Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Saint Charles, MO and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $2,182 in Saint Charles, MO, rent and utilities included – about $6,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Saint Charles, MO, United States
Medellin, Colombia
Saint Charles, MO
🇺🇸 United States
$2,182
/mo nomad
Medellin
🇨🇴 Colombia
$1,639
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,182 per month in Saint Charles, MO vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

  • Saint Charles, MO $2,182
  • Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $3,469 per month in Saint Charles, MO vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

  • Saint Charles, MO $3,469
  • Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $4,756 per month in Saint Charles, MO vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

  • Saint Charles, MO $4,756
  • Medellin $3,186

Saint Charles, MO costs about 33% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Saint Charles, MO and Medellin sit above the global median – Saint Charles, MO by 60%, Medellin by 20%.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Saint Charles, MO
Medellin
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$14.78 $14.78
$8.09 COP 25.4K
82.69%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$59.9 $59.9
$47.05 COP 148.0K
27.35%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$12.08 $12.08
$9.50 COP 29.9K
27.16%
Cappuccino
$4.82 $4.82
$3.01 COP 9,485
60.13%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.69 $2.69
$1.80 COP 5,660
49.44%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.84 $1.84
$1.41 COP 4,443
30.50%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$4.87 $4.87
$3.18 COP 9,990
53.14%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$6.15 $6.15
$5.75 COP 18.1K
6.96%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Saint Charles, MO
Medellin
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$0.80 $0.80
$1.51 COP 4,751
-47.02%
White Bread (500g)
$2.51 $2.51
$2.38 COP 7,480
5.46%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$6.31 $6.31
$1.77 COP 5,573
256.50%
Eggs
$3.22 $3.22
$2.89 COP 9,093
11.42%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$9.48 $9.48
$10.19 COP 32.1K
-6.97%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.58 $6.58
$9.87 COP 31.1K
-33.33%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$23.76 $23.76
$13.99 COP 44.0K
69.84%
Apples (1kg)
$3.72 $3.72
$3.97 COP 12.5K
-6.30%
Banana (1kg)
$2.19 $2.19
$1.55 COP 4,883
41.29%
Oranges (1kg)
$10.18 $10.18
$2.18 COP 6,867
366.97%
Tomato (1kg)
$5.12 $5.12
$2.18 COP 6,870
134.86%
Potato (1kg)
$3.56 $3.56
$1.96 COP 6,174
81.63%
Onion (1kg)
$3.91 $3.91
$1.59 COP 5,000
145.91%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.01 $2.01
$1.15 COP 3,604
74.78%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$2.16 $2.16
$1.24 COP 3,911
74.19%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$11.50 $11.50
$3.96 COP 12.5K
190.40%
Wine (Bottle)
$12.06 $12.06
$13.68 COP 43.0K
-11.84%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.83 $1.83
$1.66 COP 5,221
10.24%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.68 $2.68
$2.26 COP 7,103
18.58%
🚌 Getting Around
Saint Charles, MO
Medellin
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$5.09 $5.09
$1.17 COP 3,674
335.04%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$77.4 COP 243.4K
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.08 $3.08
$1.27 COP 3,989
142.52%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.70 $1.70
$2.05 COP 6,442
-17.07%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$49.01 $49.01
$8.55 COP 26.9K
473.22%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.85 $0.85
$1.35 COP 4,237
-37.04%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$27.3K $27.3K
$34.1K COP 107.2M
-19.91%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$26.8K $26.8K
$34.7K COP 109.1M
-22.64%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Saint Charles, MO
Medellin
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$326 $326
$170 COP 533.7K
92.12%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$61.1 $61.1
$13.55 COP 42.6K
350.77%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$76.0 $76.0
$28.07 COP 88.3K
170.57%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Saint Charles, MO
Medellin
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$49.34 $49.34
$43.70 COP 137.5K
12.91%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$17.19 COP 54.1K
-
Cinema Ticket
$11.82 $11.82
$6.91 COP 21.7K
71.06%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Saint Charles, MO
Medellin
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$1,006 $1,006
$797 COP 2.5M
26.29%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
-
$9,112 COP 28.7M
-
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Saint Charles, MO
Medellin
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$68.8 $68.8
$84.7 COP 266.5K
-18.80%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$42.81 $42.81
$58.0 COP 182.3K
-26.14%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$80.0 $80.0
$135 COP 424.6K
-40.70%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$165 $165
$97.9 COP 307.9K
68.08%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Saint Charles, MO
Medellin
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,516 $1,516
$1,208 COP 3.8M
25.50%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$793 $793
$642 COP 2.0M
23.66%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,978 $1,978
$2,028 COP 6.4M
-2.43%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,912 $1,912
$1,012 COP 3.2M
88.94%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$4,170 COP 13.1M
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$1,910 COP 6.0M
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Saint Charles, MO
Medellin
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$4,237 $4,237
$657 COP 2.1M
544.76%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
6.58
10.94
-39.85%

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

Last update for Saint Charles, MO: 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
Saint Charles, MO
$793
Medellin
$642 19.1% $152
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Saint Charles, MO
$463
Medellin
$211 54.4% $252
Groceries & Markets
Saint Charles, MO
$393
Medellin
$297 24.4% $96
Eating Out
Saint Charles, MO
$267
Medellin
$170 36.5% $97
Clothing & Footwear
Saint Charles, MO
$160
Medellin
$169 5.4% $8.7
Sport & Entertainment
Saint Charles, MO
$73
Medellin
$58 21.2% $15
Getting Around
Saint Charles, MO
$32 *
Medellin
$94 193% $62

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,516 in Saint Charles, MO 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 Saint Charles, MO are about 6.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $60 in Saint Charles, MO versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $393 vs $297 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇺🇸 Saint Charles, MO
🇨🇴 Medellin
🕒 Local time
15:36 3:36 PM
15:36 3:36 PM
Same time as Saint Charles, MO
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
70,329
2,486,723
Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 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
  • Saint Charles, MO Medellin 3,910 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Saint Charles, MO
  • 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
Saint Charles, MO vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Medellin cheaper than Saint Charles, MO?
Yes – Saint Charles, MO is pricier by about 33%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,272 per month in Saint Charles, MO 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 Medellin, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,208 there versus $1,516 in Saint Charles, MO.
Is eating out cheaper in Saint Charles, MO or in Medellin?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $60 in Saint Charles, MO and $47 in Medellin. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
How do food prices compare in Saint Charles, MO and in Medellin?
Groceries cost about 32% more in Saint Charles, MO, though the gap depends on what you buy.
Is $2,500 enough for either Saint Charles, MO or Medellin?
$2,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $2,182 in Saint Charles, MO and $1,639 in Medellin, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.
Is Saint Charles, MO or Medellin more family-friendly?
Families tend to lean toward Medellin – 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 Medellin. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Saint Charles, MO makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

Saint Charles, MO vs other spots: cost of living compared

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