Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Belfast and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $2,346 in Belfast, rent and utilities included – about $8,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

114

Cost of Living Index in Belfast
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Belfast Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Belfast

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,346

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,346 in Belfast versus $1,639 in Medellin.

Belfast $2,346
Medellin $1,639

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,435 in Belfast versus $2,413 in Medellin.

Belfast $3,435
Medellin $2,413

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,524 in Belfast versus $3,186 in Medellin.

Belfast $4,524
Medellin $3,186

Living in Belfast is roughly 43% more expensive than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Belfast 72% above, Medellin 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.29 £18.88

$8.09 COP 26.1K

212.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.5 £68.4

$47.05 COP 151.7K

94.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.80 £8.06

$9.50 COP 30.6K

13.68%

Cappuccino

$4.92 £3.67

$3.01 COP 9,722

63.46%

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

$3.04 £2.27

$1.80 COP 5,801

68.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 £1.54

$1.41 COP 4,554

46.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.06 £6.02

$3.18 COP 10.2K

153.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.05 £6.01

$5.75 COP 18.5K

40.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 £1.36

$1.51 COP 4,869

20.53%

White Bread (500g)

$2.31 £1.72

$2.38 COP 7,667

-2.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.71 £2.02

$1.77 COP 5,712

53.11%

Eggs

$4.62 £3.45

$2.89 COP 9,320

59.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.69 £7.98

$10.19 COP 32.9K

4.91%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.04 £8.24

$9.87 COP 31.8K

11.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.80 £11.79

$13.99 COP 45.1K

12.94%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 £2.35

$3.97 COP 12.8K

-20.91%

Banana (1kg)

$2.00 £1.49

$1.55 COP 5,005

29.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.36 £2.51

$2.18 COP 7,039

54.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.02 £3.00

$2.18 COP 7,041

84.40%

Potato (1kg)

$2.28 £1.70

$1.96 COP 6,328

16.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 £1.18

$1.59 COP 5,125

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 £1.01

$1.15 COP 3,694

17.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 £1.40

$1.24 COP 4,009

51.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.61 £17.63

$3.96 COP 12.8K

496.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.41 £9.26

$13.68 COP 44.1K

-9.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.73 £2.04

$1.66 COP 5,352

64.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.10 £2.31

$2.26 COP 7,281

37.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.16 £2.36

$1.17 COP 3,766

170.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$99.0 £73.9

$77.4 COP 249.5K

27.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.53 £3.39

$1.27 COP 4,089

256.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.51 £1.13

$2.05 COP 6,603

-26.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.68 £14.70

$8.55 COP 27.6K

130.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.10 £1.57

$1.35 COP 4,343

55.56%

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

$38.2K £28.5K

$34.1K COP 109.8M

12.14%

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

$40.8K £30.4K

$34.7K COP 111.8M

17.55%

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

$272 £203

$170 COP 547.0K

60.52%

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

$24.30 £18.14

$13.55 COP 43.7K

79.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.23 £34.52

$28.07 COP 90.5K

64.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.92 £32.80

$43.70 COP 140.9K

0.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.54 £7.87

$17.19 COP 55.4K

-38.69%

Cinema Ticket

$14.14 £10.56

$6.91 COP 22.3K

104.63%

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

$1,566 £1,169

$797 COP 2.6M

96.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.8K £13.3K

$9,112 COP 29.4M

95.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$81.9 £61.2

$84.7 COP 273.2K

-3.31%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.61 £34.80

$58.0 COP 186.9K

-19.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 £80.7

$135 COP 435.2K

-19.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 £77.4

$97.9 COP 315.6K

5.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,229 £917

$1,208 COP 3.9M

1.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$935 £698

$642 COP 2.1M

45.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,880 £1,404

$2,028 COP 6.5M

-7.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,393 £1,040

$1,012 COP 3.3M

37.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,107 £3,066

$4,170 COP 13.4M

-1.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,541 £1,897

$1,910 COP 6.2M

33.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,295 £2,461

$657 COP 2.1M

401.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.91

10.94

-55.12%

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

Last update for Belfast: October 24, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Belfast

$935 39.8%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 31.4% $293

Eating Out

Belfast

$371 15.8%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 54.2% $201

Groceries & Markets

Belfast

$349 14.9%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 14.9% $52

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Belfast

$343 14.6%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 38.4% $132

Clothing & Footwear

Belfast

$153 6.5%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 10.4% $16

Getting Around

Belfast

$124 5.3%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 24.4% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Belfast

$72 3.1%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 20.3% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,229 in Belfast and $1,208 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Belfast pays about 5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $92 in Belfast vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $349 vs $297 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Belfast

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

19:49 7:49 PM

14:49 2:49 PM

5 h behind Belfast

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

348,000

2,486,723

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.747 GBP (1 GBP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.834 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 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 GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Belfast Medellin 8,140 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Belfast
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

Belfast vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin is about 30% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Belfast is about 5 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: $1,229 in Belfast versus $1,208 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,566 in Belfast versus $797 in Medellin. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 18% higher in Belfast. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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