Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Toronto and Cartago

For one person, living is cheaper in Cartago: $1,281 a month against $2,561 in Toronto, rent and utilities included – about $15,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Toronto
Learn more

Toronto Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Cartago
Learn more

Cartago Living Index

Jump to prices

Toronto

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,561

/mo nomad

Cartago

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,281

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Toronto and in Cartago

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

A single person spends $2,561 per month in Toronto vs $1,281 in Cartago, rent included.

Toronto $2,561
Cartago $1,281

A couple spends around $3,694 per month in Toronto vs $1,972 in Cartago, rent included.

Toronto $3,694
Cartago $1,972

A family of three spends $4,826 per month in Toronto vs $2,663 in Cartago, rent included.

Toronto $4,826
Cartago $2,663

Toronto costs about 100% more than Cartago, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Toronto sits 90% above the global median, while Cartago is 5% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.18 CA$24.42

$7.58 COP 24.1K

126.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$76.0 CA$108

$37.20 COP 118.3K

104.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.54 CA$14.97

$8.47 COP 26.9K

24.44%

Cappuccino

$4.02 CA$5.71

$1.54 COP 4,884

161.04%

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

$2.12 CA$3.01

$1.28 COP 4,063

65.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 CA$2.49

$0.83 COP 2,634

110.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.24 CA$8.87

$3.10 COP 9,869

101.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.09 CA$10.07

$3.66 COP 11.7K

93.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.44 CA$3.47

$1.60 COP 5,088

52.50%

White Bread (500g)

$2.68 CA$3.80

$1.88 COP 5,973

42.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.24 CA$3.18

$1.49 COP 4,751

50.34%

Eggs

$3.56 CA$5.06

$2.93 COP 9,334

21.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.09 CA$12.92

$6.58 COP 20.9K

38.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.33 CA$16.10

$7.11 COP 22.6K

59.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.53 CA$20.66

$9.93 COP 31.6K

46.32%

Apples (1kg)

$3.62 CA$5.15

$3.57 COP 11.4K

1.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.21 CA$1.72

$1.32 COP 4,200

-8.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.60 CA$5.12

$1.74 COP 5,530

106.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.21 CA$5.99

$1.63 COP 5,184

158.28%

Potato (1kg)

$1.79 CA$2.54

$1.42 COP 4,522

26.06%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 CA$2.26

$1.50 COP 4,758

6.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.27 CA$3.23

$1.08 COP 3,443

110.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 CA$1.78

$1.03 COP 3,261

21.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.82 CA$19.64

$3.69 COP 11.7K

274.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.27 CA$20.29

$13.12 COP 41.7K

8.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.20 CA$3.12

$1.50 COP 4,756

46.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.43 CA$3.46

$2.45 COP 7,794

-0.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.39 CA$3.40

$1.02 COP 3,244

134.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$111 CA$158

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.91 CA$4.14

$0.79 COP 2,524

268.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.20 CA$1.70

$2.27 COP 7,230

-47.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.38 CA$30.39

$8.40 COP 26.7K

154.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 CA$1.72

$1.32 COP 4,211

-8.33%

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

$28.2K CA$40.0K

$28.0K COP 89.1M

0.52%

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

$20.3K CA$28.8K

$34.6K COP 110.2M

-41.54%

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

$120 CA$171

$110 COP 349.3K

9.57%

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

$32.26 CA$45.84

$13.23 COP 42.1K

143.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.93 CA$68.1

$30.26 COP 96.2K

58.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.48 CA$54.7

$42.32 COP 134.6K

-9.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.96 CA$32.63

Cinema Ticket

$12.38 CA$17.59

$8.24 COP 26.2K

50.24%

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

$830 CA$1,180

$701 COP 2.2M

18.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.1K CA$32.8K

$6,430 COP 20.5M

259.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.7 CA$72.1

$77.8 COP 247.3K

-34.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.02 CA$56.9

$55.1 COP 175.4K

-27.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.0 CA$139

$127 COP 403.0K

-22.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 CA$171

$111 COP 351.7K

9.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,592 CA$2,263

$645 COP 2.1M

146.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,410 CA$2,005

$509 COP 1.6M

177.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,670 CA$3,795

$1,041 COP 3.3M

156.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,152 CA$3,058

$970 COP 3.1M

121.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,945 CA$11.3K

$1,999 COP 6.4M

297.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,542 CA$9,298

$1,803 COP 5.7M

262.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,727 CA$5,297

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.47

11.58

-61.40%

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

Last update for Toronto: October 12, 2026

Last update for Cartago: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Toronto

$1.4K 55.1%

Cartago

$509 39.7% 63.9% $901

Groceries & Markets

Toronto

$340 13.3%

Cartago

$241 18.8% 29.1% $99

Eating Out

Toronto

$278 10.9%

Cartago

$136 10.6% 51.2% $142

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Toronto

$201 7.8%

Cartago

$153 12% 23.5% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Toronto

$139 5.4%

Cartago

$167 13% 19.7% $27

Getting Around

Toronto

$129 5.1%

Cartago

$16 * 1.3% 87.4% $113

Sport & Entertainment

Toronto

$63 2.5%

Cartago

$59 4.6% 7% $4.4

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,592 in Toronto versus $645 in Cartago. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $76.0 in Toronto versus $37.00 in Cartago. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $340 vs $241 – making Cartago the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Toronto

🇨🇴 Cartago

🕒 Local time

05:33 5:33 AM

04:33 4:33 AM

1 h behind Toronto

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,731,571

135,365

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.704 USD

1 CAD = 0.628 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.14 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 CAD (1 CAD = 0.704 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.628 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 3,181 COP (10,000 COP = 3.14 USD). 1 EUR = 3,562 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Toronto Cartago 4,340 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Toronto
Cartago

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

Toronto vs Cartago: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Toronto is pricier by about 100%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,841 per month in Toronto and $1,921 in Cartago. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cartago, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,561 in Toronto and $1,281 in Cartago. That's a gap of about 100%.

Kindergarten costs $830 per month in Toronto and $701 in Cartago. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Cartago, where all-in costs run around $1,281, than in Toronto at $2,561. In Cartago it covers expenses comfortably, while in Toronto it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Cartago. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Toronto makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.