Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Saransk

For one person, living is cheaper in Saransk: $1,151 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 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
56

Cost of Living Index in Saransk
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Saransk Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Saransk

🇷🇺 Russia

$1,151

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Saransk

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $1,151 in Saransk, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Saransk $1,151

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,838 in Saransk, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Saransk $1,838

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $2,524 in Saransk, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Saransk $2,524

Medellin costs about 42% more than Saransk, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Saransk is 15% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$14.34 ₽1,154

-43.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$55.7 ₽4,485

-15.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$7.60 ₽612

25.00%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$3.38 ₽272

-10.95%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$1.81 ₽146

-0.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$0.78 ₽63.0

80.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$1.97 ₽158

61.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$3.92 ₽315

46.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$1.19 ₽95.9

26.89%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$0.81 ₽65.6

193.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$1.42 ₽115

24.65%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$1.55 ₽125

86.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$12.00 ₽966

-15.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$5.17 ₽416

90.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$13.67 ₽1,100

2.34%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$1.77 ₽143

124.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$1.75 ₽141

-11.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$1.73 ₽139

26.01%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$3.51 ₽283

-37.89%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$0.68 ₽54.9

188.24%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$0.65 ₽52.3

144.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$1.37 ₽110

-16.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$0.68 ₽54.4

82.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$3.42 ₽275

15.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$8.80 ₽708

55.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,222

$1.16 ₽93.5

43.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,104

$2.55 ₽205

-11.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$0.57 ₽46.08

105.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

$30.06 ₽2,420

157.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$2.18 ₽176

-41.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$0.41 ₽33.34

400.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$7.31 ₽588

16.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$0.90 ₽72.1

50.00%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$54.0K ₽4.3M

-36.94%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$40.3K ₽3.2M

-13.99%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$141 ₽11.3K

20.57%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$7.16 ₽576

89.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$8.49 ₽683

230.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$32.17 ₽2,589

35.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

$22.39 ₽1,802

-23.22%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$7.21 ₽580

-4.16%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$316 ₽25.4K

152.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$7,190 ₽578.7K

26.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$78.4 ₽6,312

8.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$55.5 ₽4,470

4.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$138 ₽11.1K

-1.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$85.0 ₽6,844

15.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$487 ₽39.2K

148.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$321 ₽25.8K

100.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$935 ₽75.2K

116.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$592 ₽47.7K

70.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

$2,279 ₽183.5K

82.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$1,499 ₽120.6K

27.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$680 ₽54.7K

-3.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

20.29

-46.08%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Saransk: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Saransk

$321 27.9% 50% $321

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Saransk

$224 19.5% 24.6% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Saransk

$156 13.6% 26% $55

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Saransk

$206 17.9% 21.6% $37

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Saransk

$160 13.9% 5% $8.5

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Saransk

$37 3.2% 60.9% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Saransk

$47 4.1% 19% $11

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $487 in Saransk. 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 3% higher in Saransk, 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 $56 in Saransk. Groceries tell a different story – $297 in Medellin vs $224 in Saransk – so Saransk wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇷🇺 Saransk

🕒 Local time

10:10 10:10 AM

18:10 6:10 PM

8 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

320,612

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

100 RUB = 1.24 USD

100 RUB = 1.12 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,501 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 80.49 RUB (100 RUB = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 89.59 RUB (100 RUB = 1.12 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Saransk 11,350 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Saransk

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 Saransk: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 42%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $1,726 in Saransk. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Saransk, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $487 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $56 in Saransk. 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 $1,151 in Saransk. That’s a gap of about 42%.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,639 in Medellin and $1,151 in Saransk, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

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