Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Santa Rosa, Argentina

Name: Santa Rosa
Address: Santa Rosa, AR

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Rosa: $1,189 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 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
61

Cost of Living Index in Santa Rosa
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Santa Rosa Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Santa Rosa

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,189

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $1,189 in Santa Rosa, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Santa Rosa $1,189

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $2,054 in Santa Rosa, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Santa Rosa $2,054

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $2,919 in Santa Rosa, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Santa Rosa $2,919

Medellin costs about 38% more than Santa Rosa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Santa Rosa is 13% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.6K

$15.35 ARS 23.7K

-47.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.9K

$59.5 ARS 91.8K

-20.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$13.37 ARS 20.6K

-28.95%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,540

$3.42 ARS 5,266

-11.99%

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

$1.80 COP 5,693

$2.38 ARS 3,669

-24.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,469

$2.03 ARS 3,127

-30.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.0K

$3.44 ARS 5,297

-7.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.2K

$3.53 ARS 5,445

62.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,778

$1.36 ARS 2,098

11.03%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,524

$2.12 ARS 3,271

12.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,606

$1.95 ARS 3,000

-9.23%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,146

$3.12 ARS 4,814

-7.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.2K

$10.72 ARS 16.5K

-4.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.2K

$7.34 ARS 11.3K

34.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.3K

$12.82 ARS 19.8K

9.13%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.6K

$2.64 ARS 4,063

50.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,911

$2.22 ARS 3,423

-30.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,907

$1.38 ARS 2,127

57.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,910

$2.30 ARS 3,545

-5.22%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,210

$1.11 ARS 1,719

76.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,029

$0.90 ARS 1,392

76.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,625

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,934

$1.59 ARS 2,447

-22.01%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$3.04 ARS 4,693

30.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.3K

$5.57 ARS 8,580

145.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,252

$1.91 ARS 2,945

-13.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,145

$3.62 ARS 5,583

-37.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,696

$1.05 ARS 1,619

11.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 244.8K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,013

$1.38 ARS 2,134

-7.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,480

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.1K

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,262

$1.38 ARS 2,128

-2.17%

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

$34.1K COP 107.8M

$22.9K ARS 35.3M

48.93%

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

$34.7K COP 109.7M

$32.8K ARS 50.6M

5.59%

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

$170 COP 536.8K

$117 ARS 180.1K

45.24%

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

$13.55 COP 42.9K

$14.41 ARS 22.2K

-5.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.8K

$22.18 ARS 34.2K

26.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 138.3K

$29.52 ARS 45.5K

48.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.4K

$20.13 ARS 31.0K

-14.61%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.9K

$10.18 ARS 15.7K

-32.12%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$218 ARS 336.5K

264.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.8M

$4,231 ARS 6.5M

115.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 268.1K

$121 ARS 186.4K

-29.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 183.4K

$93.4 ARS 144.0K

-37.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 427.1K

$103 ARS 158.9K

30.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 309.7K

$112 ARS 172.4K

-12.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$564 ARS 869.6K

114.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$283 ARS 435.8K

126.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$909 ARS 1.4M

122.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$798 ARS 1.2M

26.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.2M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$1,124 ARS 1.7M

69.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Santa Rosa: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Santa Rosa

$283 23.8% 55.9% $359

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Santa Rosa

$258 * 21.7% 13.1% $39

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Santa Rosa

$153 12.9% 27.4% $58

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Santa Rosa

$246 20.7% 44.9% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Santa Rosa

$193 16.3% 14.3% $24

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Santa Rosa

$5.6 * 0.5% 94% $88

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Santa Rosa

$50 4.2% 13.3% $7.6

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $564 in Santa Rosa. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $60 in Santa Rosa. Groceries tell a different story – $297 in Medellin vs $258 in Santa Rosa – so Santa Rosa wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇦🇷 Santa Rosa

🕒 Local time

20:05 8:05 PM

22:05 10:05 PM

2 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

116,083

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.16 USD

10,000 COP = 2.84 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.49 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.83 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, 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).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 1,541 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.49 USD). 1 EUR = 1,716 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.83 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Santa Rosa 4,910 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Santa Rosa

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 Rosa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 38%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $1,783 in Santa Rosa. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Santa Rosa, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $564 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $60 in Santa Rosa. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 15% more in Medellin, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,639 in Medellin and $1,189 in Santa Rosa. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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