Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Mataro

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,614 a month against $1,845 in Mataro, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 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
89

Cost of Living Index in Mataro
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Mataro Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Mataro

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,845

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Mataro

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

A single person spends $1,614 per month in Medellin vs $1,845 in Mataro, rent included.

Medellin $1,614
Mataro $1,845

A couple spends around $2,402 per month in Medellin vs $2,691 in Mataro, rent included.

Medellin $2,402
Mataro $2,691

A family of three spends $3,190 per month in Medellin vs $3,536 in Mataro, rent included.

Medellin $3,190
Mataro $3,536

Medellin is about 13% cheaper than Mataro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Medellin and Mataro sit above the global median – Medellin by 20%, Mataro by 37%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.93 COP 25.2K

$16.49 €14.67

-51.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.13 COP 146.3K

$56.6 €50.3

-18.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$13.31 €11.84

-28.63%

Cappuccino

$3.11 COP 9,866

$2.11 €1.88

47.39%

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

$1.83 COP 5,800

$2.32 €2.06

-21.12%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,360

$1.93 €1.72

-28.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 COP 9,672

$3.88 €3.45

-21.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.50 COP 17.4K

$3.29 €2.93

67.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 COP 4,600

$1.17 €1.04

23.93%

White Bread (500g)

$2.36 COP 7,496

$1.99 €1.77

18.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,328

$1.50 €1.33

12.00%

Eggs

$2.86 COP 9,077

$3.90 €3.47

-26.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.3K

$16.84 €14.98

-39.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 COP 30.2K

$8.84 €7.86

7.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.04 COP 44.5K

$19.92 €17.72

-29.52%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 COP 12.9K

$2.71 €2.41

50.18%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,742

$2.04 €1.81

-26.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 COP 6,891

$2.59 €2.30

-16.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 COP 7,310

$2.74 €2.44

-15.69%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 COP 6,113

$2.01 €1.79

-3.98%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,196

$2.27 €2.02

-27.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,571

$1.53 €1.36

-26.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 COP 3,954

$0.88 €0.79

42.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 COP 12.6K

$6.32 €5.63

-36.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 COP 42.3K

$5.43 €4.83

145.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 COP 5,384

$1.15 €1.02

47.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,525

$2.29 €2.03

3.49%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 COP 3,827

$2.57 €2.28

-52.92%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

$35.25 €31.35

116.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 COP 4,179

$2.31 €2.06

-42.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,774

$1.02 €0.91

109.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 COP 26.8K

$29.23 €26.00

-71.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 COP 4,114

$1.79 €1.59

-27.37%

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

$28.0K COP 88.7M

$34.5K €30.7K

-18.86%

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

$35.4K COP 112.3M

$28.4K €25.3K

24.55%

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

$172 COP 545.6K

$181 €161

-4.78%

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

$13.37 COP 42.4K

$12.10 €10.77

10.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.73 COP 91.1K

$28.95 €25.75

-0.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 COP 143.5K

$60.7 €54.0

-25.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

$13.94 €12.40

22.24%

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 COP 19.9K

$10.51 €9.35

-40.25%

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

$770 COP 2.4M

$498 €443

54.61%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.6M

$7,969 €7,089

13.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.4 COP 274.0K

$87.2 €77.6

-0.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 COP 181.1K

$39.03 €34.71

46.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 432.9K

$97.8 €87.0

39.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 310.4K

$112 €99.5

-12.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 COP 3.3M

$954 €849

10.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$616 COP 2.0M

$791 €704

-22.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

$1,350 €1,200

40.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.2M

$1,179 €1,048

-13.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

$3,404 €3,028

19.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

$2,818 €2,507

-40.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

$1,889 €1,681

-65.47%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

3.28

233.54%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Last update for Mataro: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$616 38.2%

Mataro

$791 42.9% 28.5% $175

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$295 18.3%

Mataro

$306 16.6% 3.9% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$214 13.3%

Mataro

$222 12% 3.5% $7.6

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$170 10.5%

Mataro

$151 8.2% 11.1% $19

Eating Out

Medellin

$168 10.4%

Mataro

$240 13% 42.7% $72

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.8%

Mataro

$53 2.9% 43.3% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.6%

Mataro

$82 4.4% 41.4% $24

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,055 in Medellin versus $954 in Mataro. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 190% higher in Mataro, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $46.00 in Medellin versus $57.0 in Mataro. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $295 vs $306 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇪🇸 Mataro

🕒 Local time

14:27 2:27 PM

21:27 9:27 PM

7 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

129,870

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 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 October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Mataro 8,550 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Mataro

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 Mataro: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,614 in Medellin, $1,845 in Mataro – roughly 14% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,421 per month in Medellin and $2,768 in Mataro. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Medellin, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 117% less in Medellin. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $770 per month in Medellin and $498 in Mataro. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Medellin, where all-in costs run around $1,614, than in Mataro at $1,845. In Medellin it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mataro it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Medellin has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,614 in Medellin to $1,845 in Mataro. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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