Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gostivar and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Gostivar: $837 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $9,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Gostivar
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Gostivar Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Gostivar

🇲🇰 North Macedonia

$837

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $837 in Gostivar versus $1,639 in Medellin.

Gostivar $837
Medellin $1,639

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,265 in Gostivar versus $2,413 in Medellin.

Gostivar $1,265
Medellin $2,413

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,693 in Gostivar versus $3,186 in Medellin.

Gostivar $1,693
Medellin $3,186

Living in Gostivar costs roughly 49% less than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Gostivar is 38% below, Medellin is 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.56 MKD 361

$8.09 COP 26.1K

-18.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.78 MKD 1,528

$47.05 COP 151.9K

-40.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.85 MKD 322

$9.50 COP 30.7K

-38.42%

Cappuccino

$1.38 MKD 76.0

$3.01 COP 9,735

-54.15%

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

$1.32 MKD 72.7

$1.80 COP 5,809

-26.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.06 MKD 58.6

$1.41 COP 4,561

-24.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.31 MKD 72.3

$3.18 COP 10.3K

-58.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 MKD 102

$5.75 COP 18.6K

-67.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 MKD 68.1

$1.51 COP 4,876

-17.88%

White Bread (500g)

$0.71 MKD 38.81

$2.38 COP 7,678

-70.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 MKD 78.4

$1.77 COP 5,720

-19.21%

Eggs

$2.37 MKD 130

$2.89 COP 9,333

-17.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.29 MKD 346

$10.19 COP 32.9K

-38.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.55 MKD 305

$9.87 COP 31.9K

-43.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.30 MKD 786

$13.99 COP 45.2K

2.22%

Apples (1kg)

$1.41 MKD 77.5

$3.97 COP 12.8K

-64.48%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 MKD 77.4

$1.55 COP 5,012

-9.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.32 MKD 72.8

$2.18 COP 7,048

-39.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.86 MKD 102

$2.18 COP 7,051

-14.68%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 MKD 45.51

$1.96 COP 6,337

-57.65%

Onion (1kg)

$0.75 MKD 41.35

$1.59 COP 5,132

-52.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.63 MKD 34.49

$1.15 COP 3,699

-45.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 MKD 29.49

$1.24 COP 4,014

-56.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.79 MKD 154

$3.96 COP 12.8K

-29.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.44 MKD 244

$13.68 COP 44.2K

-67.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 MKD 51.7

$1.66 COP 5,359

-43.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.44 MKD 79.0

$2.26 COP 7,291

-36.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.71 MKD 39.02

$1.17 COP 3,771

-39.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.74 MKD 1,416

$77.4 COP 249.8K

-66.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.75 MKD 41.47

$1.27 COP 4,094

-40.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.31 MKD 17.00

$2.05 COP 6,612

-84.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.77 MKD 427

$8.55 COP 27.6K

-9.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 MKD 78.2

$1.35 COP 4,349

5.19%

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

$32.4K MKD 1.8M

$34.1K COP 110.0M

-4.78%

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

$26.6K MKD 1.5M

$34.7K COP 111.9M

-23.29%

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

$129 MKD 7,092

$170 COP 547.8K

-23.99%

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

$10.81 MKD 595

$13.55 COP 43.8K

-20.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.72 MKD 1,029

$28.07 COP 90.6K

-33.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.69 MKD 1,193

$43.70 COP 141.1K

-50.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.18 MKD 890

$17.19 COP 55.5K

-5.88%

Cinema Ticket

$7.09 MKD 390

$6.91 COP 22.3K

2.60%

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

$368 MKD 20.2K

$797 COP 2.6M

-53.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,800 MKD 319.0K

$9,112 COP 29.4M

-36.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$36.82 MKD 2,025

$84.7 COP 273.5K

-56.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.07 MKD 2,039

$58.0 COP 187.2K

-36.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 MKD 5,550

$135 COP 435.8K

-25.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 MKD 6,181

$97.9 COP 316.0K

14.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$271 MKD 14.9K

$1,208 COP 3.9M

-77.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$193 MKD 10.6K

$642 COP 2.1M

-69.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$497 MKD 27.3K

$2,028 COP 6.5M

-75.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$296 MKD 16.3K

$1,012 COP 3.3M

-70.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,515 MKD 83.3K

$4,170 COP 13.5M

-63.68%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,165 MKD 64.1K

$1,910 COP 6.2M

-39.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$880 MKD 48.4K

$657 COP 2.1M

33.92%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.23

10.94

-61.33%

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

Last update for Gostivar: 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

Gostivar

$193 23%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 233% $449

Groceries & Markets

Gostivar

$184 21.9%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 61.8% $113

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gostivar

$158 18.9%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 33.3% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Gostivar

$129 15.4%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 30.8% $40

Eating Out

Gostivar

$106 12.7%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 59.4% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Gostivar

$36 4.3%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 60.4% $22

Getting Around

Gostivar

$31 3.7%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 203% $63

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $271 in Gostivar and $1,208 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Gostivar pays 34% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $28 in Gostivar vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $184 vs $297 per month, with Gostivar cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇰 Gostivar

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

08:05 8:05 AM

02:05 2:05 AM

6 h behind Gostivar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

36,000

2,486,723

💱 Currency

North Macedonian Denar MKD ден

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MKD = 1.82 USD

100 MKD = 1.63 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to MKD – North Macedonian Denar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇰 North Macedonian Denar (ден)

North Macedonian Denar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 55 MKD (100 MKD = 1.82 USD). 1 EUR = 61.41 MKD (100 MKD = 1.63 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,605 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

USD to MKD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Gostivar Medellin 10,080 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Gostivar
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

Gostivar vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Gostivar wins on cost – living expenses run 49% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Gostivar the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 34% higher in Gostivar, 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: $271 in Gostivar versus $1,208 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $837 per month in Gostivar versus $1,639 in Medellin – Gostivar is about 49% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Gostivar runs roughly 67% less than in Medellin. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Gostivar 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.

Expats usually find Gostivar gentler on the wallet – expenses run 49% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.