Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Otsu and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Otsu: $1,297 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $4,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

63

Cost of Living Index in Otsu
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Otsu Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Otsu

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,297

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Otsu 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 Otsu and in Medellin actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,297 per month in Otsu vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

Otsu $1,297
Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $1,890 per month in Otsu vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

Otsu $1,890
Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $2,482 per month in Otsu vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

Otsu $2,482
Medellin $3,186

Otsu is about 21% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Otsu sits 5% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.43 ¥1,331

$8.09 COP 26.1K

4.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.93 ¥5,043

$47.05 COP 151.9K

-32.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.13 ¥810

$9.50 COP 30.7K

-46.00%

Cappuccino

$3.12 ¥494

$3.01 COP 9,734

3.65%

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

$1.18 ¥187

$1.80 COP 5,809

-34.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.90 ¥142

$1.41 COP 4,560

-36.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 ¥504

$3.18 COP 10.3K

0.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.51 ¥712

$5.75 COP 18.6K

-21.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 ¥242

$1.51 COP 4,875

1.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.55 ¥245

$2.38 COP 7,677

-34.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.52 ¥714

$1.77 COP 5,719

155.37%

Eggs

$2.14 ¥338

$2.89 COP 9,332

-25.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.67 ¥2,475

$10.19 COP 32.9K

53.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.88 ¥1,086

$9.87 COP 31.9K

-30.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.21 ¥2,718

$13.99 COP 45.2K

23.02%

Apples (1kg)

$4.95 ¥782

$3.97 COP 12.8K

24.69%

Banana (1kg)

$2.49 ¥393

$1.55 COP 5,011

60.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.97 ¥785

$2.18 COP 7,047

127.98%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.42 ¥698

$2.18 COP 7,050

102.75%

Potato (1kg)

$2.20 ¥348

$1.96 COP 6,336

12.24%

Onion (1kg)

$1.87 ¥295

$1.59 COP 5,131

17.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ¥187

$1.15 COP 3,698

3.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.87 ¥137

$1.24 COP 4,014

-29.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.97 ¥627

$3.96 COP 12.8K

0.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.69 ¥1,530

$13.68 COP 44.2K

-29.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.06 ¥326

$1.66 COP 5,359

24.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 ¥345

$2.26 COP 7,290

-3.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 ¥235

$1.17 COP 3,770

27.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$57.5 ¥9,080

$77.4 COP 249.8K

-25.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.26 ¥514

$1.27 COP 4,094

156.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.85 ¥450

$2.05 COP 6,611

39.02%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.41 ¥4,486

$8.55 COP 27.6K

232.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.12 ¥177

$1.35 COP 4,348

-17.04%

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

$22.2K ¥3.5M

$34.1K COP 110.0M

-34.93%

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

$15.3K ¥2.4M

$34.7K COP 111.9M

-55.98%

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

$118 ¥18.6K

$170 COP 547.7K

-30.62%

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

$23.18 ¥3,661

$13.55 COP 43.7K

71.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.70 ¥4,849

$28.07 COP 90.6K

9.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.9 ¥8,042

$43.70 COP 141.1K

16.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.46 ¥1,494

$17.19 COP 55.5K

-44.97%

Cinema Ticket

$12.85 ¥2,029

$6.91 COP 22.3K

85.96%

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

$700 ¥110.6K

$797 COP 2.6M

-12.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K ¥2.0M

$9,112 COP 29.4M

38.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.5 ¥8,766

$84.7 COP 273.5K

-34.48%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.05 ¥5,693

$58.0 COP 187.1K

-37.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.5 ¥11.0K

$135 COP 435.7K

-48.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.1 ¥15.3K

$97.9 COP 316.0K

-0.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$443 ¥69.9K

$1,208 COP 3.9M

-63.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$366 ¥57.9K

$642 COP 2.1M

-42.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$623 ¥98.4K

$2,028 COP 6.5M

-69.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$461 ¥72.9K

$1,012 COP 3.3M

-54.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,199 ¥663.1K

$4,170 COP 13.5M

0.68%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,274 ¥359.2K

$1,910 COP 6.2M

19.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,818 ¥287.0K

$657 COP 2.1M

176.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.1

10.94

-80.80%

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

Last update for Otsu: October 25, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Otsu

$366 28.3%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 75.1% $275

Groceries & Markets

Otsu

$332 25.6%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 10.5% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Otsu

$172 13.2%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 23.1% $40

Eating Out

Otsu

$154 11.8%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 10.4% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Otsu

$116 9%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 45.4% $53

Getting Around

Otsu

$81 6.2%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 15.6% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Otsu

$77 5.9%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 24.9% $19

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $443 in Otsu 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 Otsu are about 2.8 times higher, 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 $32 in Otsu versus $47 in Medellin. Groceries tell a different story – $332 in Otsu vs $297 in Medellin – so Medellin wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Otsu

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

02:29 2:29 AM

12:29 12:29 PM

14 h behind Otsu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

341,314

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.67 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.67 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,603 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

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Otsu Medellin 14,360 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

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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

Otsu vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 26%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,945 per month in Otsu 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 Otsu, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $443 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Otsu 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 $1,297 in Otsu and $1,639 in Medellin. That makes Otsu about 21% cheaper.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,297 in Otsu and $1,639 in Medellin. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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