Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Ubatuba

For one person, living is cheaper in Ubatuba: $790 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $10,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index
38

Cost of Living Index in Ubatuba
Learn more

Ubatuba Living Index

Jump to prices

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Ubatuba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$790

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Ubatuba

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $790 in Ubatuba, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Ubatuba $790

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,256 in Ubatuba, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Ubatuba $1,256

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $1,722 in Ubatuba, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Ubatuba $1,722

Medellin costs about 107% more than Ubatuba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Ubatuba is 42% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$6.82 R$36.72

18.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$27.03 R$145

74.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$4.78 R$25.71

98.74%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$1.37 R$7.37

119.71%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$1.24 R$6.70

45.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$0.81 R$4.37

74.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$2.24 R$12.06

41.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$3.64 R$19.57

57.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$0.92 R$4.96

64.13%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$1.71 R$9.18

39.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$1.27 R$6.86

39.37%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$2.31 R$12.44

25.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$2.76 R$14.86

269.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$3.78 R$20.33

161.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$7.32 R$39.39

91.12%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$1.52 R$8.16

161.18%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$1.10 R$5.91

40.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$1.11 R$5.96

96.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$1.31 R$7.02

66.41%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$1.14 R$6.11

71.93%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$1.14 R$6.14

39.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$0.85 R$4.59

35.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$0.58 R$3.11

113.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$2.29 R$12.32

72.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$7.42 R$39.91

84.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$1.47 R$7.91

12.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$2.31 R$12.46

-2.16%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

$0.97 R$5.23

20.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$1.09 R$5.88

16.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$0.71 R$3.82

188.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$8.10 R$43.61

5.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$1.23 R$6.64

9.76%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$22.2K R$119.2K

53.75%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$31.8K R$171.4K

8.89%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$61.4 R$330

176.39%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$8.67 R$46.65

56.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$18.41 R$99.1

52.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$11.06 R$59.6

295.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$7.39 R$39.79

-6.50%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$414 R$2,230

92.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$10.2K R$54.7K

-10.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$61.4 R$331

37.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$53.1 R$285

9.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$84.8 R$456

59.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$74.2 R$399

31.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$366 R$1,970

229.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$275 R$1,477

133.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$735 R$3,956

175.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$562 R$3,023

80.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$1,656 R$8,914

151.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$352 R$1,897

86.44%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

10.81

1.20%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Ubatuba: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Ubatuba

$275 34.7% 57.2% $367

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Ubatuba

$158 20% 46.9% $139

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Ubatuba

$88 11.2% 58.1% $123

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Ubatuba

$112 14.2% 33.9% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Ubatuba

$123 15.6% 27.2% $46

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Ubatuba

$8.5 * 1.1% 90.9% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Ubatuba

$26 3.3% 55.1% $32

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 $366 in Ubatuba. 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 86% 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 $27 in Ubatuba. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $158 – making Ubatuba the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇧🇷 Ubatuba

🕒 Local time

02:04 2:04 AM

04:04 4:04 AM

2 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

92,981

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

1 BRL = 0.186 USD

1 BRL = 0.166 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 November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,605 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 5.38 BRL (1 BRL = 0.186 USD). 1 EUR = 6.01 BRL (1 BRL = 0.166 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Ubatuba 4,680 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Ubatuba

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 Ubatuba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 107%, 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 $1,185 in Ubatuba. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Ubatuba, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $366 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $27 in Ubatuba. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 88% more in Medellin, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Ubatuba, where all-in costs run around $790, than in Medellin at $1,639. In Ubatuba it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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