Orange sky over Bucaramanga, Colombia
The amazing actual living cost in Colombia alone was enough for these two seniors on a tight budget to revisit Bucaramanga again in 2025! It is such a beautiful city in so many ways & fits our strict monthly budget to a T! In 2024 I wrote a blog about our monthly budget in percent terms while in Bucaramanga. Truthfully, everything in Bucaramanga has enriched our lives so much so that it was a no brainer for a second visit.
We are about halfway into our six months here in Bucaramanga. Since we are doing things a little different this time, I thought I would give you a little clearer picture of our basic actual living cost here in Bucaramanga, Colombia. Short & sweet!
In our past stays in renting in Colombia (Cartanega, Bogota & Medellin) we always stayed at Airbnbs. We know we paid significantly higher since we were basically outsiders. Living in Bucaramanga changed that! We rented last year & loved the Airbnb. This year we were able to negotiate with the same homeowner for six months, agreeing to pay the utilities (more on them below). We pay about $700 a month for a 3 bedroom/3 full baths with huge terrace. Today, they are renting houses in our former non gated community/home in Elgin, Texas for about $2,500 USD a month for a similar sized 3 bedroom house, there is no comparison for what you get!
Yes, you can find less expensive 3 bedroom rentals, but everything comes with a price. We feel safer living in a gated community with 24/7 armed security. We know people that live in large apartments with multiple bedrooms in this part of town & pay about $300-$400 USD a month, but this apartment fits ALL OUR WANTS & NEEDS plus being on target with our rental budget!
Our utilities consist of water, gas, electric, cable and a monthly maintenance fee. The average (converted to US$) each – Water/Sewer/Trash 60,000 COP pesos ($15 USD), Gas 24,000 COP pesos ($6 USD), Electric 64,000 COP pesos ($16 USD), & Cable 140,500 COP pesos ($35 USD) & monthly maintenance fee for the building complex is 388,000 pesos ($95.79 USD). Average total for the month is $168 USD.
Compared to what we paid in the U.S. prior to making our jump into international travel: Water/sewage/trash avg of $100, all electric avg $250 depending on season (TX has warm winter & HOT summers) & Cable/Internet $100 with monthly HOA maintenance fee $30 USD on the low side – our utilities in U.S. ran about $480 USD per month.
In our budget eating out & groceries are two separate items. Eating out may mean spending $7 for the two of us for a filling & delicious lunch special called almuerzo. We splurge occasionally for KFC for about $17 for the two of us. Most of our eating out budget consists of coffee shops/bakery cafes. One of our favorite stops for a late morning or lunch might be cappuccino, americano, bakery each with 3 cookies to take home for total of $9.69 USD. Winner winner chicken dinner!! Ha.
Grocery stores are plentiful & the prices are great except when it comes to imported U.S. labels which will run higher but its up to you whether you want to pay that price. I admit I do buy the Heinz Relish even though I clench every time I put it in the cart. We have lately been cooking & eating in which really gives us extra $ not used in eating out expenditure.
Fruits & vegetables, for us, are the best from the open farmers markets. In our neighborhood (El Tejar) it falls on early Sunday mornings so we try to get there early to get the prime pick. Here is a photo of our take Sunday morning totally $15.61 USD! (I just paid a couple months ago close to $7USD for a handful of grapes alone!) The great thing about markets is you can pick & choose which & how many of the carrots, apples, bananas, etc that you want. One vendor who we buy eggs from always throws in a bag of limes or maybe an avocado just because.
Comparing the actual living expenses in Colombia is a no-brainer. Above are the necessary expenses we have every month. As seniors living on a fixed income we have very little left over income after expenses. It is nice to know that all our bills can be paid & we have a little breathing room left at the end of the month. Let me throw in here that we do not own a vehicle. Ubers & Taxis have worked fine for us & the monthly fees are miniscule when compared to the vehicle payment/auto insurance/fuel/maintenance that came with owning a vehicle in the States.
I’m late getting to my morning exercise routine today, so I will cut this for now. I hope that you understand more about how we manage our cost of living in Bucaramanga, Colombia!
Again, we have a budget that we follow religiously but if you are wondering if we are missing any luxury items from the States? The short answer is **NO**!
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