Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Lugo

For one person, living is cheaper in Lugo: $1,532 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 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
73

Cost of Living Index in Lugo
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Lugo Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Lugo

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,532

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Lugo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $1,532 in Lugo.

Medellin $1,639
Lugo $1,532

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $2,263 in Lugo.

Medellin $2,413
Lugo $2,263

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $2,994 in Lugo.

Medellin $3,186
Lugo $2,994

Living in Medellin is roughly 7% more expensive than in Lugo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Lugo 13% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$13.18 €11.81

-38.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$55.4 €49.66

-15.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$9.90 €8.87

-4.04%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$2.09 €1.87

44.02%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$2.78 €2.49

-35.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$1.51 €1.35

-6.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$3.26 €2.92

-2.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$2.18 €1.96

163.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$1.16 €1.04

30.17%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$1.17 €1.04

103.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$1.31 €1.18

35.11%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$2.64 €2.37

9.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$13.63 €12.21

-25.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$6.32 €5.67

56.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$16.72 €14.98

-16.33%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$2.84 €2.55

39.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$2.08 €1.86

-25.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$2.27 €2.03

-3.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$3.53 €3.16

-38.24%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$1.11 €0.99

76.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$2.21 €1.98

-28.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$1.43 €1.28

-19.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$0.84 €0.75

47.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$5.86 €5.25

-32.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$4.60 €4.12

197.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$1.51 €1.36

9.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$2.81 €2.52

-19.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

$0.74 €0.66

58.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$34.10 €30.55

126.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$5.33 €4.77

-76.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$1.36 €1.22

50.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$18.67 €16.73

-54.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$1.73 €1.55

-21.97%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$29.4K €26.3K

16.02%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$30.2K €27.1K

14.64%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$146 €130

16.55%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$19.54 €17.51

-30.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$32.70 €29.30

-14.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$44.61 €39.97

-2.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

$15.78 €14.14

8.94%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$8.98 €8.05

-23.05%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$343 €307

132.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$8,492 €7,610

7.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$106 €95.2

-20.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$73.6 €65.9

-21.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$123 €111

9.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$142 €127

-31.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$858 €769

40.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$563 €504

14.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$1,351 €1,210

50.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$794 €712

27.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$3,293 €2,951

26.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$2,264 €2,029

-15.62%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$1,738 €1,558

-62.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

2.96

269.59%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Lugo: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Lugo

$563 36.7% 12.3% $79

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Lugo

$261 17% 12.1% $36

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Lugo

$198 12.9% 6.4% $13

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Lugo

$198 12.9% 16.8% $28

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Lugo

$200 13.1% 18.6% $31

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Lugo

$49 3.2% 47.5% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Lugo

$63 4.1% 8.8% $5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $858 in Lugo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lugo pays about 2.6 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $55 in Lugo. Groceries flip the comparison at $297 vs $261, with Lugo cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇪🇸 Lugo

🕒 Local time

22:59 10:59 PM

04:59 4:59 AM

6 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

98,214

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,605 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Lugo 7,750 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Lugo

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 Lugo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lugo is about 7% cheaper overall, especially in transport and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 62% lower in Medellin. 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: $1,208 in Medellin versus $858 in Lugo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $797 in Medellin versus $343 in Lugo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 14% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,500. Lugo 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.