Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Brest, France and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Brest: $1,385 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Medellin outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

67

Cost of Living Index in Brest
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Brest Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Brest

🇫🇷 France

$1,385

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,385 in Brest versus $1,639 in Medellin.

Brest $1,385
Medellin $1,639

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,163 in Brest versus $2,413 in Medellin.

Brest $2,163
Medellin $2,413

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,941 in Brest versus $3,186 in Medellin.

Brest $2,941
Medellin $3,186

Living in Brest costs roughly 16% less than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Brest 2% above, Medellin 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.75 €14.11

$8.09 COP 26.1K

94.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.99 €39.40

$47.05 COP 151.7K

-6.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.15 €9.99

$9.50 COP 30.6K

17.37%

Cappuccino

$2.91 €2.61

$3.01 COP 9,722

-3.32%

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

$2.92 €2.62

$1.80 COP 5,801

62.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 €1.89

$1.41 COP 4,554

49.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.76 €6.05

$3.18 COP 10.2K

112.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.24 €4.70

$5.75 COP 18.5K

-8.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.14 €1.02

$1.51 COP 4,869

-24.50%

White Bread (500g)

$1.60 €1.44

$2.38 COP 7,667

-32.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.52 €2.26

$1.77 COP 5,712

42.37%

Eggs

$3.63 €3.25

$2.89 COP 9,320

25.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.30 €16.39

$10.19 COP 32.9K

79.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.22 €9.15

$9.87 COP 31.8K

3.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.01 €12.55

$13.99 COP 45.1K

0.14%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.70

$3.97 COP 12.8K

-24.18%

Banana (1kg)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.55 COP 5,005

23.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 €2.30

$2.18 COP 7,039

17.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.79 €2.50

$2.18 COP 7,041

27.98%

Potato (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$1.96 COP 6,328

-11.73%

Onion (1kg)

$2.12 €1.90

$1.59 COP 5,125

33.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.32 €1.18

$1.15 COP 3,694

14.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.34 €0.31

$1.24 COP 4,009

-72.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.59 €12.17

$3.96 COP 12.8K

243.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.53 €5.85

$13.68 COP 44.1K

-52.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.67 €2.39

$1.66 COP 5,352

60.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.77 €2.48

$2.26 COP 7,281

22.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.85 €1.65

$1.17 COP 3,766

58.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.15 €35.96

$77.4 COP 249.5K

-48.11%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$8.12 €7.27

$1.27 COP 4,089

539.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.03 €2.71

$2.05 COP 6,603

47.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$31.43 €28.15

$8.55 COP 27.6K

267.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.09 €1.88

$1.35 COP 4,343

54.81%

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

$35.7K €32.0K

$34.1K COP 109.8M

4.92%

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

$33.9K €30.4K

$34.7K COP 111.8M

-2.15%

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

$138 €123

$170 COP 547.0K

-18.74%

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

$28.25 €25.30

$13.55 COP 43.7K

108.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.40 €27.23

$28.07 COP 90.5K

8.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.19 €31.51

$43.70 COP 140.9K

-19.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.11 €13.54

$17.19 COP 55.4K

-12.10%

Cinema Ticket

$13.91 €12.46

$6.91 COP 22.3K

101.30%

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

$224 €201

$797 COP 2.6M

-71.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K €10.4K

$9,112 COP 29.4M

27.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.2 €62.9

$84.7 COP 273.2K

-17.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.19 €27.04

$58.0 COP 186.9K

-47.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.5 €71.2

$135 COP 435.2K

-41.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.1 €64.5

$97.9 COP 315.6K

-26.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$508 €455

$1,208 COP 3.9M

-57.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 €341

$642 COP 2.1M

-40.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$864 €774

$2,028 COP 6.5M

-57.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$737 €660

$1,012 COP 3.3M

-27.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,809 €2,516

$4,170 COP 13.4M

-32.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,453 €2,197

$1,910 COP 6.2M

28.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,594 €2,323

$657 COP 2.1M

294.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.82

10.94

-65.08%

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

Last update for Brest: 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

Brest

$381 27.5%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 68.3% $260

Groceries & Markets

Brest

$302 21.8%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 1.5% $4.5

Eating Out

Brest

$259 18.7%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 34.5% $89

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Brest

$197 14.2%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 7.5% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Brest

$113 8.2%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 49.1% $56

Getting Around

Brest

$71 5.1%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 32.1% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Brest

$63 4.6%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 8.7% $5.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $508 in Brest and $1,208 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Brest pays about 3.9 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $44 in Brest vs $47 in Medellin. Groceries flip the comparison at $302 vs $297, with Medellin cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇫🇷 Brest

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

08:27 8:27 AM

02:27 2:27 AM

6 h behind Brest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

139,619

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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 EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Brest Medellin 8,100 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Brest
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

Brest vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Brest wins on cost – living expenses run 16% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Brest the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Brest is about 3.9 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: $508 in Brest versus $1,208 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $224 in Brest versus $797 in Medellin. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Brest – a meal for two runs $44 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Brest 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.