Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Columbia, SC and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $2,193 in Columbia, SC, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

105

Cost of Living Index in Columbia, SC
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Columbia, SC Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Columbia, SC

🇺🇸 United States

$2,193

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,193 in Columbia, SC versus $1,639 in Medellin.

Columbia, SC $2,193
Medellin $1,639

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,366 in Columbia, SC versus $2,413 in Medellin.

Columbia, SC $3,366
Medellin $2,413

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,538 in Columbia, SC versus $3,186 in Medellin.

Columbia, SC $4,538
Medellin $3,186

Living in Columbia, SC is roughly 34% more expensive than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Columbia, SC 61% above, Medellin 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.80 $19.80

$8.09 COP 26.1K

144.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.1 $61.1

$47.05 COP 151.9K

29.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.97 $11.97

$9.50 COP 30.7K

26.00%

Cappuccino

$5.42 $5.42

$3.01 COP 9,734

80.07%

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

$2.80 $2.80

$1.80 COP 5,809

55.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 $2.18

$1.41 COP 4,560

54.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.43 $5.43

$3.18 COP 10.3K

70.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.39 $6.39

$5.75 COP 18.6K

11.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.84 $0.84

$1.51 COP 4,875

-44.37%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 $2.53

$2.38 COP 7,677

6.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.52 $4.52

$1.77 COP 5,719

155.37%

Eggs

$4.03 $4.03

$2.89 COP 9,332

39.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.49 $10.49

$10.19 COP 32.9K

2.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.14 $11.14

$9.87 COP 31.9K

12.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.89 $15.89

$13.99 COP 45.2K

13.58%

Apples (1kg)

$5.26 $5.26

$3.97 COP 12.8K

32.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 $1.63

$1.55 COP 5,011

5.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.45 $6.45

$2.18 COP 7,047

195.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.17 $6.17

$2.18 COP 7,050

183.03%

Potato (1kg)

$3.10 $3.10

$1.96 COP 6,336

58.16%

Onion (1kg)

$4.36 $4.36

$1.59 COP 5,131

174.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.01 $2.01

$1.15 COP 3,698

74.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 $1.79

$1.24 COP 4,014

44.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.40 $8.40

$3.96 COP 12.8K

112.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.62 $15.62

$13.68 COP 44.2K

14.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 $1.83

$1.66 COP 5,359

10.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.68 $2.68

$2.26 COP 7,290

18.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.98 $1.98

$1.17 COP 3,770

69.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.15 $40.15

$77.4 COP 249.8K

-48.11%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.98 $1.98

$1.27 COP 4,094

55.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.59 $1.59

$2.05 COP 6,611

-22.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.89 $17.89

$8.55 COP 27.6K

109.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.91 $0.91

$1.35 COP 4,348

-32.59%

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

$26.8K $26.8K

$34.1K COP 110.0M

-21.29%

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

$25.2K $25.2K

$34.7K COP 111.9M

-27.31%

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

$277 $277

$170 COP 547.7K

63.43%

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

$60.2 $60.2

$13.55 COP 43.7K

344.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$63.8 $63.8

$28.07 COP 90.6K

127.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.47 $34.47

$43.70 COP 141.1K

-21.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.22 $18.22

$17.19 COP 55.5K

5.99%

Cinema Ticket

$15.22 $15.22

$6.91 COP 22.3K

120.26%

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

$1,117 $1,117

$797 COP 2.6M

40.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.9K $22.9K

$9,112 COP 29.4M

151.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.3 $52.3

$84.7 COP 273.5K

-38.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.57 $39.57

$58.0 COP 187.1K

-31.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.2 $82.2

$135 COP 435.7K

-39.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 $114

$97.9 COP 316.0K

16.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,430 $1,430

$1,208 COP 3.9M

18.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$832 $832

$642 COP 2.1M

29.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,198 $3,198

$2,028 COP 6.5M

57.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,672 $1,672

$1,012 COP 3.3M

65.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,313 $2,313

$4,170 COP 13.5M

-44.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,668 $1,668

$1,910 COP 6.2M

-12.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,240 $3,240

$657 COP 2.1M

393.10%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.56

10.94

-40.04%

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

Last update for Columbia, SC: 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

Columbia, SC

$832 37.9%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 22.9% $190

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Columbia, SC

$401 18.3%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 47.3% $190

Groceries & Markets

Columbia, SC

$389 17.7%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 23.6% $92

Eating Out

Columbia, SC

$319 14.6%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 46.9% $150

Clothing & Footwear

Columbia, SC

$130 5.9%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 30.3% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Columbia, SC

$65 3%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 11.4% $7.4

Getting Around

Columbia, SC

$58 2.6%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 61.3% $36

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,430 in Columbia, SC and $1,208 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Columbia, SC pays about 4.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $61 in Columbia, SC vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $389 vs $297 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Columbia, SC

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

10:16 10:16 AM

Same time as Columbia, SC

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

139,698

2,486,723

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.896 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.896 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,603 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

COP to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Columbia, SC Medellin 3,130 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Columbia, SC
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

Columbia, SC vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin is about 25% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Columbia, SC is about 4.9 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: $1,430 in Columbia, SC versus $1,208 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 31% higher in Columbia, SC. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Medellin – a meal for two runs $47 versus $61 in Columbia, SC. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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.

For families, Medellin is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Columbia, SC, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

It comes down to priorities – Medellin wins on affordability, Columbia, SC on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.