Moving to Colombia from Puerto Rico
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Puerto Rico to Colombia — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Puerto Rico to Colombia, you would find that Colombia is 26.4% cheaper than Puerto Rico overall. A $75,000 salary in Puerto Rico would need to be roughly COP178,000,000 in Colombia to maintain the same lifestyle.
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How your spending power changes when you relocate from Puerto Rico to Colombia.
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → COP178,000,000
To maintain the same standard of living in Colombia
Calculate with your salary →The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 31.8% less
Groceries
pay 41.6% less
Transportation
pay 7.5% more
Housing
pay 38.2% less
Childcare
pay 20.6% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 10.6% less
Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.
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Key Indicator Comparison
How Puerto Rico and Colombia stack up on safety, healthcare, jobs, and infrastructure.
Is it safe?
per 100,000 people per year
per 100,000 people per year
Puerto Rico performs better than Colombia across all safety metrics.
How's the healthcare?
share of adults with obesity
per 100,000 people — a proxy for mental health support
Colombia performs significantly better than Puerto Rico across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What about the environment?
tonnes of CO₂ emitted per person per year
Colombia performs significantly better than Puerto Rico across all environment metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
fixed broadband subscriptions — key for remote work
higher means greater strain on freshwater supply
share of households with internet
Puerto Rico generally does better on infrastructure, though Colombia leads in water stress level.
What are the job prospects?
percentage of the labour force without work
a broad measure of economic output per person
the highest marginal rate on personal income
Puerto Rico performs better than Colombia across all employment & economy metrics.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
deaths per 1,000 live births — lower is better
government spending on education as % of GDP
percentage of adults who can read and write
Puerto Rico generally does better on family life, though Colombia leads in education spending.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook (2021–2022), Puerto Rican Department of Treasury (2016), Directorate of National Taxes and Customs (DIAN) (2016). How we calculate this
Visitor Visa Requirements
Short-stay tourist visa rules between Puerto Rico and Colombia. To live, work, or study long-term in Colombia, you'll need a separate residence or work visa — check Colombia's immigration authority.
Colombia passport holder visiting Puerto Rico
Visa RequiredData: Henley Passport Index. Check with the destination country's embassy for the most current requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Colombia than Puerto Rico?
Generally yes: Colombia runs about 26% cheaper than Puerto Rico on average, though it depends heavily on the city.
How much money do I need to move to Colombia?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around COP44,500,000 in Colombia for everyday spending, before flights, shipping, a rental deposit, and visa fees.
Can I work remotely from Colombia?
With 17.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, Colombia can support video calls in major cities. The hard part is paperwork — visa category, employer policy on overseas staff, and tax residency in Puerto Rico and Colombia.
Is Colombia safe for expats?
Puerto Rico performs better than Colombia across all safety metrics. The homicide rate in Colombia is 24.9 per 100,000 people, compared to 14.6 in Puerto Rico.
How is healthcare in Colombia compared to Puerto Rico?
Colombia performs significantly better than Puerto Rico across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What language do they speak in Colombia?
The official language in Colombia is Spanish. In Puerto Rico, the official languages are English and Spanish.
