Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Piura and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Piura: $701 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $11,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Piura, Peru
Medellin, Colombia
Piura
🇵🇪 Peru
$701
/mo nomad
Medellin
🇨🇴 Colombia
$1,639
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $701 per month in Piura vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

  • Piura $701
  • Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $1,199 per month in Piura vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

  • Piura $1,199
  • Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $1,696 per month in Piura vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

  • Piura $1,696
  • Medellin $3,186

Piura is about 57% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Piura sits 48% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Piura
Medellin
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.60 PEN 12.42
$8.09 COP 25.4K
-55.50%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$23.96 PEN 82.6
$47.05 COP 148.0K
-49.08%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$7.27 PEN 25.05
$9.50 COP 29.9K
-23.47%
Cappuccino
$3.30 PEN 11.38
$3.01 COP 9,485
9.63%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.05 PEN 3.62
$1.80 COP 5,660
-41.67%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.76 PEN 2.62
$1.41 COP 4,443
-46.10%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.35 PEN 8.11
$3.18 COP 9,990
-26.10%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.92 PEN 10.08
$5.75 COP 18.1K
-49.22%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Piura
Medellin
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.41 PEN 4.87
$1.51 COP 4,751
-6.62%
White Bread (500g)
$2.55 PEN 8.80
$2.38 COP 7,480
7.14%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.58 PEN 5.46
$1.77 COP 5,573
-10.73%
Eggs
$2.80 PEN 9.66
$2.89 COP 9,093
-3.11%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.37 PEN 35.74
$10.19 COP 32.1K
1.77%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.31 PEN 28.66
$9.87 COP 31.1K
-15.81%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.39 PEN 35.82
$13.99 COP 44.0K
-25.73%
Apples (1kg)
$1.41 PEN 4.87
$3.97 COP 12.5K
-64.48%
Banana (1kg)
$1.33 PEN 4.58
$1.55 COP 4,883
-14.19%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.48 PEN 5.10
$2.18 COP 6,867
-32.11%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.35 PEN 4.64
$2.18 COP 6,870
-38.07%
Potato (1kg)
$1.23 PEN 4.24
$1.96 COP 6,174
-37.24%
Onion (1kg)
$0.72 PEN 2.47
$1.59 COP 5,000
-54.72%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.89 PEN 3.08
$1.15 COP 3,604
-22.61%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.33 PEN 4.58
$1.24 COP 3,911
7.26%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$7.92 PEN 27.29
$3.96 COP 12.5K
100.00%
Wine (Bottle)
$11.13 PEN 38.37
$13.68 COP 43.0K
-18.64%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.81 PEN 6.24
$1.66 COP 5,221
9.04%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.82 PEN 9.74
$2.26 COP 7,103
24.78%
🚌 Getting Around
Piura
Medellin
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.66 PEN 2.28
$1.17 COP 3,674
-43.59%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$20.22 PEN 69.7
$77.4 COP 243.4K
-73.87%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.96 PEN 10.20
$1.27 COP 3,989
133.07%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.31 PEN 7.95
$2.05 COP 6,442
12.68%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$7.21 PEN 24.86
$8.55 COP 26.9K
-15.67%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.42 PEN 4.91
$1.35 COP 4,237
5.19%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$22.0K PEN 75.9K
$34.1K COP 107.2M
-35.33%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.4K PEN 80.5K
$34.7K COP 109.1M
-32.61%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Piura
Medellin
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$40.54 PEN 140
$170 COP 533.7K
-76.10%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$8.57 PEN 29.53
$13.55 COP 42.6K
-36.75%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
-
$28.07 COP 88.3K
-
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Piura
Medellin
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$28.76 PEN 99.1
$43.70 COP 137.5K
-34.19%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$17.19 COP 54.1K
-
Cinema Ticket
$2.33 PEN 8.04
$6.91 COP 21.7K
-66.28%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Piura
Medellin
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$199 PEN 686
$797 COP 2.5M
-75.02%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$2,280 PEN 7,861
$9,112 COP 28.7M
-74.97%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Piura
Medellin
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$42.70 PEN 147
$84.7 COP 266.5K
-49.60%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$12.94 PEN 44.60
$58.0 COP 182.3K
-77.67%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$58.2 PEN 201
$135 COP 424.6K
-56.87%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$73.9 PEN 255
$97.9 COP 307.9K
-24.49%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Piura
Medellin
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$229 PEN 790
$1,208 COP 3.8M
-81.03%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$131 PEN 453
$642 COP 2.0M
-79.53%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$397 PEN 1,367
$2,028 COP 6.4M
-80.44%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$400 PEN 1,378
$1,012 COP 3.2M
-60.50%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,803 PEN 13.1K
$4,170 COP 13.1M
-8.80%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$1,910 COP 6.0M
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Piura
Medellin
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$538 PEN 1,856
$657 COP 2.1M
-18.09%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
0
10.94
-

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

Last update for Piura: October 25, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Groceries & Markets
Piura
$250
Medellin
$297 18.6% $47
Accommodation & Living
Piura
$131
Medellin
$642 389% $510
Eating Out
Piura
$115
Medellin
$170 47.4% $55
Clothing & Footwear
Piura
$84
Medellin
$169 100% $84
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Piura
$49 *
Medellin
$211 330% $162
Getting Around
Piura
$37
Medellin
$94 151% $56
Sport & Entertainment
Piura
$33
Medellin
$58 72.1% $24

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $229 in Piura 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 run about 22% 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 $24 in Piura versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $250 vs $297 – making Piura the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇵🇪 Piura
🇨🇴 Medellin
🕒 Local time
12:47 12:47 PM
12:47 12:47 PM
Same time as Piura
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
158,495
2,486,723
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3.45 PEN (1 PEN = 0.29 USD). 1 EUR = 3.84 PEN (1 PEN = 0.261 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,502 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Piura Medellin 1,390 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Piura
  • 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
Piura vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Piura cheaper than Medellin?
Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 134%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,052 per month in Piura and $2,459 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Piura, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $229 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.
Is eating out cheaper in Piura or in Medellin?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $24 in Piura and $47 in Medellin. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
What are total monthly expenses in Piura and in Medellin?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $701 in Piura and $1,639 in Medellin. That’s a gap of about 134%.
Is $1,200 a realistic budget for living in Piura or in Medellin?
A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Piura, where all-in costs run around $701, than in Medellin at $1,639. In Piura it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Piura or Medellin more family-friendly?
Families tend to lean toward Piura – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Piura. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Medellin makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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