Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and San Bernardo

For one person, living is cheaper in San Bernardo: $895 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $9,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in San Bernardo
Learn more

San Bernardo Living Index

Jump to prices

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

San Bernardo

🇨🇱 Chile

$895

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in San Bernardo

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

A single person spends $1,692 per month in Medellin vs $895 in San Bernardo, rent included.

Medellin $1,692
San Bernardo $895

A couple spends around $2,471 per month in Medellin vs $1,397 in San Bernardo, rent included.

Medellin $2,471
San Bernardo $1,397

A family of three spends $3,249 per month in Medellin vs $1,899 in San Bernardo, rent included.

Medellin $3,249
San Bernardo $1,899

Medellin costs about 89% more than San Bernardo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 25% above the global median, while San Bernardo is 34% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 26.9K

$7.39 CLP 7,219

12.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.1K

$25.03 CLP 24.4K

85.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.6K

$6.67 CLP 6,514

41.98%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.1K

$2.60 CLP 2,540

20.38%

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

$1.77 COP 5,700

$0.95 CLP 926

86.32%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,597

$1.00 CLP 976

42.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$3.93 CLP 3,838

-19.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.4K

$4.52 CLP 4,412

26.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,946

$1.08 CLP 1,054

41.67%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,394

$1.29 CLP 1,259

77.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,276

$1.61 CLP 1,577

20.50%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,895

$3.92 CLP 3,832

-21.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.2K

$11.06 CLP 10.8K

-9.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.7K

$4.40 CLP 4,294

137.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.0K

$10.44 CLP 10.2K

33.72%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$1.86 CLP 1,816

117.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,932

$1.48 CLP 1,443

3.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,791

$1.42 CLP 1,388

47.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,402

$1.69 CLP 1,649

35.50%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,807

$0.83 CLP 809

154.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,515

$0.79 CLP 775

116.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,776

$1.16 CLP 1,137

0.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,099

$1.06 CLP 1,036

49.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.6K

$3.25 CLP 3,175

20.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.3K

$5.87 CLP 5,733

139.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,685

$1.53 CLP 1,495

15.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,752

$2.31 CLP 2,259

17.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,807

$0.84 CLP 823

40.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 246.2K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,831

$0.38 CLP 372

376.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,871

$0.90 CLP 877

136.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.2K

$11.63 CLP 11.4K

-30.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,115

$1.36 CLP 1,330

-5.88%

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

$34.4K COP 111.1M

$16.9K CLP 16.5M

104.05%

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

$34.1K COP 110.1M

$25.1K CLP 24.5M

36.24%

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

$178 COP 573.5K

$124 CLP 120.8K

43.75%

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

$13.89 COP 44.8K

$11.82 CLP 11.5K

17.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.2K

$16.26 CLP 15.9K

89.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 135.4K

$19.36 CLP 18.9K

116.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.2K

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.1K

$7.32 CLP 7,146

2.05%

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

$790 COP 2.5M

$442 CLP 431.8K

78.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.7M

$10.7K CLP 10.5M

14.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 278.6K

$35.97 CLP 35.1K

140.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 191.2K

$26.70 CLP 26.1K

121.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 446.4K

$66.6 CLP 65.0K

107.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 318.9K

$81.0 CLP 79.1K

21.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$267 CLP 261.0K

401.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$250 CLP 244.1K

167.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$697 CLP 680.6K

183.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$536 CLP 523.4K

92.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.2M

$1,858 CLP 1.8M

120.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$1,374 CLP 1.3M

41.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

$1,333 CLP 1.3M

-51.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.39

102.97%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for San Bernardo: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

San Bernardo

$250 27.9% 62.6% $417

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

San Bernardo

$210 23.5% 31.7% $97

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

San Bernardo

$152 17% 31.8% $71

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

San Bernardo

$147 16.4% 15% $26

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

San Bernardo

$95 10.6% 45.1% $78

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

San Bernardo

$8.2 * 0.9% 91.2% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

San Bernardo

$34 3.8% 40.2% $23

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,341 in Medellin versus $267 in San Bernardo. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in San Bernardo are about 2.1 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 $25 in San Bernardo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $307 vs $210 – making San Bernardo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇱 San Bernardo

🕒 Local time

12:52 12:52 PM

14:52 2:52 PM

2 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

290,912

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.24 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.14 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CLP, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 3,227 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,613 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 977 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,094 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.14 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin San Bernardo 4,460 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
San Bernardo

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 San Bernardo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 89%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,538 per month in Medellin and $1,343 in San Bernardo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in San Bernardo, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $267 there versus $1,341 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $25 in San Bernardo. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 46% more in Medellin, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,692 in Medellin and $895 in San Bernardo. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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