Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Petropolis

For one person, living is cheaper in Petropolis: $945 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $8,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Petropolis
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Petropolis Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Petropolis

🇧🇷 Brazil

$945

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Petropolis

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $945 in Petropolis, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Petropolis $945

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,417 in Petropolis, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Petropolis $1,417

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $1,888 in Petropolis, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Petropolis $1,888

Medellin costs about 73% more than Petropolis, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Petropolis is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$5.72 R$31.10

41.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$26.56 R$144

77.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$6.47 R$35.19

46.83%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,734

$1.64 R$8.94

83.54%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$1.29 R$7.02

39.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,560

$0.57 R$3.11

147.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$1.09 R$5.95

191.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$4.20 R$22.84

36.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,875

$0.89 R$4.84

69.66%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,677

$1.47 R$7.97

61.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,719

$1.33 R$7.24

33.08%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,332

$1.89 R$10.30

52.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$8.55 R$46.51

19.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$3.85 R$20.93

156.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$9.16 R$49.80

52.73%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$1.61 R$8.75

146.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,011

$1.06 R$5.79

46.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,047

$0.84 R$4.59

159.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,050

$1.18 R$6.39

84.75%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,336

$0.64 R$3.50

206.25%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,131

$0.74 R$4.04

114.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,698

$0.49 R$2.69

134.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$0.57 R$3.08

117.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$2.00 R$10.86

98.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$5.48 R$29.81

149.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$0.98 R$5.34

69.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,290

$1.27 R$6.90

77.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,770

$1.03 R$5.60

13.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$46.23 R$251

67.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$1.06 R$5.78

19.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,611

$0.89 R$4.83

130.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$7.37 R$40.05

16.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,348

$1.15 R$6.28

17.39%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$19.7K R$106.9K

73.20%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$29.5K R$160.6K

17.36%

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

$170 COP 547.7K

$67.4 R$367

151.63%

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

$13.55 COP 43.7K

$9.36 R$50.9

44.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$17.93 R$97.5

56.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$30.74 R$167

42.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

$29.15 R$158

-41.03%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$6.34 R$34.47

8.99%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$344 R$1,872

131.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$9,986 R$54.3K

-8.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$52.8 R$287

60.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.1K

$47.16 R$256

22.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.7K

$83.9 R$456

60.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$64.4 R$350

51.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$487 R$2,647

148.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$370 R$2,014

73.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$809 R$4,398

150.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$582 R$3,165

73.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$2,562 R$13.9K

62.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$1,907 R$10.4K

0.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$574 R$3,120

14.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

11.87

-7.83%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Petropolis: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Petropolis

$370 39.2% 42.3% $271

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Petropolis

$163 17.3% 45.1% $134

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Petropolis

$95 10% 55.2% $117

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Petropolis

$106 11.2% 37.4% $63

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Petropolis

$112 11.8% 33.9% $57

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Petropolis

$56 5.9% 40.3% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Petropolis

$43 4.6% 24.5% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $487 in Petropolis. 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 15% higher in Medellin, 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 $47 in Medellin versus $27 in Petropolis. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $163 – making Petropolis the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇧🇷 Petropolis

🕒 Local time

15:16 3:16 PM

17:16 5:16 PM

2 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

278,881

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

1 BRL = 0.184 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 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 = 3,619 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 5.44 BRL (1 BRL = 0.184 USD). 1 EUR = 6.09 BRL (1 BRL = 0.164 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Petropolis 4,760 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Petropolis

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 Petropolis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 73%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $1,418 in Petropolis. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Petropolis, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $487 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $27 in Petropolis. 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 $945 in Petropolis. That makes Petropolis about 42% cheaper.

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

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