South America · Bogota
Cost of living in Colombia
Colombia is 64% cheaper than the US, ranking #136 of 203 countries we cover for cost of living.
World Bank data through 2024 · last reviewed 2026-06.
What drives the cost here
Price levels by category, where the world average = 100. Above 100 is pricier than the global norm; below it is cheaper.
In Colombia, food & groceries is the priciest category relative to the world (79), while health is the most affordable (36).
Category price levels: World Bank ICP 2021 (world average = 100) · source
What your money is worth here
A $100,000 US lifestyle would cost roughly $36,000 in Colombia.
Quality of life
72/100 · #113 of 198Beyond cost — health, safety, and connectivity. The score is a transparent, equal-weight composite of the verified metrics below (see methodology).
About Colombia
Colombia was one of three countries that emerged after the dissolution of Gran Colombia in 1830 -- the others are Ecuador and Venezuela. A decades-long conflict among government forces, paramilitaries, and antigovernment insurgent groups heavily funded by the drug trade -- principally the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) -- escalated during the 1990s. In the wake of the paramilitary demobilization in the 2000s, new criminal groups arose that included some former paramilitaries.
Read the full background
After four years of formal peace negotiations, the Colombian Government signed a final accord with the FARC in 2016 that called for its members to demobilize, disarm, and reincorporate into society and politics. The accord also committed the Colombian Government to create three new institutions to form a 'comprehensive system for truth, justice, reparation, and non-repetition,' including a truth commission, a special unit to coordinate the search for those who disappeared during the conflict, and a 'Special Jurisdiction for Peace' to administer justice for conflict-related crimes. Despite decades of internal conflict and drug-trade-related security challenges, Colombia maintains relatively strong and independent democratic institutions characterized by peaceful, transparent elections and the protection of civil liberties.
Background from the CIA World Factbook (public domain), archived 2026-06-03.
Frequently asked
Is Colombia expensive to live in?
Colombia is 64% cheaper than the US, ranking #136 of the 203 countries we track. Its most expensive category relative to the world is food & groceries; health costs the least.
How much money do you need to live in Colombia?
A lifestyle that costs $100,000 in the United States would cost roughly $36,000 in Colombia, going by overall price levels. The salary translator turns your own figure into a local equivalent.
Is Colombia cheaper than the United States?
Yes. Its overall price level is 36.0, against 100 for the United States.
What is the quality of life in Colombia?
Colombia scores 72 out of 100 on our quality-of-life index (#113 of 198), a composite of life expectancy, safety, health, and connectivity, with life expectancy around 78 years.
Every number, sourced.
We cite the exact source and year for each figure. Derived values are computed at build time, never hand-entered.
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