Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Osaka

For one person, living is cheaper in Osaka: $1,396 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 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
67

Cost of Living Index in Osaka
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Osaka Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Osaka

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,396

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Osaka

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $1,396 in Osaka, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Osaka $1,396

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $2,027 in Osaka, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Osaka $2,027

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $2,658 in Osaka, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Osaka $2,658

Medellin costs about 17% more than Osaka, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Medellin and Osaka sit above the global median – Medellin by 20%, Osaka by 3%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$6.50 ¥1,024

24.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.7K

$31.93 ¥5,029

47.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.6K

$5.15 ¥812

84.47%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,722

$3.03 ¥477

-0.66%

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

$1.80 COP 5,801

$1.39 ¥220

29.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,554

$0.71 ¥112

98.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.2K

$2.75 ¥433

15.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.5K

$3.89 ¥612

47.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,869

$1.46 ¥229

3.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,667

$1.30 ¥204

83.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,712

$5.46 ¥861

-67.58%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,320

$2.03 ¥320

42.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$9.63 ¥1,516

5.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.8K

$9.45 ¥1,489

4.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.1K

$18.58 ¥2,926

-24.70%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$3.39 ¥534

17.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,005

$2.00 ¥315

-22.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,039

$2.09 ¥329

4.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,041

$4.14 ¥653

-47.34%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,328

$1.57 ¥247

24.84%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,125

$1.17 ¥185

35.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,694

$1.37 ¥216

-16.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,009

$0.81 ¥127

53.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$4.02 ¥634

-1.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.1K

$9.72 ¥1,532

40.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,352

$1.94 ¥305

-14.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,281

$3.19 ¥502

-29.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,766

$1.35 ¥213

-13.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.5K

$32.79 ¥5,166

135.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,089

$3.90 ¥615

-67.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,603

$3.26 ¥513

-37.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$21.50 ¥3,387

-60.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,343

$1.11 ¥175

21.62%

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

$34.1K COP 109.8M

$22.3K ¥3.5M

52.63%

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

$34.7K COP 111.8M

$14.9K ¥2.3M

133.46%

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

$170 COP 547.0K

$141 ¥22.2K

20.33%

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

$13.55 COP 43.7K

$24.00 ¥3,781

-43.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.5K

$30.50 ¥4,804

-7.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 140.9K

$51.7 ¥8,149

-15.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.4K

$18.86 ¥2,971

-8.85%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$12.85 ¥2,024

-46.23%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$709 ¥111.6K

12.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$13.2K ¥2.1M

-31.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.2K

$48.77 ¥7,683

73.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 186.9K

$30.94 ¥4,874

87.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.2K

$72.9 ¥11.5K

85.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 315.6K

$90.8 ¥14.3K

7.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$732 ¥115.3K

65.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$516 ¥81.3K

24.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$1,693 ¥266.7K

19.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$773 ¥121.8K

30.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.4M

$6,542 ¥1.0M

-36.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$3,063 ¥482.5K

-37.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$2,363 ¥372.2K

-72.19%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

2.21

395.02%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Osaka: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Osaka

$516 37% 19.6% $126

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Osaka

$305 21.9% 2.7% $8.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Osaka

$195 14% 7.5% $16

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Osaka

$134 9.6% 21.1% $36

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Osaka

$110 7.9% 35.2% $59

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Osaka

$58 4.2% 37.6% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Osaka

$77 5.6% 34.6% $20

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $732 in Osaka. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Osaka are about 3.6 times higher, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $32 in Osaka. Groceries tell a different story – $297 in Medellin vs $305 in Osaka – so Medellin wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇯🇵 Osaka

🕒 Local time

18:59 6:59 PM

08:59 8:59 AM

14 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

2,691,185

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.35 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 3,224 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,600 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.35 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Between locations

Medellin Osaka 14,410 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Osaka

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 Osaka: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 17%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $2,094 in Osaka. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Osaka, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $732 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $32 in Osaka. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $1,396 in Osaka. That makes Osaka about 15% cheaper.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,639 in Medellin and $1,396 in Osaka, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Osaka costs $1,396 versus $1,639 in Medellin. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.