Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Serra

For one person, living is cheaper in Serra: $825 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 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
39

Cost of Living Index in Serra
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Serra Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Serra

🇧🇷 Brazil

$825

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Serra

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $825 in Serra, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Serra $825

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,225 in Serra, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Serra $1,225

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $1,624 in Serra, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Serra $1,624

Medellin costs about 99% more than Serra, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Serra is 39% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$4.60 R$25.04

75.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.7K

$21.69 R$118

116.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.6K

$7.59 R$41.30

25.16%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,722

$1.84 R$10.04

63.59%

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

$1.80 COP 5,801

$1.24 R$6.77

45.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,554

$0.54 R$2.93

161.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.2K

$1.80 R$9.78

76.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.5K

$2.83 R$15.39

103.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,869

$1.10 R$5.98

37.27%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,667

$1.74 R$9.45

36.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,712

$1.08 R$5.88

63.89%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,320

$2.05 R$11.14

40.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$9.67 R$52.6

5.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.8K

$4.27 R$23.22

131.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.1K

$8.14 R$44.29

71.87%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$2.65 R$14.43

49.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,005

$1.43 R$7.76

8.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,039

$1.67 R$9.11

30.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,041

$1.52 R$8.26

43.42%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,328

$1.10 R$5.96

78.18%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,125

$1.00 R$5.43

59.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,694

$1.18 R$6.41

-2.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,009

$1.22 R$6.66

1.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$2.34 R$12.75

69.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.1K

$5.31 R$28.89

157.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,352

$0.95 R$5.19

74.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,281

$3.10 R$16.85

-27.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,766

$0.84 R$4.58

39.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.5K

$44.26 R$241

74.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,089

$1.22 R$6.64

4.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,603

$1.05 R$5.70

95.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$7.37 R$40.09

16.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,343

$1.05 R$5.72

28.57%

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

$34.1K COP 109.8M

$22.0K R$119.9K

54.56%

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

$34.7K COP 111.8M

$31.5K R$171.6K

9.91%

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

$170 COP 547.0K

$147 R$800

15.42%

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

$13.55 COP 43.7K

$11.59 R$63.1

16.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.5K

$19.76 R$107

42.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 140.9K

$24.12 R$131

81.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.4K

$25.58 R$139

-32.80%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$6.61 R$35.95

4.54%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$172 R$937

362.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$7,088 R$38.6K

28.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.2K

$52.3 R$285

61.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 186.9K

$47.29 R$257

22.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.2K

$84.5 R$460

59.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 315.6K

$67.6 R$368

44.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$236 R$1,286

411.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$141 R$765

356.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$402 R$2,189

403.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$204 R$1,112

395.13%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.4M

$914 R$4,970

356.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$530 R$2,884

260.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$514 R$2,798

27.76%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

-0.55%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Serra: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Serra

$141 17% 78.1% $501

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Serra

$198 24% 33.3% $99

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Serra

$178 21.6% 15.6% $33

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Serra

$104 12.5% 39% $66

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Serra

$113 13.7% 33% $56

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Serra

$54 6.6% 42.2% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Serra

$37 4.5% 35.1% $20

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $236 in Serra. 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 28% 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 $47 in Medellin versus $22 in Serra. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $198 – making Serra the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇧🇷 Serra

🕒 Local time

20:54 8:54 PM

22:54 10:54 PM

2 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

520,653

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

1 BRL = 0.184 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 3,224 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,611 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 5.44 BRL (1 BRL = 0.184 USD). 1 EUR = 6.09 BRL (1 BRL = 0.164 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Serra 4,850 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Serra

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 Serra: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 99%, 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 $1,238 in Serra. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Serra, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $236 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $22 in Serra. 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 $825 in Serra. That makes Serra about 50% cheaper.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Serra, where all-in costs run around $825, than in Medellin at $1,639. In Serra it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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