Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and San Fernando, Trinidad And Tobago

For one person, living is cheaper in San Fernando: $1,261 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 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
60

Cost of Living Index in San Fernando
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San Fernando Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

San Fernando

🇹🇹 Trinidad And Tobago

$1,261

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $1,261 in San Fernando, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
San Fernando $1,261

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $2,030 in San Fernando, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
San Fernando $2,030

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $2,799 in San Fernando, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
San Fernando $2,799

Medellin costs about 30% more than San Fernando, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while San Fernando is 7% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.6K

$10.49 TTD 70.8

-22.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.9K

$58.5 TTD 395

-19.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$8.18 TTD 55.2

16.14%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,540

$3.72 TTD 25.14

-19.09%

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

$1.80 COP 5,693

$1.01 TTD 6.80

78.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,469

$0.73 TTD 4.93

93.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.0K

$1.80 TTD 12.14

76.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.2K

$2.59 TTD 17.46

122.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,778

$2.07 TTD 13.97

-27.05%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,524

$2.33 TTD 15.76

2.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,606

$2.76 TTD 18.61

-35.87%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,146

$3.81 TTD 25.73

-24.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.2K

$6.47 TTD 43.66

57.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.2K

$10.09 TTD 68.1

-2.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.3K

$8.81 TTD 59.5

58.80%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.6K

$5.37 TTD 36.26

-26.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,911

$2.52 TTD 17.02

-38.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,907

$3.72 TTD 25.13

-41.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,910

$4.27 TTD 28.81

-48.95%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,210

$0.77 TTD 5.22

154.55%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,029

$0.77 TTD 5.21

106.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,625

$1.48 TTD 10.02

-22.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,934

$1.15 TTD 7.73

7.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$5.56 TTD 37.56

-28.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.3K

$17.76 TTD 120

-22.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,252

$1.48 TTD 9.98

12.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,145

$2.97 TTD 20.08

-23.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,696

$0.46 TTD 3.11

154.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 244.8K

$44.91 TTD 303

72.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,013

$0.91 TTD 6.11

39.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,480

$0.84 TTD 5.65

144.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.1K

$14.58 TTD 98.5

-41.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,262

$1.16 TTD 7.84

16.38%

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

$34.1K COP 107.8M

$36.3K TTD 245.4K

-6.27%

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

$34.7K COP 109.7M

$40.8K TTD 275.6K

-15.06%

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

$170 COP 536.8K

$44.29 TTD 299

283.04%

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

$13.55 COP 42.9K

$42.32 TTD 286

-67.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.8K

$45.25 TTD 305

-37.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 138.3K

$52.1 TTD 352

-16.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.4K

$22.39 TTD 151

-23.22%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.9K

$8.59 TTD 58.0

-19.56%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$403 TTD 2,722

97.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.8M

$10.6K TTD 71.9K

-14.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 268.1K

$53.7 TTD 363

57.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 183.4K

$36.48 TTD 246

58.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 427.1K

$86.6 TTD 584

55.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 309.7K

$87.6 TTD 592

11.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$518 TTD 3,496

133.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$398 TTD 2,686

61.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$915 TTD 6,180

121.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$724 TTD 4,887

39.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.2M

$1,940 TTD 13.1K

114.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$1,527 TTD 10.3K

25.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$1,023 TTD 6,908

-35.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.75

90.26%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for San Fernando: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

San Fernando

$398 31.6% 38% $244

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

San Fernando

$317 25.2% 6.8% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

San Fernando

$132 10.5% 37.6% $79

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

San Fernando

$174 13.8% 2.8% $4.7

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

San Fernando

$119 9.4% 29.6% $50

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

San Fernando

$52 4.1% 44.6% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

San Fernando

$69 5.5% 20.4% $12

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $518 in San Fernando. 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 56% higher in San Fernando, 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 $59 in San Fernando. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $317 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇹🇹 San Fernando

🕒 Local time

01:31 1:31 AM

02:31 2:31 AM

1 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

55,419

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar TTD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.16 USD

10,000 COP = 2.84 EUR

1 TTD = 0.148 USD

1 TTD = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TTD, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 3,164 COP (10,000 COP = 3.16 USD). 1 EUR = 3,523 COP (10,000 COP = 2.84 EUR).

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 6.75 TTD (1 TTD = 0.148 USD). 1 EUR = 7.51 TTD (1 TTD = 0.133 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Between locations

Medellin San Fernando 1,620 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
San Fernando

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 Fernando: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 30%, 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 $1,892 in San Fernando. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in San Fernando, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $518 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $59 in San Fernando. 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 $1,261 in San Fernando. That makes San Fernando about 23% cheaper.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in San Fernando, where all-in costs run around $1,261, than in Medellin at $1,639. In San Fernando it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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