Mexico, Central America, and South America ranked by cost, visa accessibility, and how far your dollar actually goes — anchored to your home city via real subnational PPP.
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destinations
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avg cost index
the Americas hosts 25 relocation-relevant destinations in the SortaRich index. Anchor city: Medellín, Colombia runs about $1,200/mo for a comfortable single expat lifestyle.
Sort by cost, visa availability, or any other dimension below. Every figure is anchored to your home city via real subnational PPP — so the comparison is apples-to-apples for your specific situation, not a global average.
Mexico (Temporary Resident on $2,500/mo passive income), Panama (Pensionado from a $1,000/mo pension — the most accessible retirement visa in the region), Ecuador (Pensioner Visa from $1,275/mo), Costa Rica (Pensionado from $1,000/mo), and Uruguay (Tax Holiday Residency) lead Latin America for retiree-friendly visa programs. Cost of living ranges $1,500-3,000/mo for a comfortable couple. SortaRich ranks them by cost + healthcare quality + safety together.
PPP-adjusted purchasing power of $1: Argentina ~$3.10 (volatile due to inflation cycles), Bolivia ~$2.80, Colombia ~$2.50, Mexico ~$1.80, Brazil ~$1.70, Peru ~$1.65, Chile ~$1.40, Costa Rica ~$1.20, Uruguay ~$1.05. Higher = your dollar buys more locally. SortaRich shows this exact ratio per city, anchored to your home city — so a Toronto vs LA expat sees different PPP numbers.
Both countries have wide regional variation. Mexico City and Querétaro score similarly to many European cities on safety; Tijuana and parts of Sinaloa do not. Medellín and Bogotá have transformed dramatically since the 1990s — both are now mainstream relocation destinations. Always check the city-level safety data, not the country-level headline. SortaRich aggregates the IEP Global Peace Index, World Bank political stability, and city-level homicide rates where available.
Ranked by cost of living, data quality, and relevance.
#2🇧🇷 Brazil · 6.7M
#3🇨🇴 Colombia · 1.2M
#4🇲🇽 Mexico · 722K
#6🇲🇽 Mexico · 1.6M
#10🇦🇷 Argentina · 2.9M
#13🇨🇷 Costa Rica · 335K
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