Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Doha and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $2,149 in Doha, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

104

Cost of Living Index in Doha
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Doha Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Doha

🇶🇦 Qatar

$2,149

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,149 per month in Doha vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

Doha $2,149
Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $3,429 per month in Doha vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

Doha $3,429
Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $4,709 per month in Doha vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

Doha $4,709
Medellin $3,186

Doha costs about 31% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both Doha and Medellin sit above the global median – Doha by 58%, Medellin by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.36 QAR 34.05

$8.09 COP 25.6K

15.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.1 QAR 251

$47.05 COP 148.9K

46.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.88 QAR 28.70

$9.50 COP 30.1K

-17.05%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$11.99 QAR 43.63

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.81 QAR 50.3

Cappuccino

$5.69 QAR 20.72

$3.01 COP 9,540

89.04%

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

$0.90 QAR 3.29

$1.80 COP 5,693

-50.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.41 QAR 1.48

$1.41 COP 4,469

-70.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.0K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.2K

Milk (1 liter)

$2.08 QAR 7.57

$1.51 COP 4,778

37.75%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 QAR 4.96

$2.38 COP 7,524

-42.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.92 QAR 6.99

$1.77 COP 5,606

8.47%

Eggs

$3.38 QAR 12.29

$2.89 COP 9,146

16.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.36 QAR 41.34

$10.19 COP 32.2K

11.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.73 QAR 28.12

$9.87 COP 31.2K

-21.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.07 QAR 40.28

$13.99 COP 44.3K

-20.87%

Apples (1kg)

$2.29 QAR 8.32

$3.97 COP 12.6K

-42.32%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 QAR 6.75

$1.55 COP 4,911

19.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.58 QAR 5.75

$2.18 COP 6,907

-27.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.26 QAR 4.60

$2.18 COP 6,910

-42.20%

Potato (1kg)

$0.98 QAR 3.55

$1.96 COP 6,210

-50.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.97 QAR 3.52

$1.59 COP 5,029

-38.99%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.42 QAR 5.19

$1.15 COP 3,625

23.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 QAR 1.84

$1.24 COP 3,934

-59.68%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$9.69 QAR 35.27

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.86 QAR 6.76

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 QAR 8.33

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.33 QAR 23.04

$3.96 COP 12.5K

59.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.3K

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,252

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,145

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.56 QAR 2.04

$1.17 COP 3,696

-52.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$32.40 QAR 118

$77.4 COP 244.8K

-58.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.89 QAR 6.87

$1.27 COP 4,013

48.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.09 QAR 7.61

$2.05 COP 6,480

1.95%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.50 QAR 49.14

$8.55 COP 27.1K

57.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.55 QAR 2.00

$1.35 COP 4,262

-59.26%

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

$24.2K QAR 88.1K

$34.1K COP 107.8M

-28.97%

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

$21.4K QAR 77.9K

$34.7K COP 109.7M

-38.29%

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

$83.6 QAR 304

$170 COP 536.8K

-50.71%

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

$33.81 QAR 123

$13.55 COP 42.9K

149.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$88.0 QAR 320

$28.07 COP 88.8K

213.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$194 QAR 707

$43.70 COP 138.3K

344.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.58 QAR 67.6

$17.19 COP 54.4K

8.09%

Cinema Ticket

$12.28 QAR 44.68

$6.91 COP 21.9K

77.71%

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

$720 QAR 2,619

$797 COP 2.5M

-9.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,469 QAR 34.5K

$9,112 COP 28.8M

3.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.6 QAR 217

$84.7 COP 268.1K

-29.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.0 QAR 197

$58.0 COP 183.4K

-6.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.4 QAR 362

$135 COP 427.1K

-26.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.7 QAR 305

$97.9 COP 309.7K

-14.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,014 QAR 7,332

$1,208 COP 3.8M

66.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,159 QAR 4,220

$642 COP 2.0M

80.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,486 QAR 12.7K

$2,028 COP 6.4M

71.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,403 QAR 8,748

$1,012 COP 3.2M

137.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,079 QAR 14.8K

$4,170 COP 13.2M

-2.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,416 QAR 8,796

$1,910 COP 6.0M

26.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,308 QAR 12.0K

$657 COP 2.1M

403.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.92

10.94

-45.89%

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

Last update for Doha: 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

Doha

$1.2K 53.9%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 44.7% $518

Sport & Entertainment

Doha

$219 10.2%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 73.7% $161

Groceries & Markets

Doha

$213 9.9%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 39.2% $84

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Doha

$205 9.6%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 2.8% $5.8

Eating Out

Doha

$172 8%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 1.4% $2.4

Clothing & Footwear

Doha

$134 6.2%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 26.6% $35

Getting Around

Doha

$47 2.2%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 99.1% $47

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,014 in Doha 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 in Doha are about 5 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $69 in Doha versus $47 in Medellin. Groceries tell a different story – $213 in Doha vs $297 in Medellin – so Doha wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇶🇦 Doha

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

11:58 11:58 AM

03:58 3:58 AM

8 h behind Doha

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,312,947 Capital

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Qatari Riyal QAR ر.ق

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 QAR = 0.275 USD

1 QAR = 0.246 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.16 USD

10,000 COP = 2.83 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to QAR – Qatari Riyal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇶🇦 Qatari Riyal (ر.ق)

Qatari Riyal exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 3.64 QAR (1 QAR = 0.275 USD). 1 EUR = 4.06 QAR (1 QAR = 0.246 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 3,164 COP (10,000 COP = 3.16 USD). 1 EUR = 3,531 COP (10,000 COP = 2.83 EUR).

USD to QAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Doha Medellin 13,310 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Doha
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

Doha vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Doha is pricier by about 31%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in leisure.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,224 per month in Doha 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 Medellin, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,208 there versus $2,014 in Doha.

Public transport costs about 58% less in Doha. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $720 per month in Doha and $797 in Medellin. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$2,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $2,149 in Doha and $1,639 in Medellin, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Medellin costs $1,639 versus $2,149 in Doha. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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