Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mountain View, CA and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $4,650 in Mountain View, CA, rent and utilities included – about $36,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

227

Cost of Living Index in Mountain View, CA
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Mountain View, CA Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Mountain View, CA

🇺🇸 United States

$4,650

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mountain View, CA and in Medellin

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Mountain View, CA and in Medellin actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $4,650 per month in Mountain View, CA vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

Mountain View, CA $4,650
Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $6,615 per month in Mountain View, CA vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

Mountain View, CA $6,615
Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $8,580 per month in Mountain View, CA vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

Mountain View, CA $8,580
Medellin $3,186

Mountain View, CA costs about 184% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Mountain View, CA and Medellin sit above the global median – Mountain View, CA by 242%, Medellin by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.34 $20.34

$8.09 COP 26.1K

151.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$101 $101

$47.05 COP 151.9K

114.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 $11.96

$9.50 COP 30.7K

25.89%

Cappuccino

$5.21 $5.21

$3.01 COP 9,735

73.09%

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

$2.73 $2.73

$1.80 COP 5,809

51.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 $2.72

$1.41 COP 4,561

92.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.15 $7.15

$3.18 COP 10.3K

124.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.99 $9.99

$5.75 COP 18.6K

73.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 $1.27

$1.51 COP 4,876

-15.89%

White Bread (500g)

$4.18 $4.18

$2.38 COP 7,678

75.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.68 $4.68

$1.77 COP 5,720

164.41%

Eggs

$5.52 $5.52

$2.89 COP 9,333

91.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.21 $16.21

$10.19 COP 32.9K

59.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.71 $11.71

$9.87 COP 31.9K

18.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.96 $12.96

$13.99 COP 45.2K

-7.36%

Apples (1kg)

$5.39 $5.39

$3.97 COP 12.8K

35.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.88 $1.88

$1.55 COP 5,012

21.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.43 $4.43

$2.18 COP 7,048

103.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.69 $5.69

$2.18 COP 7,051

161.01%

Potato (1kg)

$3.94 $3.94

$1.96 COP 6,337

101.02%

Onion (1kg)

$5.65 $5.65

$1.59 COP 5,132

255.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.43 $2.43

$1.15 COP 3,699

111.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.62 $2.62

$1.24 COP 4,014

111.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.63 $11.63

$3.96 COP 12.8K

193.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.92 $12.92

$13.68 COP 44.2K

-5.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.15 $2.15

$1.66 COP 5,359

29.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 $2.45

$2.26 COP 7,291

8.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.47 $2.47

$1.17 COP 3,771

111.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$88.6 $88.6

$77.4 COP 249.8K

14.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.91 $3.91

$1.27 COP 4,094

207.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.87 $4.87

$2.05 COP 6,612

137.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.57 $1.57

$1.35 COP 4,349

16.30%

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

$27.2K $27.2K

$34.1K COP 110.0M

-20.04%

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

$26.3K $26.3K

$34.7K COP 111.9M

-24.16%

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

$288 $288

$170 COP 547.8K

70.01%

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

$44.81 $44.81

$13.55 COP 43.8K

230.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$63.9 $63.9

$28.07 COP 90.6K

127.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$78.6 $78.6

$43.70 COP 141.1K

79.93%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.81 $11.81

$17.19 COP 55.5K

-31.30%

Cinema Ticket

$17.10 $17.10

$6.91 COP 22.3K

147.47%

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

$2,141 $2,141

$797 COP 2.6M

168.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.6K $23.6K

$9,112 COP 29.4M

159.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.7 $52.7

$84.7 COP 273.5K

-37.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$99.5 $99.5

$58.0 COP 187.2K

71.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$151 $151

$135 COP 435.8K

12.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$149 $149

$97.9 COP 316.0K

51.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,529 $3,529

$1,208 COP 3.9M

192.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,039 $3,039

$642 COP 2.1M

373.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,702 $4,702

$2,028 COP 6.5M

131.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$5,009 $5,009

$1,012 COP 3.3M

395.13%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$11.9K $11.9K

$4,170 COP 13.5M

185.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$10.1K $10.1K

$1,910 COP 6.2M

427.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$9,788 $9,788

$657 COP 2.1M

1389.44%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.14

10.94

-43.88%

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

Last update for Mountain View, CA: October 24, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mountain View, CA

$3K 65.4%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 78.9% $2.4K

Groceries & Markets

Mountain View, CA

$432 9.3%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 31.2% $135

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mountain View, CA

$397 8.5%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 46.8% $186

Eating Out

Mountain View, CA

$339 7.3%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 49.9% $169

Clothing & Footwear

Mountain View, CA

$203 4.4%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 16.9% $34

Getting Around

Mountain View, CA

$127 2.7%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 26.2% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Mountain View, CA

$113 2.4%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 49% $55

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $3,529 in Mountain View, CA versus $1,208 in Medellin. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Mountain View, CA are about 15 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $101 in Mountain View, CA versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $432 vs $297 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Mountain View, CA

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

18:31 6:31 PM

21:31 9:31 PM

3 h ahead of Mountain View, CA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

82,739

2,486,723

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.896 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.896 EUR).

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).

COP to USD in detail →

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Mountain View, CA Medellin 5,830 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Mountain View, CA
Medellin

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

Mountain View, CA vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Mountain View, CA is pricier by about 184%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $6,974 per month in Mountain View, CA and $2,459 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Medellin, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,208 there versus $3,529 in Mountain View, CA.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $101 in Mountain View, CA and $47 in Medellin. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $4,650 in Mountain View, CA and $1,639 in Medellin. That makes Medellin about 65% cheaper.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Medellin, where all-in costs run around $1,639, than in Mountain View, CA at $4,650. In Medellin it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mountain View, CA it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Medellin costs $1,639 versus $4,650 in Mountain View, CA. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Medellin. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Mountain View, CA makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.