Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $1,759 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

85

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,759

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,759 in Athens versus $1,639 in Medellin.

Athens $1,759
Medellin $1,639

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,696 in Athens versus $2,413 in Medellin.

Athens $2,696
Medellin $2,413

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,632 in Athens versus $3,186 in Medellin.

Athens $3,632
Medellin $3,186

Living in Athens is roughly 7% more expensive than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Athens 29% above, Medellin 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.05 €15.31

$8.09 COP 25.4K

110.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 €59.1

$47.05 COP 148.0K

39.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.96 €9.84

$9.50 COP 29.9K

15.37%

Cappuccino

$4.10 €3.69

$3.01 COP 9,485

36.21%

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

$2.83 €2.54

$1.80 COP 5,660

57.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.59 €0.53

$1.41 COP 4,443

-58.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.62 €5.05

$3.18 COP 9,990

76.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.67 €5.09

$5.75 COP 18.1K

-1.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.90 €1.70

$1.51 COP 4,751

25.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 €1.31

$2.38 COP 7,480

-38.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.71 €2.43

$1.77 COP 5,573

53.11%

Eggs

$5.04 €4.53

$2.89 COP 9,093

74.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.08 €13.54

$10.19 COP 32.1K

47.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.28 €9.23

$9.87 COP 31.1K

4.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.40 €17.42

$13.99 COP 44.0K

38.67%

Apples (1kg)

$2.12 €1.91

$3.97 COP 12.5K

-46.60%

Banana (1kg)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.55 COP 4,883

23.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.41 €1.26

$2.18 COP 6,867

-35.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.13 €1.91

$2.18 COP 6,870

-2.29%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 €0.94

$1.96 COP 6,174

-46.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.13 €1.02

$1.59 COP 5,000

-28.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 €1.01

$1.15 COP 3,604

-1.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.81 €0.73

$1.24 COP 3,911

-34.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.52 €4.96

$3.96 COP 12.5K

39.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.99 €8.97

$13.68 COP 43.0K

-26.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.04 €1.83

$1.66 COP 5,221

22.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 €2.05

$2.26 COP 7,103

0.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.31 €1.18

$1.17 COP 3,674

11.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.67 €27.55

$77.4 COP 243.4K

-60.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.37 €3.93

$1.27 COP 3,989

244.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 €0.92

$2.05 COP 6,442

-49.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.05 €15.32

$8.55 COP 26.9K

99.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 €2.10

$1.35 COP 4,237

73.33%

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

$28.3K €25.4K

$34.1K COP 107.2M

-17.06%

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

$26.8K €24.0K

$34.7K COP 109.1M

-22.80%

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

$200 €180

$170 COP 533.7K

17.81%

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

$25.17 €22.61

$13.55 COP 42.6K

85.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.65 €26.64

$28.07 COP 88.3K

5.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.4 €45.31

$43.70 COP 137.5K

15.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.94 €23.30

$17.19 COP 54.1K

50.90%

Cinema Ticket

$10.52 €9.45

$6.91 COP 21.7K

52.24%

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

$576 €518

$797 COP 2.5M

-27.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.9K €11.6K

$9,112 COP 28.7M

41.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.7 €80.6

$84.7 COP 266.5K

5.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.57 €35.55

$58.0 COP 182.3K

-31.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €94.7

$135 COP 424.6K

-21.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$97.9 COP 307.9K

26.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$740 €665

$1,208 COP 3.8M

-38.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$643 €577

$642 COP 2.0M

0.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,305 €1,172

$2,028 COP 6.4M

-35.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,121 €1,007

$1,012 COP 3.2M

10.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,011 €3,603

$4,170 COP 13.1M

-3.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,284 €2,950

$1,910 COP 6.0M

71.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,224 €1,099

$657 COP 2.1M

86.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

10.94

-59.05%

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

Last update for Athens: October 25, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$643 36.5%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 0.2% $1.2

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$312 17.7%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 4.8% $15

Eating Out

Athens

$272 15.4%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 37.6% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$255 14.5%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 17.1% $43

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$161 9.2%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 4.7% $7.6

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$71 4.1%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 19.5% $14

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.6%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 106% $48

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $740 in Athens and $1,208 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Athens pays 86% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $66 in Athens vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $312 vs $297 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

19:44 7:44 PM

12:44 12:44 PM

7 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 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 EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Athens Medellin 10,390 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Athens
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

Athens vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin wins on cost – living expenses run 7% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Medellin the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 86% higher in Athens, 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: $740 in Athens versus $1,208 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Medellin – a meal for two runs $47 versus $66 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,759 per month in Athens versus $1,639 in Medellin – a 7% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Either city works on $2,500 a month, though Medellin gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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, Athens on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.