Plan your move in Cartagena
Current long-term private-room listings support roughly COP 750,000–1,500,000/month, with El Cabrero around COP 750,000, Manga around COP 1,000,000–1,100,000, Pie de Popa around COP 1,200,000 and Bocagrande/private-bathroom products around COP 1,500,000–1,700,000.
Compare rent, bills and commute with the true housing cost tool →
Cartagena room-search snapshot
- Ordinary long-term private room
- COP 750k–1.5m/month
- El Cabrero
- Around COP 750k including bills
- Manga
- COP 1.0–1.1m
- Pie de Popa
- Around COP 1.2m
- Bocagrande premium
- COP 1.5–1.7m; separate premium
- Covered Law 820 security
- Cash security prohibited within scope
- TransCaribe fare
- COP 3,900
- Eligible differential subsidy
- COP 1,000 per qualifying ride
- Main trap
- Tourism room mixed with long-term local room
Neighborhood starting points
Manga
- Good for
- Professionals and students
- Price
- Strong demand
- What works
- Central and room supply
- Watch for
- Bridge/traffic access
Pie de Popa
- Good for
- Professionals and students
- Price
- Mixed premium
- What works
- Central and transit
- Watch for
- Competition
El Cabrero
- Good for
- Professionals and remote workers
- Price
- Mixed premium
- What works
- Central/coastal
- Watch for
- Tourism pressure
Bocagrande
- Good for
- Higher-budget professionals
- Price
- Highest premium
- What works
- Services and beach
- Watch for
- Tourism cost
Crespo
- Good for
- Airport workers and remote workers
- Price
- Mixed
- What works
- Airport and coast
- Watch for
- South-job commute
El Bosque
- Good for
- Value workers
- Price
- Value
- What works
- Port and industrial corridor
- Watch for
- Less tourism-oriented
Marbella
- Good for
- Professionals
- Price
- Premium
- What works
- Central coast
- Watch for
- High rent
Getsemaní
- Good for
- Tourism and hospitality
- Price
- Tourism premium
- What works
- Walkability
- Watch for
- Short-stay dominance
Centro Histórico
- Good for
- Tourism and remote workers
- Price
- Highest tourism
- What works
- Centrality
- Watch for
- Not ordinary budget market
La Boquilla
- Good for
- Tourism and airport-side workers
- Price
- Mixed
- What works
- Coastal access
- Watch for
- Different commute
Best starting areas for
Students
Manga and Pie de Popa are more useful starting points than Bocagrande for many institutions.
Remote workers
Manga and El Cabrero can balance centrality and residential character; Bocagrande is an intentional premium.
Newcomers
Test TransCaribe and road commute before choosing a tourism-led area.
Professionals
Port/industrial, tourism and central-office jobs create different housing choices.
Current room evidence and product classification
Current CompartoApto examples include El Cabrero around COP 750,000 including bills, Manga around COP 1,000,000–1,100,000, Pie de Popa around COP 1,200,000, Bocagrande around COP 1,500,000 and a Bocagrande private-bathroom room around COP 1,700,000.
The platform average around COP 1.22m is a comparator, not a substitute for listing-level classification. Tourist/short-stay products must stay out of the ordinary long-term range.
Cartagena transport and commute
Current TransCaribe fare is COP 3,900. A differential subsidy of COP 1,000 per qualifying ride applies only under program criteria and is not a universal student fare.
Check route, transfers, walking, AC and road congestion from the actual property.
Deposit, contract and subletting rules
Law 820 Article 16 prohibits cash deposits or other real guarantees securing obligations for covered urban-residential leases. First classify the contract; tourist, short-stay and hotel-like products may sit outside the same framework.
Keep deposit, advance rent, roommate contribution, owner authority and subletting terms separate.
Utilities, furnishing and minimum stay
Verify AC, electricity, water, Internet, furnishing, minimum stay, tourism status, coastal exposure and drainage at the address level.
Cartagena rental and payment risks
Classify the room, contract, property and payment before treating a listing as comparable.
- Short-stay or tourist room enters the long-term range.
- Covered lease requests prohibited cash security.
- Bocagrande premium is treated as the ordinary benchmark.
- AC or electricity is omitted.
- Turbaco is counted as Cartagena.
- Subsidy is shown without eligibility.
- Flood, drainage or coastal exposure is generalized by neighborhood.
Before you pay for a room in Cartagena
- This is long-term residential housing.
- Law 820 scope is classified.
- Bills, AC and electricity are explicit.
- I checked TransCaribe commute.
- Any subsidy eligibility is actually met.
- Municipality is Cartagena.
- I verified owner or head-tenant authority.
- I retained payment and condition evidence.
Research sources
Last checked: . Prices are planning ranges or live asking-price examples, not promises or citywide averages. Contract information is practical orientation, not legal advice.
Prices verified: September 2026 · Transport verified: September 2026 · Legal verified: September 2026