.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.1K

$9.56 PEN 33.15

43.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,352

$1.92 PEN 6.67

-13.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,281

$3.16 PEN 10.94

-28.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,766

$0.72 PEN 2.49

62.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.5K

$32.28 PEN 112

139.68%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,089

$3.56 PEN 12.34

-64.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,603

$1.99 PEN 6.90

3.02%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$7.83 PEN 27.13

9.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,343

$1.65 PEN 5.71

-18.18%

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

$34.1K COP 109.8M

$21.7K PEN 75.3K

56.82%

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

$34.7K COP 111.8M

$28.3K PEN 97.9K

22.72%

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

$170 COP 547.0K

$67.7 PEN 235

150.63%

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

$13.55 COP 43.7K

$15.71 PEN 54.5

-13.75%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.5K

$26.76 PEN 92.8

4.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 140.9K

$32.50 PEN 113

34.46%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.4K

$19.68 PEN 68.2

-12.65%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$7.39 PEN 25.61

-6.50%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$309 PEN 1,071

157.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$13.0K PEN 45.1K

-29.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.2K

$53.9 PEN 187

57.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 186.9K

$35.93 PEN 125

61.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.2K

$81.5 PEN 283

65.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 315.6K

$79.5 PEN 276

23.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$734 PEN 2,544

64.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$373 PEN 1,294

71.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$1,287 PEN 4,460

57.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$764 PEN 2,647

32.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.4M

$2,434 PEN 8,437

71.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$1,359 PEN 4,709

40.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$666 PEN 2,307

-1.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

8.78

24.60%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Lima: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Lima

$373 35.7% 41.8% $268

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Lima

$229 21.9% 22.8% $68

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Lima

$110 10.5% 47.9% $101

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Lima

$124 11.8% 27% $46

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Lima

$113 10.8% 33.2% $56

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Lima

$49 4.7% 48% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Lima

$47 4.5% 17.8% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $734 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $35 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $229 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

19:41 7:41 PM

Same time as Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

1 PEN = 0.289 USD

1 PEN = 0.258 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, 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).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3.47 PEN (1 PEN = 0.289 USD). 1 EUR = 3.87 PEN (1 PEN = 0.258 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Lima 2,040 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Lima

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 Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $1,045 in Lima, so Lima is about 36% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,459 in Medellin and $1,568 in Lima 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: $1,208 in Medellin versus $734 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $797 in Medellin versus $309 in Lima. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 30% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Lima gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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 Lima gentler on the wallet – expenses run 36% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.