Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Puerto Escondido and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Puerto Escondido: $1,219 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $5,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Puerto Escondido
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Puerto Escondido Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Puerto Escondido

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,219

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,219 per month in Puerto Escondido vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

Puerto Escondido $1,219
Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $1,895 per month in Puerto Escondido vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

Puerto Escondido $1,895
Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $2,572 per month in Puerto Escondido vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

Puerto Escondido $2,572
Medellin $3,186

Puerto Escondido is about 26% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Puerto Escondido sits 10% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.04 MX$187

$8.09 COP 25.4K

24.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.27 MX$788

$47.05 COP 148.0K

-10.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.37 MX$156

$9.50 COP 29.9K

-11.89%

Cappuccino

$3.49 MX$65.0

$3.01 COP 9,485

15.95%

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

$1.32 MX$24.70

$1.80 COP 5,660

-26.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.01 MX$18.78

$1.41 COP 4,443

-28.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.98 MX$55.5

$3.18 COP 9,990

-6.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.11 MX$76.7

$5.75 COP 18.1K

-28.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.80 MX$33.60

$1.51 COP 4,751

19.21%

White Bread (500g)

$2.81 MX$52.4

$2.38 COP 7,480

18.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.55 MX$28.83

$1.77 COP 5,573

-12.43%

Eggs

$2.69 MX$50.2

$2.89 COP 9,093

-6.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.00 MX$149

$10.19 COP 32.1K

-21.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.93 MX$204

$9.87 COP 31.1K

10.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.46 MX$214

$13.99 COP 44.0K

-18.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 MX$51.3

$3.97 COP 12.5K

-30.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 MX$30.70

$1.55 COP 4,883

6.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.87 MX$34.86

$2.18 COP 6,867

-14.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.77 MX$33.04

$2.18 COP 6,870

-18.81%

Potato (1kg)

$1.61 MX$29.97

$1.96 COP 6,174

-17.86%

Onion (1kg)

$2.05 MX$38.15

$1.59 COP 5,000

28.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 MX$27.36

$1.15 COP 3,604

27.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 MX$21.14

$1.24 COP 3,911

-8.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.42 MX$82.5

$3.96 COP 12.5K

11.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.36 MX$193

$13.68 COP 43.0K

-24.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.32 MX$43.16

$1.66 COP 5,221

39.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.03 MX$56.5

$2.26 COP 7,103

34.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.79 MX$14.68

$1.17 COP 3,674

-32.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$31.45 MX$586

$77.4 COP 243.4K

-59.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.61 MX$48.59

$1.27 COP 3,989

105.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.77 MX$32.98

$2.05 COP 6,442

-13.66%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.22 MX$209

$8.55 COP 26.9K

31.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 MX$25.12

$1.35 COP 4,237

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

$21.2K MX$394.5K

$34.1K COP 107.2M

-37.88%

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

$21.8K MX$405.7K

$34.7K COP 109.1M

-37.22%

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

$51.7 MX$964

$170 COP 533.7K

-69.51%

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

$22.32 MX$416

$13.55 COP 42.6K

64.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.63 MX$664

$28.07 COP 88.3K

26.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.21 MX$507

$43.70 COP 137.5K

-37.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.22 MX$377

$17.19 COP 54.1K

17.63%

Cinema Ticket

$5.02 MX$93.5

$6.91 COP 21.7K

-27.35%

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

$216 MX$4,018

$797 COP 2.5M

-72.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,627 MX$86.2K

$9,112 COP 28.7M

-49.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.7 MX$945

$84.7 COP 266.5K

-40.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.62 MX$813

$58.0 COP 182.3K

-24.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.1 MX$1,586

$135 COP 424.6K

-36.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.7 MX$1,820

$97.9 COP 307.9K

-0.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$598 MX$11.1K

$1,208 COP 3.8M

-50.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$439 MX$8,175

$642 COP 2.0M

-31.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$938 MX$17.5K

$2,028 COP 6.4M

-53.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$753 MX$14.0K

$1,012 COP 3.2M

-25.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,004 MX$37.4K

$4,170 COP 13.1M

-51.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,179 MX$22.0K

$1,910 COP 6.0M

-38.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$329 MX$6,130

$657 COP 2.1M

-49.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.31

10.94

3.38%

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

Last update for Puerto Escondido: October 26, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Puerto Escondido

$439 36%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 46.3% $203

Groceries & Markets

Puerto Escondido

$283 23.2%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 5% $14

Eating Out

Puerto Escondido

$180 14.8%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 5.6% $10

Clothing & Footwear

Puerto Escondido

$125 10.2%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 35.5% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Puerto Escondido

$110 9%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 92.6% $102

Getting Around

Puerto Escondido

$46 3.8%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 103% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Puerto Escondido

$37 3.1%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 54.5% $20

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $598 in Puerto Escondido 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 100% higher in Medellin. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $42 in Puerto Escondido versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $283 vs $297 – making Puerto Escondido the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Puerto Escondido

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

17:49 5:49 PM

18:49 6:49 PM

1 h ahead of Puerto Escondido

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

25,902

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 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).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Puerto Escondido Medellin 2,570 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Puerto Escondido
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

Puerto Escondido vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 35%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,828 per month in Puerto Escondido 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 Puerto Escondido, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $598 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $42 in Puerto Escondido 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 $1,219 in Puerto Escondido and $1,639 in Medellin. That makes Puerto Escondido about 26% cheaper.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Puerto Escondido, where all-in costs run around $1,219, than in Medellin at $1,639. In Puerto Escondido it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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