Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubatuba and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Ubatuba: $855 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $9,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

42

Cost of Living Index in Ubatuba
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Ubatuba Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Ubatuba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$855

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $855 per month in Ubatuba vs $1,614 in Medellin, rent included.

Ubatuba $855
Medellin $1,614

A couple spends around $1,360 per month in Ubatuba vs $2,402 in Medellin, rent included.

Ubatuba $1,360
Medellin $2,402

A family of three spends $1,865 per month in Ubatuba vs $3,190 in Medellin, rent included.

Ubatuba $1,865
Medellin $3,190

Ubatuba is about 47% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Ubatuba sits 37% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.59 R$38.48

$7.93 COP 25.2K

-4.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.05 R$147

$46.13 COP 146.3K

-37.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.09 R$25.78

$9.50 COP 30.1K

-46.42%

Cappuccino

$1.46 R$7.40

$3.11 COP 9,866

-53.05%

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

$1.29 R$6.52

$1.83 COP 5,800

-29.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.93 R$4.72

$1.38 COP 4,360

-32.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.43 R$12.32

$3.05 COP 9,672

-20.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.92 R$19.85

$5.50 COP 17.4K

-28.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.06 R$5.38

$1.45 COP 4,600

-26.90%

White Bread (500g)

$1.85 R$9.37

$2.36 COP 7,496

-21.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.39 R$7.04

$1.68 COP 5,328

-17.26%

Eggs

$2.51 R$12.73

$2.86 COP 9,077

-12.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.97 R$15.06

$10.19 COP 32.3K

-70.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.06 R$20.58

$9.53 COP 30.2K

-57.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.22 R$41.69

$14.04 COP 44.5K

-41.45%

Apples (1kg)

$1.63 R$8.24

$4.07 COP 12.9K

-59.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.23 R$6.24

$1.50 COP 4,742

-18.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.18 R$5.97

$2.17 COP 6,891

-45.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.40 R$7.11

$2.31 COP 7,310

-39.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 R$5.95

$1.93 COP 6,113

-39.38%

Onion (1kg)

$1.19 R$6.02

$1.64 COP 5,196

-27.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 R$4.74

$1.13 COP 3,571

-17.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 R$3.18

$1.25 COP 3,954

-49.60%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.55 R$12.90

$3.99 COP 12.6K

-36.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.08 R$40.96

$13.35 COP 42.3K

-39.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 R$8.03

$1.70 COP 5,384

-7.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.62 R$13.27

$2.37 COP 7,525

10.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.01 R$5.13

$1.21 COP 3,827

-16.53%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.22 R$6.19

$1.32 COP 4,179

-7.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.73 R$3.72

$2.14 COP 6,774

-65.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.73 R$44.27

$8.47 COP 26.8K

3.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.29 R$6.56

$1.30 COP 4,114

-0.77%

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

$24.1K R$122.1K

$28.0K COP 88.7M

-13.93%

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

$32.8K R$166.1K

$35.4K COP 112.3M

-7.45%

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

$66.0 R$334

$172 COP 545.6K

-61.66%

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

$9.01 R$45.69

$13.37 COP 42.4K

-32.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.76 R$100

$28.73 COP 91.1K

-31.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$11.94 R$60.5

$45.24 COP 143.5K

-73.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 R$39.58

$6.28 COP 19.9K

24.36%

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

$438 R$2,223

$770 COP 2.4M

-43.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.1K R$56.4K

$9,011 COP 28.6M

23.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.7 R$328

$86.4 COP 274.0K

-25.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.4 R$286

$57.1 COP 181.1K

-1.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.3 R$453

$137 COP 432.9K

-34.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.8 R$405

$97.9 COP 310.4K

-18.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$396 R$2,007

$1,055 COP 3.3M

-62.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$298 R$1,512

$616 COP 2.0M

-51.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$816 R$4,135

$1,892 COP 6.0M

-56.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$612 R$3,102

$1,023 COP 3.2M

-40.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,797 R$9,110

$4,059 COP 12.9M

-55.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$385 R$1,952

$652 COP 2.1M

-40.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.81

10.94

-1.19%

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

Last update for Ubatuba: October 12, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ubatuba

$298 34.9%

Medellin

$616 38.2% 106% $317

Groceries & Markets

Ubatuba

$172 20.2%

Medellin

$295 18.3% 71% $122

Clothing & Footwear

Ubatuba

$131 15.3%

Medellin

$170 10.5% 30.3% $40

Eating Out

Ubatuba

$122 14.3%

Medellin

$168 10.4% 37.6% $46

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ubatuba

$95 11.1%

Medellin

$214 13.3% 126% $119

Sport & Entertainment

Ubatuba

$28 3.2%

Medellin

$58 3.6% 110% $30

Getting Around

Ubatuba

$8.9 * 1.1%

Medellin

$93 5.8% 944% $84

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $396 in Ubatuba versus $1,055 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 69% 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 $29.00 in Ubatuba versus $46.00 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $172 vs $295 – making Ubatuba the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Ubatuba

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

00:25 12:25 AM

22:25 10:25 PM

2 h behind Ubatuba

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

92,981

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ubatuba Medellin 4,680 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Ubatuba
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

Ubatuba vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 89%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,282 per month in Ubatuba and $2,421 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $29.00 in Ubatuba and $46.00 in Medellin. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 71% more in Medellin, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Ubatuba, where all-in costs run around $855, than in Medellin at $1,614. In Ubatuba it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Ubatuba – 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 Ubatuba. 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.