Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and San Juan del Sur Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and San Juan del Sur

🙂 Solo nomad: Medellin is 3.5% cheaper than San Juan del Sur without rent, and 3% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Medellin is 7.9% cheaper than San Juan del Sur without rent, and 8.9% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Medellin
San Juan del Sur
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$6.14 COP 22.1K
$4.16 NIO 153
47.60%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$33.05 COP 119.0K
$33.23 NIO 1,222
-0.54%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$7.32 COP 26.4K
$5.50 NIO 203
33.09%
Cappuccino
$1.66 COP 5,971
$2.39 NIO 87.9
-30.54%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.10 COP 3,977
$0.80 NIO 29.42
37.50%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.78 COP 2,815
$0.67 NIO 24.77
16.42%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.71 COP 6,172
$1.29 NIO 47.62
32.56%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.17 COP 11.4K
$2.03 NIO 74.6
56.16%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Medellin
San Juan del Sur
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.11 COP 4,002
$1.26 NIO 46.26
-11.90%
White Bread (500g)
$1.31 COP 4,707
$1.48 NIO 54.3
-11.49%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.38 COP 4,967
$1.18 NIO 43.38
16.95%
Eggs
$2.22 COP 7,989
$1.91 NIO 70.2
16.23%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$4.34 COP 15.6K
$7.79 NIO 287
-44.29%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.80 COP 20.9K
$6.53 NIO 240
-11.18%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$8.98 COP 32.3K
$7.96 NIO 293
12.81%
Apples (1kg)
$2.26 COP 8,143
$3.80 NIO 140
-40.53%
Banana (1kg)
$1.11 COP 4,013
$0.89 NIO 32.78
24.72%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.46 COP 5,271
$1.75 NIO 64.4
-16.57%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.37 COP 4,916
$2.25 NIO 82.9
-39.11%
Potato (1kg)
$1.11 COP 3,999
$3.18 NIO 117
-65.09%
Onion (1kg)
$1.16 COP 4,188
$2.18 NIO 80.2
-46.79%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.89 COP 3,202
$1.07 NIO 39.28
-16.82%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.87 COP 3,116
$1.02 NIO 37.35
-14.71%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.35 COP 8,473
$2.72 NIO 99.9
-13.60%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.86 COP 39.1K
$10.16 NIO 374
6.89%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.20 COP 4,319
$1.46 NIO 53.8
-17.81%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.48 COP 8,923
$2.26 NIO 83.3
9.73%
🚌 Getting Around
Medellin
San Juan del Sur
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.79 COP 2,835
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$40.77 COP 146.8K
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.42 COP 5,124
$1.48 NIO 54.4
-4.05%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.91 COP 6,882
-
-
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$7.65 COP 27.5K
$6.88 NIO 253
11.19%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.97 COP 3,481
$1.29 NIO 47.54
-24.81%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$18.1K COP 65.2M
$23.3K NIO 856.7K
-22.28%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$26.3K COP 94.7M
$26.4K NIO 970.9K
-0.31%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Medellin
San Juan del Sur
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$81.3 COP 292.8K
$42.17 NIO 1,551
92.81%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$9.63 COP 34.7K
$10.35 NIO 381
-6.96%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$24.36 COP 87.7K
$35.61 NIO 1,310
-31.59%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Medellin
San Juan del Sur
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$26.02 COP 93.7K
$30.39 NIO 1,118
-14.38%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.92 COP 68.1K
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$3.89 COP 14.0K
$7.89 NIO 290
-50.70%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Medellin
San Juan del Sur
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$304 COP 1.1M
$125 NIO 4,596
143.47%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,902 COP 21.3M
$5,941 NIO 218.6K
-0.65%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Medellin
San Juan del Sur
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$58.7 COP 211.3K
$76.5 NIO 2,814
-23.27%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$32.48 COP 116.9K
$71.4 NIO 2,628
-54.52%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$102 COP 366.3K
$133 NIO 4,905
-23.69%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$108 COP 389.4K
$107 NIO 3,919
1.54%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Medellin
San Juan del Sur
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$474 COP 1.7M
$468 NIO 17.2K
1.23%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$371 COP 1.3M
$402 NIO 14.8K
-7.79%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$848 COP 3.1M
$964 NIO 35.5K
-12.08%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$716 COP 2.6M
$968 NIO 35.6K
-26.02%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,871 COP 10.3M
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,375 COP 5.0M
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Medellin
San Juan del Sur
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$542 COP 1.9M
$278 NIO 10.2K
94.90%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
13.43
10.25
31.02%

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

Last update for Medellin: April 13, 2026

Last update for San Juan del Sur: April 12, 2026

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

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