Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Marathon

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $2,236 in Marathon, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 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
109

Cost of Living Index in Marathon
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Marathon Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Marathon

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,236

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Marathon

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $2,236 in Marathon, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Marathon $2,236

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $3,207 in Marathon, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Marathon $3,207

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $4,177 in Marathon, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Marathon $4,177

Medellin is about 27% cheaper than Marathon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Medellin and Marathon sit above the global median – Medellin by 20%, Marathon by 64%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$16.27 CA$22.83

-50.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$61.0 CA$85.6

-22.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$9.18 CA$12.88

3.49%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$3.81 CA$5.34

-21.00%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$1.77 CA$2.49

1.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$1.49 CA$2.10

-5.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$5.49 CA$7.71

-42.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$6.21 CA$8.71

-7.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$2.09 CA$2.93

-27.75%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$2.61 CA$3.66

-8.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$3.51 CA$4.92

-49.57%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$3.44 CA$4.82

-15.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$9.99 CA$14.01

2.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$11.65 CA$16.35

-15.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$14.96 CA$20.99

-6.48%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$3.86 CA$5.41

2.85%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$1.36 CA$1.91

13.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$3.75 CA$5.26

-41.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$3.89 CA$5.46

-43.96%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$2.44 CA$3.43

-19.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$2.30 CA$3.23

-30.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$2.42 CA$3.40

-52.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$1.60 CA$2.25

-22.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$13.86 CA$19.45

-71.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$12.59 CA$17.67

8.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,221

$2.69 CA$3.77

-38.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,103

$3.10 CA$4.35

-27.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$2.64 CA$3.71

-55.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

$58.7 CA$82.4

31.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$2.87 CA$4.02

-55.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$1.51 CA$2.12

35.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$26.34 CA$36.97

-67.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$1.04 CA$1.46

29.81%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$27.5K CA$38.6K

23.72%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$18.7K CA$26.3K

85.07%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$137 CA$192

24.29%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$38.33 CA$53.8

-64.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$54.2 CA$76.1

-48.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$34.55 CA$48.48

26.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

$20.24 CA$28.40

-15.07%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$10.80 CA$15.16

-36.02%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$609 CA$855

30.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$12.9K CA$18.1K

-29.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$56.1 CA$78.7

51.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$38.45 CA$54.0

50.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$84.8 CA$119

59.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$104 CA$146

-5.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$1,264 CA$1,773

-4.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$1,132 CA$1,588

-43.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$2,017 CA$2,830

0.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$1,694 CA$2,377

-40.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

$4,326 CA$6,071

-3.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$3,656 CA$5,131

-47.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$1,772 CA$2,486

-62.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

4.68

133.76%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Marathon: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Marathon

$1.1K 50.6% 76.4% $490

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Marathon

$355 15.9% 19.7% $58

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Marathon

$229 10.3% 8.4% $18

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Marathon

$256 11.5% 51.1% $87

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Marathon

$127 5.7% 24.6% $42

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Marathon

$80 3.6% 14.8% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Marathon

$56 2.5% 2.4% $1.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $1,264 in Marathon. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Marathon are about 2.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $61 in Marathon. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $355 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇦 Marathon

🕒 Local time

13:41 1:41 PM

14:41 2:41 PM

1 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

3,300

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

1 CAD = 0.713 USD

1 CAD = 0.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,502 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.713 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.64 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Marathon 4,830 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Marathon

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 Marathon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Marathon is pricier by about 36%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $3,354 in Marathon. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $1,208 in Medellin and $1,264 in Marathon. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Kindergarten costs $797 per month in Medellin and $609 in Marathon. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 20% more in Marathon, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

$2,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,639 in Medellin and $2,236 in Marathon, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Medellin has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,639 in Medellin to $2,236 in Marathon. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Medellin. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Marathon makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.