Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Manaus

For one person, living is cheaper in Manaus: $931 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $8,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Manaus
Learn more

Manaus Living Index

Jump to prices

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Manaus

🇧🇷 Brazil

$931

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Manaus

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $931 in Manaus.

Medellin $1,639
Manaus $931

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $1,368 in Manaus.

Medellin $2,413
Manaus $1,368

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $1,806 in Manaus.

Medellin $3,186
Manaus $1,806

Living in Medellin is roughly 76% more expensive than in Manaus, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Manaus is 32% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$5.74 R$30.91

40.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$25.62 R$138

83.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$6.47 R$34.83

46.83%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$2.19 R$11.81

37.44%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$0.99 R$5.33

81.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$0.73 R$3.94

93.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$2.54 R$13.69

25.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$5.05 R$27.16

13.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$1.32 R$7.09

14.39%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$1.54 R$8.29

54.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$1.14 R$6.11

55.26%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$2.46 R$13.25

17.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$9.14 R$49.19

11.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$3.82 R$20.53

158.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$6.70 R$36.04

108.81%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$2.23 R$12.02

78.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$1.54 R$8.27

0.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$1.38 R$7.42

57.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$1.84 R$9.89

18.48%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$1.12 R$6.05

75.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$1.15 R$6.19

38.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$0.75 R$4.06

53.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$0.62 R$3.36

100.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$3.36 R$18.06

17.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$8.46 R$45.54

61.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$1.41 R$7.61

17.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$1.56 R$8.40

44.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

$0.88 R$4.76

32.95%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$36.80 R$198

110.24%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$0.92 R$4.94

38.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$0.87 R$4.66

135.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$8.99 R$48.39

-4.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$1.23 R$6.63

9.76%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$21.6K R$116.4K

57.46%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$32.4K R$174.3K

7.03%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$112 R$601

51.89%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$14.44 R$77.7

-6.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$23.86 R$128

17.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$25.68 R$138

70.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

$23.54 R$127

-26.98%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$6.41 R$34.47

7.80%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$212 R$1,140

276.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$4,775 R$25.7K

90.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$47.41 R$255

78.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$29.69 R$160

95.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$56.3 R$303

139.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$63.9 R$344

53.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$747 R$4,021

61.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$299 R$1,607

114.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$1,121 R$6,035

80.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$451 R$2,428

124.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$1,543 R$8,302

170.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$1,257 R$6,767

51.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$491 R$2,641

33.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

10.33

5.91%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Manaus: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Manaus

$299 32.1% 53.4% $343

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Manaus

$188 20.2% 36.7% $109

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Manaus

$150 16.1% 29% $61

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Manaus

$121 13% 28.4% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Manaus

$89 9.5% 47.4% $80

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Manaus

$46 4.9% 51.3% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Manaus

$38 4.1% 33.1% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $747 in Manaus. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays 34% 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 $26 in Manaus for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $188 per month, with Manaus cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇧🇷 Manaus

🕒 Local time

03:58 3:58 AM

04:58 4:58 AM

1 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

2,063,689

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

1 BRL = 0.186 USD

1 BRL = 0.167 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR 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 = 3,603 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 5.38 BRL (1 BRL = 0.186 USD). 1 EUR = 6.01 BRL (1 BRL = 0.167 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Manaus 2,020 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Manaus

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 Manaus: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Manaus is about 43% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 34% 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 $747 in Manaus. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 58% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Manaus – a meal for two runs $26 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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 Manaus gentler on the wallet – expenses run 43% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.