Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Akranes and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $3,713 in Akranes, rent and utilities included – about $24,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

179

Cost of Living Index in Akranes
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Akranes Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Akranes

🇮🇸 Iceland

$3,713

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Akranes and in Medellin

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Akranes and in Medellin actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,713 in Akranes versus $1,639 in Medellin.

Akranes $3,713
Medellin $1,639

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,859 in Akranes versus $2,413 in Medellin.

Akranes $5,859
Medellin $2,413

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $8,006 in Akranes versus $3,186 in Medellin.

Akranes $8,006
Medellin $3,186

Living in Akranes is roughly 126% more expensive than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Akranes 173% above, Medellin 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$31.70 ISK 3,862

$8.09 COP 25.4K

291.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$123 ISK 15.0K

$47.05 COP 148.0K

162.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$26.72 ISK 3,255

$9.50 COP 29.9K

181.26%

Cappuccino

$6.01 ISK 733

$3.01 COP 9,485

99.67%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.19 ISK 389

$1.80 COP 5,660

77.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.51 ISK 306

$1.41 COP 4,443

78.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$10.69 ISK 1,302

$3.18 COP 9,990

236.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.10 ISK 987

$5.75 COP 18.1K

40.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.10 ISK 255

$1.51 COP 4,751

39.07%

White Bread (500g)

$2.04 ISK 248

$2.38 COP 7,480

-14.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.71 ISK 452

$1.77 COP 5,573

109.60%

Eggs

$6.26 ISK 763

$2.89 COP 9,093

116.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$20.35 ISK 2,479

$10.19 COP 32.1K

99.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$24.72 ISK 3,012

$9.87 COP 31.1K

150.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$42.16 ISK 5,137

$13.99 COP 44.0K

201.36%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ISK 402

$3.97 COP 12.5K

-16.88%

Banana (1kg)

$2.72 ISK 331

$1.55 COP 4,883

75.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.23 ISK 394

$2.18 COP 6,867

48.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.89 ISK 596

$2.18 COP 6,870

124.31%

Potato (1kg)

$3.82 ISK 465

$1.96 COP 6,174

94.90%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 ISK 208

$1.59 COP 5,000

7.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.65 ISK 445

$1.15 COP 3,604

217.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 ISK 221

$1.24 COP 3,911

45.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.90 ISK 1,693

$3.96 COP 12.5K

251.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$23.57 ISK 2,872

$13.68 COP 43.0K

72.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.88 ISK 351

$1.66 COP 5,221

73.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 ISK 252

$2.26 COP 7,103

-8.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.61 ISK 440

$1.17 COP 3,674

208.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.3 ISK 8,809

$77.4 COP 243.4K

-6.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.55 ISK 798

$1.27 COP 3,989

415.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.25 ISK 153

$2.05 COP 6,442

-39.02%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$81.9 ISK 9,980

$8.55 COP 26.9K

858.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.08 ISK 253

$1.35 COP 4,237

54.07%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$67.8K ISK 8.3M

$34.1K COP 107.2M

99.10%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$54.6K ISK 6.6M

$34.7K COP 109.1M

57.36%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$96.4 ISK 11.7K

$170 COP 533.7K

-43.19%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$33.29 ISK 4,056

$13.55 COP 42.6K

145.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$85.0 ISK 10.4K

$28.07 COP 88.3K

202.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$104 ISK 12.7K

$43.70 COP 137.5K

138.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

Cinema Ticket

$19.29 ISK 2,351

$6.91 COP 21.7K

179.16%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$1,205 ISK 146.8K

$797 COP 2.5M

51.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$26.1K ISK 3.2M

$9,112 COP 28.7M

185.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$150 ISK 18.2K

$84.7 COP 266.5K

76.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$67.1 ISK 8,176

$58.0 COP 182.3K

15.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$179 ISK 21.8K

$135 COP 424.6K

32.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$246 ISK 29.9K

$97.9 COP 307.9K

151.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,064 ISK 373.3K

$1,208 COP 3.8M

153.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,889 ISK 230.2K

$642 COP 2.0M

194.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,013 ISK 610.8K

$2,028 COP 6.4M

147.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,654 ISK 445.2K

$1,012 COP 3.2M

261.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,704 ISK 695.0K

$657 COP 2.1M

767.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.81

10.94

-19.47%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Akranes: October 27, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Akranes

$1.9K 50.9%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 66% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Akranes

$579 15.6%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 48.7% $282

Eating Out

Akranes

$498 13.4%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 66% $329

Clothing & Footwear

Akranes

$289 7.8%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 41.5% $120

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Akranes

$215 5.8%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 1.6% $3.4

Sport & Entertainment

Akranes

$143 3.9%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 59.7% $85

Getting Around

Akranes

$100 2.7%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 6% $6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $3,064 in Akranes and $1,208 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Akranes pays about 8.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $123 in Akranes vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $579 vs $297 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇸 Akranes

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

01:02 1:02 AM

20:02 8:02 PM

5 h behind Akranes

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,800

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Icelandic Króna ISK kr

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 ISK = 8.21 USD

1,000 ISK = 7.37 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to ISK – Icelandic Króna Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇸 Icelandic Króna (kr)

Icelandic Króna exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 122 ISK (1,000 ISK = 8.21 USD). 1 EUR = 136 ISK (1,000 ISK = 7.37 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,502 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

USD to ISK in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Akranes Medellin 7,700 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Akranes
Medellin

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Akranes vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin wins on cost – living expenses run 56% lower than in Akranes. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Medellin the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Akranes is about 8.7 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $3,064 in Akranes versus $1,208 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $3,713 per month in Akranes versus $1,639 in Medellin – Medellin is about 56% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Akranes runs roughly 7% less than in Medellin. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $1,639 in Medellin versus $3,713 in Akranes, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Medellin but tight or insufficient in Akranes. The gap between the two cities makes Medellin the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

It comes down to priorities – Medellin wins on affordability, Akranes on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.