Cost of living comparison
compared to
Santa Marta vs. Quito Cost of Living Summary
Santa Marta is 3.7% more expensive than Quito.
- Restaurants
-
pay 17.1% less in Santa Marta
- Groceries
-
pay 5.1% less in Santa Marta
- Transportation
-
pay 12.0% more in Santa Marta
- Housing
-
pay 2.2 times more in Santa Marta
- Childcare
-
pay 41.3% less in Santa Marta
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 44.7% less in Santa Marta
- Clothing
-
pay 0.3% less in Santa Marta
The cost of housing and transportation in Santa Marta are more expensive than in Quito. Expenses including entertainment and sports, childcare, restaurants, groceries, and clothing are lower in Santa Marta. Notably, housing is significantly more expensive in Santa Marta.
Santa Marta vs. Quito Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Santa Marta instead of Quito, you would:
pay 17.1% less for restaurants
|
Quito
|
Santa Marta
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$5.00
|
$3.88
COP14,761.42
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$7.38
|
$9.06
COP34,443.31
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.13
|
$0.72
COP2,755.46
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.73
|
$0.49
COP1,869.78
|
|
Quito vs. Santa Marta - Cost of restaurants
pay 5.1% less for groceries
|
Quito
|
Santa Marta
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.62
|
$1.73
COP6,560.63
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.18
|
$2.67
COP10,168.98
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.06
|
$4.60
COP17,508.46
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.43
|
$2.55
COP9,709.73
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.52
|
$2.76
COP10,504.77
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.98
|
$1.06
COP4,034.35
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.51
|
$0.36
COP1,383.77
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.48
|
$0.53
COP2,023.58
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.59
|
$0.58
COP2,202.13
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.68
|
$0.30
COP1,145.70
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.47
|
$0.67
COP2,529.48
|
|
Quito vs. Santa Marta - Cost of groceries
pay 12.0% more for transportation
|
Quito
|
Santa Marta
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.63
|
$3.91
COP14,856.37
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$27.00
|
$15.53
COP59,045.67
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$20,000.00
|
$20,963.08
COP79,711,656.05
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$13.50
|
$18.50
COP70,362.76
|
|
Quito vs. Santa Marta - Cost of transportation
pay 2.2 times more for housing
|
Quito
|
Santa Marta
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$28.44
|
$20.70
COP78,727.56
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$448.12
|
$291.15
COP1,107,106.33
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$317.19
|
$381.17
COP1,449,388.35
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$25.07
|
$158.55
COP602,889.46
|
|
Quito vs. Santa Marta - Cost of housing
pay 41.3% less for childcare
|
Quito
|
Santa Marta
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$283.25
|
$176.01
COP669,282.68
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$9,360.00
|
$5,176.07
COP19,681,890.38
|
|
Quito vs. Santa Marta - Cost of childcare
pay 44.7% less for entertainment and sports
|
Quito
|
Santa Marta
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.38
|
$1.04
COP3,936.38
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.96
|
$1.71
COP6,519.63
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$6.00
|
$2.85
COP10,825.04
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$38.55
|
$20.70
COP78,727.56
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$7.00
|
$5.18
COP19,681.89
|
|
Quito vs. Santa Marta - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 0.3% less for clothing
|
Quito
|
Santa Marta
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$60.15
|
$55.21
COP209,940.16
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$46.83
|
$56.76
COP215,844.73
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$105.42
|
$123.76
COP470,594.48
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$92.78
|
$63.41
COP241,103.16
|
|
Quito vs. Santa Marta - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in Ecuador vs. Colombia.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Ecuador and Colombia.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Santa Marta or Quito. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.