Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Santa Cruz

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Cruz: $639 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $11,700 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
31

Cost of Living Index in Santa Cruz
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Santa Cruz Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Santa Cruz

🇧🇴 Bolivia

$639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Santa Cruz

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

A single person spends $1,614 per month in Medellin vs $639 in Santa Cruz, rent included.

Medellin $1,614
Santa Cruz $639

A couple spends around $2,402 per month in Medellin vs $1,172 in Santa Cruz, rent included.

Medellin $2,402
Santa Cruz $1,172

A family of three spends $3,190 per month in Medellin vs $1,704 in Santa Cruz, rent included.

Medellin $3,190
Santa Cruz $1,704

Medellin costs about 152% more than Santa Cruz, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Santa Cruz is 53% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.93 COP 25.2K

$2.00 BOB 23.19

296.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.13 COP 146.3K

$16.80 BOB 195

174.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$5.10 BOB 59.2

86.27%

Cappuccino

$3.11 COP 9,866

$1.77 BOB 20.52

75.71%

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

$1.83 COP 5,800

$0.49 BOB 5.72

273.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,360

$0.43 BOB 4.97

220.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 COP 9,672

$0.86 BOB 9.97

254.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.50 COP 17.4K

$1.24 BOB 14.35

343.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 COP 4,600

$0.71 BOB 8.23

104.23%

White Bread (500g)

$2.36 COP 7,496

$0.94 BOB 10.88

151.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,328

$1.03 BOB 11.93

63.11%

Eggs

$2.86 COP 9,077

$1.06 BOB 12.27

169.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.3K

$3.15 BOB 36.56

223.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 COP 30.2K

$2.58 BOB 29.92

269.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.04 COP 44.5K

$4.98 BOB 57.8

181.93%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 COP 12.9K

$1.82 BOB 21.12

123.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,742

$0.62 BOB 7.24

141.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 COP 6,891

$0.76 BOB 8.81

185.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 COP 7,310

$0.73 BOB 8.48

216.44%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 COP 6,113

$0.74 BOB 8.55

160.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,196

$0.67 BOB 7.75

144.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,571

$0.57 BOB 6.66

98.25%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 COP 3,954

$0.63 BOB 7.36

98.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 COP 12.6K

$1.92 BOB 22.25

107.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 COP 42.3K

$4.32 BOB 50.2

209.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 COP 5,384

$1.02 BOB 11.86

66.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,525

$1.64 BOB 19.01

44.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 COP 3,827

$0.24 BOB 2.78

404.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

$22.48 BOB 261

240.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 COP 4,179

$1.64 BOB 19.05

-19.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,774

$0.91 BOB 10.58

135.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 COP 26.8K

$6.31 BOB 73.3

34.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 COP 4,114

$0.57 BOB 6.59

128.07%

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

$28.0K COP 88.7M

$14.1K BOB 163.3K

98.99%

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

$35.4K COP 112.3M

$19.3K BOB 223.6K

83.84%

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

$172 COP 545.6K

$34.84 BOB 405

393.94%

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

$13.37 COP 42.4K

$19.67 BOB 228

-32.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.73 COP 91.1K

$17.53 BOB 204

63.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 COP 143.5K

$19.56 BOB 227

131.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

$12.84 BOB 149

32.71%

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 COP 19.9K

$5.86 BOB 68.1

7.17%

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

$770 COP 2.4M

$112 BOB 1,303

586.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.6M

$2,950 BOB 34.2K

205.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.4 COP 274.0K

$27.21 BOB 316

217.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 COP 181.1K

$35.79 BOB 416

59.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 432.9K

$66.3 BOB 769

106.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 310.4K

$58.3 BOB 677

67.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 COP 3.3M

$267 BOB 3,105

294.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$616 COP 2.0M

$247 BOB 2,869

149.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

$909 BOB 10.6K

108.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.2M

$830 BOB 9,630

23.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

$1,299 BOB 15.1K

212.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

$737 BOB 8,551

127.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

$276 BOB 3,204

136.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

6.17

77.31%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Last update for Santa Cruz: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$616 38.2%

Santa Cruz

$247 38.6% 59.9% $369

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$295 18.3%

Santa Cruz

$112 17.5% 62% $183

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$214 13.3%

Santa Cruz

$72 11.3% 66.4% $142

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$170 10.5%

Santa Cruz

$84 13.2% 50.4% $86

Eating Out

Medellin

$168 10.4%

Santa Cruz

$63 9.8% 62.6% $105

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.8%

Santa Cruz

$30 4.6% 68.2% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.6%

Santa Cruz

$31 4.9% 45.9% $27

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,055 in Medellin versus $267 in Santa Cruz. 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 136% 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 $46.00 in Medellin versus $17.00 in Santa Cruz. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $295 vs $112 – making Santa Cruz the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇧🇴 Santa Cruz

🕒 Local time

04:33 4:33 AM

05:33 5:33 AM

1 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

1,800,000

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Bolivian Boliviano BOB Bs.

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

100 BOB = 8.61 USD

100 BOB = 7.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BOB, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Bolivian Boliviano exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 11.61 BOB (100 BOB = 8.61 USD). 1 EUR = 13.05 BOB (100 BOB = 7.66 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Santa Cruz 3,000 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

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Medellin
Santa Cruz

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 Santa Cruz: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 152%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,421 per month in Medellin and $959 in Santa Cruz. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Santa Cruz, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $46.00 in Medellin and $17.00 in Santa Cruz. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,614 in Medellin and $639 in Santa Cruz. That's a gap of about 152%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Santa Cruz, where all-in costs run around $639, than in Medellin at $1,614. In Santa Cruz it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Santa Cruz – 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 Santa Cruz. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Medellin makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.