Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Los Banos, CA

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,625 a month against $2,394 in Los Banos, CA, rent and utilities included – about $9,200 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
116

Cost of Living Index in Los Banos, CA
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Los Banos, CA Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,625

/mo nomad

Los Banos, CA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,394

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Los Banos, CA

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 Los Banos, CA actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,625 in Medellin versus $2,394 in Los Banos, CA.

Medellin $1,625
Los Banos, CA $2,394

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,412 in Medellin versus $3,580 in Los Banos, CA.

Medellin $2,412
Los Banos, CA $3,580

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,199 in Medellin versus $4,767 in Los Banos, CA.

Medellin $3,199
Los Banos, CA $4,767

Living in Medellin costs roughly 32% less than in Los Banos, CA, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Los Banos, CA 77% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.30 COP 26.3K

$14.86 $14.86

-44.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.91 COP 148.7K

$101 $101

-53.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.24 COP 29.3K

$9.83 $9.83

-6.00%

Cappuccino

$3.05 COP 9,676

$5.11 $5.11

-40.31%

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

$1.80 COP 5,707

$2.53 $2.53

-28.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,382

$2.04 $2.04

-32.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 COP 10.3K

$7.94 $7.94

-59.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.56 COP 17.6K

$8.24 $8.24

-32.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 COP 4,760

$1.03 $1.03

45.63%

White Bread (500g)

$2.37 COP 7,508

$3.21 $3.21

-26.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 COP 5,377

$2.95 $2.95

-42.37%

Eggs

$2.96 COP 9,379

$1.58 $1.58

87.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.22 COP 32.4K

$8.69 $8.69

17.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.74 COP 30.9K

$7.73 $7.73

26.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.90 COP 44.1K

$12.80 $12.80

8.59%

Apples (1kg)

$4.13 COP 13.1K

$3.39 $3.39

21.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,839

$1.35 $1.35

13.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 COP 7,052

$2.79 $2.79

-20.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.27 COP 7,194

$2.83 $2.83

-19.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 COP 6,311

$2.92 $2.92

-31.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 COP 5,285

$2.44 $2.44

-31.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 COP 3,742

$2.30 $2.30

-48.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,919

$2.49 $2.49

-50.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.87 COP 12.3K

$11.10 $11.10

-65.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.78 COP 43.7K

$14.10 $14.10

-2.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,256

$1.87 $1.87

-11.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 COP 7,615

$1.31 $1.31

83.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.24 COP 3,944

$2.04 $2.04

-39.22%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.2 COP 248.0K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 COP 4,044

$2.71 $2.71

-52.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.15 COP 6,803

$1.56 $1.56

37.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.37 COP 26.5K

$32.88 $32.88

-74.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,288

$1.45 $1.45

-6.90%

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

$34.8K COP 110.2M

$30.4K $30.4K

14.38%

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

$34.7K COP 110.0M

$27.0K $27.0K

28.47%

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

$167 COP 528.4K

$217 $217

-23.32%

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

$13.62 COP 43.2K

$44.68 $44.68

-69.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.12 COP 92.3K

$88.7 $88.7

-67.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.09 COP 143.0K

$39.09 $39.09

15.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.18 COP 54.5K

Cinema Ticket

$6.97 COP 22.1K

$14.86 $14.86

-53.10%

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

$790 COP 2.5M

$2,509 $2,509

-68.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,041 COP 28.7M

$29.5K $29.5K

-69.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.8 COP 278.4K

$23.82 $23.82

268.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.2 COP 184.4K

$21.67 $21.67

168.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$139 COP 440.7K

$52.3 $52.3

165.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.9 COP 313.5K

$59.4 $59.4

66.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 COP 3.3M

$1,618 $1,618

-36.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$620 COP 2.0M

$1,294 $1,294

-52.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,881 COP 6.0M

$2,682 $2,682

-29.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 COP 3.2M

$2,280 $2,280

-55.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,988 COP 12.6M

$2,713 $2,713

47.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,702 COP 5.4M

$2,408 $2,408

-29.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$663 COP 2.1M

$6,598 $6,598

-89.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

6.47

69.09%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 19, 2026

Last update for Los Banos, CA: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$619 38.1%

Los Banos, CA

$1.3K 54.1% 109% $674

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$298 18.3%

Los Banos, CA

$307 12.8% 3% $9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$209 12.9%

Los Banos, CA

$351 14.7% 67.5% $141

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$173 10.6%

Los Banos, CA

$71 3% 59% $102

Eating Out

Medellin

$171 10.5%

Los Banos, CA

$284 11.9% 66.4% $113

Getting Around

Medellin

$95 5.9%

Los Banos, CA

$19 * 0.8% 80.4% $77

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$59 3.6%

Los Banos, CA

$69 2.9% 16.6% $9.8

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 $1,028 in Medellin and $1,618 in Los Banos, CA. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Los Banos, CA pays 895% 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: $47.00 in Medellin vs $101 in Los Banos, CA for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $298 vs $307 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇺🇸 Los Banos, CA

🕒 Local time

09:50 9:50 AM

07:50 7:50 AM

2 h behind Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

35,972

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Medellin Los Banos, CA 5,710 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Los Banos, CA

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 Los Banos, CA: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin wins on cost – living expenses run 47% lower than in Los Banos, CA. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Medellin the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 895% lower in Los Banos, CA. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,028 in Medellin versus $1,618 in Los Banos, CA. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 3% higher in Los Banos, CA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,625 per month in Medellin versus $2,394 in Los Banos, CA – a 47% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,625 in Medellin versus $2,394 in Los Banos, CA, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Medellin but tight or insufficient in Los Banos, CA. The gap between the two cities makes Medellin the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Medellin delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,625 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Medellin hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Medellin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 47% less than in Los Banos, CA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.