Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Balti and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Balti: $974 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $8,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

47

Cost of Living Index in Balti
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Balti Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Balti

🇲🇩 Moldova

$974

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $974 per month in Balti vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

Balti $974
Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $1,414 per month in Balti vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

Balti $1,414
Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $1,854 per month in Balti vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

Balti $1,854
Medellin $3,186

Balti is about 41% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Balti sits 28% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.51 MDL 152

$8.09 COP 25.4K

5.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.53 MDL 403

$47.05 COP 148.0K

-52.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MDL 185

$9.50 COP 29.9K

8.95%

Cappuccino

$1.74 MDL 31.14

$3.01 COP 9,485

-42.19%

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

$1.06 MDL 19.00

$1.80 COP 5,660

-41.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.65 MDL 11.70

$1.41 COP 4,443

-53.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.12 MDL 20.09

$3.18 COP 9,990

-64.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 MDL 24.61

$5.75 COP 18.1K

-76.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.20 MDL 21.54

$1.51 COP 4,751

-20.53%

White Bread (500g)

$0.45 MDL 8.03

$2.38 COP 7,480

-81.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 MDL 27.47

$1.77 COP 5,573

-12.99%

Eggs

$2.15 MDL 38.48

$2.89 COP 9,093

-25.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.78 MDL 121

$10.19 COP 32.1K

-33.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.70 MDL 84.1

$9.87 COP 31.1K

-52.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.18 MDL 111

$13.99 COP 44.0K

-55.83%

Apples (1kg)

$0.99 MDL 17.68

$3.97 COP 12.5K

-75.06%

Banana (1kg)

$2.29 MDL 41.03

$1.55 COP 4,883

47.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.88 MDL 33.65

$2.18 COP 6,867

-13.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 MDL 40.87

$2.18 COP 6,870

5.05%

Potato (1kg)

$0.71 MDL 12.77

$1.96 COP 6,174

-63.78%

Onion (1kg)

$0.52 MDL 9.21

$1.59 COP 5,000

-67.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.43 MDL 7.71

$1.15 COP 3,604

-62.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 MDL 9.73

$1.24 COP 3,911

-56.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.27 MDL 58.5

$3.96 COP 12.5K

-17.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.34 MDL 77.6

$13.68 COP 43.0K

-68.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 MDL 24.21

$1.66 COP 5,221

-18.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 MDL 35.67

$2.26 COP 7,103

-11.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 MDL 6.15

$1.17 COP 3,674

-70.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.78 MDL 300

$77.4 COP 243.4K

-78.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.76 MDL 49.41

$1.27 COP 3,989

117.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.24 MDL 4.25

$2.05 COP 6,442

-88.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.45 MDL 97.4

$8.55 COP 26.9K

-36.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.62 MDL 29.00

$1.35 COP 4,237

20.00%

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

$33.4K MDL 597.1K

$34.1K COP 107.2M

-1.97%

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

$24.1K MDL 430.5K

$34.7K COP 109.1M

-30.56%

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

$220 MDL 3,942

$170 COP 533.7K

29.96%

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

$7.74 MDL 138

$13.55 COP 42.6K

-42.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.03 MDL 197

$28.07 COP 88.3K

-60.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.85 MDL 659

$43.70 COP 137.5K

-15.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.34 MDL 274

$17.19 COP 54.1K

-10.76%

Cinema Ticket

$7.61 MDL 136

$6.91 COP 21.7K

10.13%

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

$113 MDL 2,012

$797 COP 2.5M

-85.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,113 MDL 91.4K

$9,112 COP 28.7M

-43.89%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.39 MDL 794

$84.7 COP 266.5K

-47.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.84 MDL 605

$58.0 COP 182.3K

-41.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$55.6 MDL 994

$135 COP 424.6K

-58.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$50.9 MDL 910

$97.9 COP 307.9K

-47.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$397 MDL 7,093

$1,208 COP 3.8M

-67.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$280 MDL 5,004

$642 COP 2.0M

-56.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$657 MDL 11.7K

$2,028 COP 6.4M

-67.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$495 MDL 8,859

$1,012 COP 3.2M

-51.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,399 MDL 25.0K

$4,170 COP 13.1M

-66.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$992 MDL 17.7K

$1,910 COP 6.0M

-48.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$606 MDL 10.8K

$657 COP 2.1M

-7.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

-26.87%

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

Last update for Balti: October 26, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Balti

$280 28.7%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 129% $362

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Balti

$239 24.6%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 11.7% $28

Groceries & Markets

Balti

$162 16.7%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 83% $135

Eating Out

Balti

$135 13.9%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 25.4% $34

Clothing & Footwear

Balti

$83 8.5%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 103% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Balti

$52 5.4%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 10.5% $5.5

Getting Around

Balti

$22 2.3%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 323% $71

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $397 in Balti 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.

Salaries run about 8% higher in Medellin, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $23 in Balti versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $162 vs $297 – making Balti the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇩 Balti

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

22:35 10:35 PM

15:35 3:35 PM

7 h behind Balti

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

144,800

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Moldovan Leu MDL L

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MDL = 5.59 USD

100 MDL = 5.02 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to MDL – Moldovan Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇩 Moldovan Leu (L)

Moldovan Leu exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 17.88 MDL (100 MDL = 5.59 USD). 1 EUR = 19.9 MDL (100 MDL = 5.02 EUR).

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 MDL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Balti Medellin 10,490 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Balti
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

Balti vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $974 in Balti, $1,639 in Medellin – Balti comes out roughly 41% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,461 per month in Balti 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 Balti, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $397 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

Kindergarten costs $113 per month in Balti and $797 in Medellin. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 83% more in Medellin, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Balti, where all-in costs run around $974, than in Medellin at $1,639. In Balti it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

If budget matters most, go with Balti. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Medellin makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.