Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Belize City and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Belize City: $1,236 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Belize City
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Belize City Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Belize City

🇧🇿 Belize

$1,236

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,236 in Belize City versus $1,639 in Medellin.

Belize City $1,236
Medellin $1,639

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,798 in Belize City versus $2,413 in Medellin.

Belize City $1,798
Medellin $2,413

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,360 in Belize City versus $3,186 in Medellin.

Belize City $2,360
Medellin $3,186

Living in Belize City costs roughly 25% less than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Belize City is 9% below, Medellin is 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.40 BZD 12.81

$8.09 COP 26.1K

-20.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.73 BZD 99.5

$47.05 COP 151.7K

5.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.65 BZD 19.30

$9.50 COP 30.6K

1.58%

Cappuccino

$3.59 BZD 7.17

$3.01 COP 9,722

19.27%

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

$1.72 BZD 3.44

$1.80 COP 5,801

-4.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 BZD 2.83

$1.41 COP 4,554

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 BZD 5.17

$3.18 COP 10.2K

-18.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.06 BZD 6.13

$5.75 COP 18.5K

-46.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.68 BZD 7.36

$1.51 COP 4,869

143.71%

White Bread (500g)

$2.51 BZD 5.03

$2.38 COP 7,667

5.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.45 BZD 6.91

$1.77 COP 5,712

94.92%

Eggs

$3.65 BZD 7.30

$2.89 COP 9,320

26.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.54 BZD 13.08

$10.19 COP 32.9K

-35.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.80 BZD 19.61

$9.87 COP 31.8K

-0.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.11 BZD 18.22

$13.99 COP 45.1K

-34.88%

Apples (1kg)

$2.70 BZD 5.39

$3.97 COP 12.8K

-31.99%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 BZD 3.70

$1.55 COP 5,005

19.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 BZD 5.40

$2.18 COP 7,039

23.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.01 BZD 6.02

$2.18 COP 7,041

38.07%

Potato (1kg)

$4.06 BZD 8.12

$1.96 COP 6,328

107.14%

Onion (1kg)

$2.76 BZD 5.52

$1.59 COP 5,125

73.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.27 BZD 4.55

$1.15 COP 3,694

97.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 BZD 3.16

$1.24 COP 4,009

27.42%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.52 BZD 9.05

$3.96 COP 12.8K

14.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.93 BZD 19.87

$13.68 COP 44.1K

-27.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.38 BZD 4.76

$1.66 COP 5,352

43.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 BZD 4.04

$2.26 COP 7,281

-10.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.03 BZD 8.06

$1.17 COP 3,766

244.44%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.92 BZD 9.85

$1.27 COP 4,089

287.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,603

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.49 BZD 4.98

$1.35 COP 4,343

84.44%

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

$10.7K BZD 21.4K

$34.1K COP 109.8M

-68.59%

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

$34.7K COP 111.8M

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

$376 BZD 753

$170 COP 547.0K

121.89%

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

$50.3 BZD 101

$13.55 COP 43.7K

270.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.00 BZD 54.0

$28.07 COP 90.5K

-3.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.75 BZD 49.51

$43.70 COP 140.9K

-43.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$2.45 BZD 4.89

$17.19 COP 55.4K

-85.75%

Cinema Ticket

$5.07 BZD 10.15

$6.91 COP 22.3K

-26.63%

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

$65.5 BZD 131

$797 COP 2.6M

-91.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$684 BZD 1,369

$9,112 COP 29.4M

-92.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$32.81 BZD 65.6

$84.7 COP 273.2K

-61.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.95 BZD 49.90

$58.0 COP 186.9K

-56.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$37.57 BZD 75.2

$135 COP 435.2K

-72.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$37.85 BZD 75.7

$97.9 COP 315.6K

-61.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$344 BZD 687

$1,208 COP 3.9M

-71.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$193 BZD 386

$642 COP 2.1M

-69.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$563 BZD 1,127

$2,028 COP 6.5M

-72.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$321 BZD 641

$1,012 COP 3.3M

-68.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.4M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$849 BZD 1,698

$657 COP 2.1M

29.19%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.5

10.94

5.12%

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

Last update for Belize City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Belize City

$454 36.7%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 53.4% $242

Groceries & Markets

Belize City

$318 25.8%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 6.7% $21

Accommodation & Living

Belize City

$193 15.6%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 232% $448

Eating Out

Belize City

$155 12.5%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 9.5% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Belize City

$60 4.9%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 182% $109

Sport & Entertainment

Belize City

$35 2.8%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 64.8% $23

Getting Around

Belize City

$21 * 1.7%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 345% $73

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $344 in Belize City and $1,208 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Belize City pays 29% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $50 in Belize City vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $318 vs $297 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇿 Belize City

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

05:17 5:17 AM

06:17 6:17 AM

1 h ahead of Belize City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

63,999

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Belize Dollar BZD $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BZD = 0.5 USD

1 BZD = 0.448 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to BZD – Belize Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇿 Belize Dollar ($)

Belize Dollar exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 2 BZD (1 BZD = 0.5 USD). 1 EUR = 2.23 BZD (1 BZD = 0.448 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 BZD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Belize City Medellin 1,850 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Belize City
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

Belize City vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Belize City wins on cost – living expenses run 25% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Belize City the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 29% higher in Belize City, 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: $344 in Belize City versus $1,208 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Medellin pay roughly 7% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you’ll spend $1,236 per month in Belize City versus $1,639 in Medellin – Belize City is about 25% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Belize City is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.