Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Mercedes

For one person, living is cheaper in Mercedes: $1,290 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 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
62

Cost of Living Index in Mercedes
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Mercedes Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Mercedes

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,290

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Mercedes

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $1,290 in Mercedes, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Mercedes $1,290

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,960 in Mercedes, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Mercedes $1,960

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $2,631 in Mercedes, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Mercedes $2,631

Medellin costs about 27% more than Mercedes, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Mercedes is 5% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$15.66 UYU 630

-48.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$62.9 UYU 2,528

-25.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$14.04 UYU 565

-32.34%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$2.50 UYU 100

20.40%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$2.49 UYU 100

-27.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$0.88 UYU 35.50

60.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$2.42 UYU 97.2

31.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$3.78 UYU 152

52.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$1.32 UYU 53.0

14.39%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$2.90 UYU 117

-17.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$1.43 UYU 57.4

23.78%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$2.69 UYU 108

7.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$14.15 UYU 569

-27.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$11.47 UYU 461

-13.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$7.57 UYU 304

84.81%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$1.94 UYU 77.8

104.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$2.51 UYU 101

-38.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$1.09 UYU 43.97

100.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$2.93 UYU 118

-25.60%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$1.96 UYU 78.8

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$2.17 UYU 87.1

-26.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$1.39 UYU 55.7

-17.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$1.74 UYU 70.2

-28.74%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$5.10 UYU 205

-22.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$8.23 UYU 331

66.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,222

$2.32 UYU 93.1

-28.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,104

$2.79 UYU 112

-19.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$1.90 UYU 76.2

-33.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$0.42 UYU 16.74

388.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$10.56 UYU 425

-19.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$2.26 UYU 90.9

-40.27%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$26.4K UYU 1.1M

29.11%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$36.1K UYU 1.5M

-3.92%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$186 UYU 7,498

-9.02%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$20.64 UYU 830

-34.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$43.41 UYU 1,746

-35.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$12.11 UYU 487

-42.94%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$632 UYU 25.4K

25.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$11.2K UYU 448.5K

-18.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$100 UYU 4,028

-15.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$56.4 UYU 2,267

2.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$121 UYU 4,859

11.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$130 UYU 5,234

-24.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$569 UYU 22.9K

112.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$302 UYU 12.1K

112.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$627 UYU 25.2K

223.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$441 UYU 17.7K

129.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

$3,041 UYU 122.3K

37.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$2,016 UYU 81.1K

-5.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.65

93.63%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Mercedes: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Mercedes

$302 23.4% 52.9% $340

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Mercedes

$295 22.9% 0.6% $1.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Mercedes

$251 19.4% 18.6% $39

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Mercedes

$230 17.9% 35.9% $61

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Mercedes

$183 14.2% 8.5% $14

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Mercedes

$4 * 0.3% 95.7% $90

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Mercedes

$24 * 1.9% 57.9% $33

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $569 in Mercedes. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $63 in Mercedes. Groceries tell a different story – $297 in Medellin vs $295 in Mercedes – so Mercedes wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇺🇾 Mercedes

🕒 Local time

10:06 10:06 AM

12:06 12:06 PM

2 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

41,975

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.23 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UYU, 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 = 3,501 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 40.21 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 44.76 UYU (100 UYU = 2.23 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Mercedes 4,770 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Mercedes

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 Mercedes: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 27%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $1,935 in Mercedes. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Mercedes, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $569 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $63 in Mercedes. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Kindergarten costs $797 per month in Medellin and $632 in Mercedes. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,639 in Medellin and $1,290 in Mercedes. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Mercedes – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.