Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Santa Teresa

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Teresa: $1,530 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Medellin outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
73

Cost of Living Index in Santa Teresa
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Santa Teresa Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Santa Teresa

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,530

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,692 per month in Medellin vs $1,530 in Santa Teresa, rent included.

Medellin $1,692
Santa Teresa $1,530

A couple spends around $2,471 per month in Medellin vs $2,295 in Santa Teresa, rent included.

Medellin $2,471
Santa Teresa $2,295

A family of three spends $3,249 per month in Medellin vs $3,061 in Santa Teresa, rent included.

Medellin $3,249
Santa Teresa $3,061

Medellin costs about 11% more than Santa Teresa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Medellin and Santa Teresa sit above the global median – Medellin by 25%, Santa Teresa by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 27.0K

$9.90 ₡4,450

-15.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.9K

$42.31 ₡19.0K

9.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.7K

$9.71 ₡4,365

-2.47%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.2K

$3.70 ₡1,664

-15.41%

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

$1.77 COP 5,727

$2.04 ₡915

-13.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,619

$1.63 ₡733

-12.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$3.03 ₡1,363

3.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.5K

$4.55 ₡2,044

25.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,969

$2.05 ₡923

-25.37%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,429

$2.82 ₡1,267

-18.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,306

$2.16 ₡970

-10.19%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,942

$2.98 ₡1,341

3.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.4K

$10.01 ₡4,500

-0.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.9K

$8.97 ₡4,034

16.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.3K

$13.60 ₡6,114

2.65%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$4.56 ₡2,048

-11.18%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,956

$1.44 ₡649

6.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,823

$4.12 ₡1,852

-49.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,437

$3.07 ₡1,382

-25.41%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,839

$3.39 ₡1,522

-37.76%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,542

$2.58 ₡1,159

-33.72%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,794

$1.01 ₡454

15.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,123

$2.85 ₡1,279

-44.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.7K

$5.09 ₡2,287

-23.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.5K

$13.79 ₡6,198

1.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,712

$2.36 ₡1,060

-25.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,793

$2.62 ₡1,177

3.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,825

$0.96 ₡432

22.92%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 247.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,859

$1.84 ₡828

-1.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,904

$1.83 ₡824

16.39%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.4K

$7.95 ₡3,573

2.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,135

$1.46 ₡658

-12.33%

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

$34.4K COP 111.7M

$38.4K ₡17.3M

-10.28%

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

$34.1K COP 110.7M

$32.7K ₡14.7M

4.29%

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

$178 COP 576.3K

$84.9 ₡38.2K

109.34%

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

$13.89 COP 45.0K

$26.16 ₡11.8K

-46.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.7K

$50.4 ₡22.7K

-39.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 136.0K

$50.1 ₡22.5K

-16.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.5K

$23.66 ₡10.6K

-28.99%

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.2K

$8.89 ₡3,995

-15.97%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$573 ₡257.3K

38.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.9M

$12.4K ₡5.6M

-1.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 279.9K

$61.8 ₡27.8K

39.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 192.2K

$51.2 ₡23.0K

15.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 448.6K

$127 ₡57.3K

8.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 320.4K

$107 ₡47.9K

-7.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$706 ₡317.6K

89.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$592 ₡266.0K

12.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$1,461 ₡656.5K

35.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$955 ₡429.1K

8.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.3M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

10.17

7.57%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Santa Teresa: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Santa Teresa

$592 38.7% 11.3% $75

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Santa Teresa

$346 22.6% 12.7% $39

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Santa Teresa

$161 10.6% 27.4% $61

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Santa Teresa

$192 12.5% 11% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Santa Teresa

$156 10.2% 9.3% $16

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Santa Teresa

$15 * 1% 84.1% $79

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Santa Teresa

$68 4.4% 19.2% $11

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 $706 in Santa Teresa. 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 $42 in Santa Teresa. Groceries tell a different story – $307 in Medellin vs $346 in Santa Teresa – so Medellin wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇷 Santa Teresa

🕒 Local time

15:11 3:11 PM

14:11 2:11 PM

1 h behind Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

3,099

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.08 USD

10,000 COP = 2.74 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 3,242 COP (10,000 COP = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 3,650 COP (10,000 COP = 2.74 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 506 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Santa Teresa 1,120 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Santa Teresa

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 Teresa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 11%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,538 per month in Medellin and $2,295 in Santa Teresa. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Santa Teresa, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $706 there versus $1,341 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $42 in Santa Teresa. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 11% cheaper in Medellin – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$1,500 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,692 in Medellin and $1,530 in Santa Teresa. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Santa Teresa costs $1,530 versus $1,692 in Medellin. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.