Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Setagaya-ku

For one person, living is cheaper in Setagaya-ku: $1,181 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 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
58

Cost of Living Index in Setagaya-ku
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Setagaya-ku Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Setagaya-ku

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,181

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Setagaya-ku

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 Setagaya-ku actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $1,181 in Setagaya-ku, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Setagaya-ku $1,181

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,896 in Setagaya-ku, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Setagaya-ku $1,896

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $2,612 in Setagaya-ku, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Setagaya-ku $2,612

Medellin costs about 39% more than Setagaya-ku, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$6.34 ¥998

27.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.7K

$25.75 ¥4,056

82.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.6K

$4.54 ¥715

109.25%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,722

$2.99 ¥472

0.67%

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

$1.80 COP 5,801

$1.07 ¥168

68.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,554

$0.66 ¥104

113.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.2K

$2.18 ¥343

45.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.5K

$3.08 ¥486

86.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,869

$1.23 ¥194

22.76%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,667

$1.68 ¥265

41.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,712

$3.68 ¥579

-51.90%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,320

$1.19 ¥187

142.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$10.58 ¥1,667

-3.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.8K

$6.03 ¥950

63.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.1K

$14.29 ¥2,251

-2.10%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$5.74 ¥905

-30.84%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,005

$2.73 ¥430

-43.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,039

$2.80 ¥442

-22.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,041

$4.32 ¥680

-49.54%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,328

$2.55 ¥402

-23.14%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,125

$2.61 ¥411

-39.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,694

$1.25 ¥196

-8.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,009

$0.55 ¥86.8

125.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$3.70 ¥582

7.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.1K

$6.44 ¥1,015

112.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,352

$1.76 ¥277

-5.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,281

$2.01 ¥317

12.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,766

$1.29 ¥204

-9.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.5K

$64.1 ¥10.1K

20.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,089

$3.18 ¥501

-60.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,603

$2.74 ¥431

-25.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$20.65 ¥3,253

-58.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,343

$1.07 ¥168

26.17%

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

$34.1K COP 109.8M

$22.2K ¥3.5M

53.27%

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

$34.7K COP 111.8M

$15.7K ¥2.5M

120.94%

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

$170 COP 547.0K

$134 ¥21.2K

26.18%

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

$13.55 COP 43.7K

$24.08 ¥3,793

-43.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.5K

$32.71 ¥5,153

-14.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 140.9K

$48.13 ¥7,582

-9.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.4K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$11.31 ¥1,781

-38.90%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$835 ¥131.6K

-4.61%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$14.6K ¥2.3M

-37.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.2K

$62.1 ¥9,784

36.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 186.9K

$37.00 ¥5,828

56.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.2K

$62.8 ¥9,895

114.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 315.6K

$105 ¥16.5K

-6.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$560 ¥88.2K

115.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$307 ¥48.4K

108.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$1,100 ¥173.2K

84.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$774 ¥122.0K

30.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.4M

$4,023 ¥633.8K

3.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$1,996 ¥314.5K

-4.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

447.00%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Setagaya-ku: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Setagaya-ku

$307 26% 52.1% $334

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Setagaya-ku

$281 23.8% 5.2% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Setagaya-ku

$191 16.2% 9.5% $20

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Setagaya-ku

$124 10.5% 26.8% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Setagaya-ku

$120 10.2% 29% $49

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Setagaya-ku

$86 7.3% 7.9% $7.4

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Setagaya-ku

$71 6% 23% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $560 in Setagaya-ku. 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 $26 in Setagaya-ku. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $281 – making Setagaya-ku the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇯🇵 Setagaya-ku

🕒 Local time

04:45 4:45 AM

18:45 6:45 PM

14 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

943,664

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.35 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 3,224 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,600 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.35 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Medellin Setagaya-ku 14,080 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

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Setagaya-ku

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 Setagaya-ku: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 39%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $1,771 in Setagaya-ku. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Setagaya-ku, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $560 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $26 in Setagaya-ku. 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 $1,181 in Setagaya-ku. That makes Setagaya-ku about 28% cheaper.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,639 in Medellin and $1,181 in Setagaya-ku. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Medellin has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,181 in Setagaya-ku to $1,639 in Medellin. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

For expats, Setagaya-ku is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 28% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.