Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Asahikawa and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Asahikawa: $1,189 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Asahikawa
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Asahikawa Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Asahikawa

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,189

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Asahikawa 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 Asahikawa and in Medellin actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,189 per month in Asahikawa vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

Asahikawa $1,189
Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $1,948 per month in Asahikawa vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

Asahikawa $1,948
Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $2,706 per month in Asahikawa vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

Asahikawa $2,706
Medellin $3,186

Asahikawa is about 27% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Asahikawa sits 13% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.31 ¥995

$8.09 COP 26.1K

-22.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.58 ¥5,132

$47.05 COP 151.7K

-30.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.55 ¥717

$9.50 COP 30.6K

-52.11%

Cappuccino

$3.10 ¥488

$3.01 COP 9,722

2.99%

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

$1.26 ¥199

$1.80 COP 5,801

-30.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.71 ¥111

$1.41 COP 4,554

-49.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.87 ¥452

$3.18 COP 10.2K

-9.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.00 ¥473

$5.75 COP 18.5K

-47.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.52 ¥240

$1.51 COP 4,869

0.66%

White Bread (500g)

$1.52 ¥239

$2.38 COP 7,667

-36.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.95 ¥622

$1.77 COP 5,712

123.16%

Eggs

$2.26 ¥357

$2.89 COP 9,320

-21.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.74 ¥1,691

$10.19 COP 32.9K

5.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.72 ¥1,058

$9.87 COP 31.8K

-31.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.29 ¥2,566

$13.99 COP 45.1K

16.44%

Apples (1kg)

$3.20 ¥504

$3.97 COP 12.8K

-19.40%

Banana (1kg)

$2.62 ¥413

$1.55 COP 5,005

69.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.46 ¥387

$2.18 COP 7,039

12.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.62 ¥728

$2.18 COP 7,041

111.93%

Potato (1kg)

$2.73 ¥430

$1.96 COP 6,328

39.29%

Onion (1kg)

$2.31 ¥364

$1.59 COP 5,125

45.28%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 ¥216

$1.15 COP 3,694

19.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.87 ¥137

$1.24 COP 4,009

-29.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.94 ¥620

$3.96 COP 12.8K

-0.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.66 ¥1,207

$13.68 COP 44.1K

-44.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 ¥277

$1.66 COP 5,352

6.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 ¥295

$2.26 COP 7,281

-17.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.64 ¥259

$1.17 COP 3,766

40.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.1 ¥8,371

$77.4 COP 249.5K

-31.32%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.07 ¥484

$1.27 COP 4,089

141.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.68 ¥422

$2.05 COP 6,603

30.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.03 ¥3,313

$8.55 COP 27.6K

145.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.17 ¥184

$1.35 COP 4,343

-13.33%

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

$22.6K ¥3.6M

$34.1K COP 109.8M

-33.69%

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

$13.6K ¥2.2M

$34.7K COP 111.8M

-60.63%

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

$154 ¥24.3K

$170 COP 547.0K

-9.18%

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

$25.29 ¥3,983

$13.55 COP 43.7K

86.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.28 ¥5,400

$28.07 COP 90.5K

22.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.3 ¥8,710

$43.70 COP 140.9K

26.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.4K

Cinema Ticket

$12.20 ¥1,921

$6.91 COP 22.3K

76.56%

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

$630 ¥99.2K

$797 COP 2.6M

-20.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ¥1.8M

$9,112 COP 29.4M

24.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.4 ¥8,093

$84.7 COP 273.2K

-39.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.99 ¥4,409

$58.0 COP 186.9K

-51.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$59.6 ¥9,393

$135 COP 435.2K

-55.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 ¥16.1K

$97.9 COP 315.6K

4.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$611 ¥96.3K

$1,208 COP 3.9M

-49.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$291 ¥45.8K

$642 COP 2.1M

-54.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$987 ¥155.5K

$2,028 COP 6.5M

-51.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$809 ¥127.5K

$1,012 COP 3.3M

-20.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,455 ¥701.7K

$4,170 COP 13.4M

6.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,602 ¥409.9K

$1,910 COP 6.2M

36.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.21

10.94

-79.80%

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

Last update for Asahikawa: October 24, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Asahikawa

$291 24.5%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 2% $5.8

Accommodation & Living

Asahikawa

$291 24.4%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 121% $351

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Asahikawa

$214 18%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 1.1% $2.4

Eating Out

Asahikawa

$130 10.9%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 30.9% $40

Clothing & Footwear

Asahikawa

$109 9.1%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 55.7% $60

Sport & Entertainment

Asahikawa

$80 6.7%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 27.8% $22

Getting Around

Asahikawa

$76 6.4%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 22.8% $17

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $611 in Asahikawa versus $1,208 in Medellin. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $33 in Asahikawa versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $291 vs $297 – making Asahikawa the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Asahikawa

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

02:48 2:48 AM

12:48 12:48 PM

14 h behind Asahikawa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

329,306

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.35 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.35 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 3,224 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,600 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

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Between locations

Asahikawa Medellin 13,270 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Asahikawa
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

Asahikawa vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,189 in Asahikawa, $1,639 in Medellin – Asahikawa comes out roughly 27% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,784 per month in Asahikawa and $2,459 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Asahikawa, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $611 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,189 in Asahikawa and $1,639 in Medellin. That makes Asahikawa about 27% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $630 per month in Asahikawa and $797 in Medellin. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,189 in Asahikawa and $1,639 in Medellin, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Asahikawa – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.