Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Harstad and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $2,611 in Harstad, rent and utilities included – about $11,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

127

Cost of Living Index in Harstad
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Harstad Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Harstad

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,611

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,611 in Harstad versus $1,639 in Medellin.

Harstad $2,611
Medellin $1,639

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,888 in Harstad versus $2,413 in Medellin.

Harstad $3,888
Medellin $2,413

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,164 in Harstad versus $3,186 in Medellin.

Harstad $5,164
Medellin $3,186

Living in Harstad is roughly 59% more expensive than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Harstad 92% above, Medellin 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.27 NOK 131

$8.09 COP 26.1K

76.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$106 NOK 971

$47.05 COP 151.7K

124.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.97 NOK 147

$9.50 COP 30.6K

68.11%

Cappuccino

$6.27 NOK 57.6

$3.01 COP 9,722

108.31%

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

$3.70 NOK 34.03

$1.80 COP 5,801

105.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 NOK 29.18

$1.41 COP 4,554

125.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$12.77 NOK 117

$3.18 COP 10.2K

301.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$14.04 NOK 129

$5.75 COP 18.5K

144.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.54 NOK 23.33

$1.51 COP 4,869

68.21%

White Bread (500g)

$3.39 NOK 31.10

$2.38 COP 7,667

42.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.14 NOK 28.83

$1.77 COP 5,712

77.40%

Eggs

$4.42 NOK 40.61

$2.89 COP 9,320

52.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.37 NOK 104

$10.19 COP 32.9K

11.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.31 NOK 141

$9.87 COP 31.8K

55.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$41.97 NOK 386

$13.99 COP 45.1K

200.00%

Apples (1kg)

$4.28 NOK 39.30

$3.97 COP 12.8K

7.81%

Banana (1kg)

$2.87 NOK 26.38

$1.55 COP 5,005

85.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.87 NOK 35.55

$2.18 COP 7,039

77.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.79 NOK 43.97

$2.18 COP 7,041

119.72%

Potato (1kg)

$2.21 NOK 20.33

$1.96 COP 6,328

12.76%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 NOK 20.03

$1.59 COP 5,125

37.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.00 NOK 27.55

$1.15 COP 3,694

160.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.34 NOK 21.49

$1.24 COP 4,009

88.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$16.41 NOK 151

$3.96 COP 12.8K

314.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.93 NOK 146

$13.68 COP 44.1K

16.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 NOK 35.82

$1.66 COP 5,352

134.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.89 NOK 44.90

$2.26 COP 7,281

116.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$6.17 NOK 56.7

$1.17 COP 3,766

427.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$84.1 NOK 772

$77.4 COP 249.5K

8.65%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$15.98 NOK 147

$1.27 COP 4,089

1158.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.91 NOK 17.52

$2.05 COP 6,603

-6.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$58.0 NOK 533

$8.55 COP 27.6K

578.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 NOK 21.48

$1.35 COP 4,343

73.33%

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

$36.9K NOK 339.4K

$34.1K COP 109.8M

8.45%

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

$31.6K NOK 290.4K

$34.7K COP 111.8M

-8.83%

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

$173 NOK 1,587

$170 COP 547.0K

1.83%

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

$35.51 NOK 326

$13.55 COP 43.7K

162.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$79.5 NOK 731

$28.07 COP 90.5K

183.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.72 NOK 457

$43.70 COP 140.9K

13.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$36.95 NOK 339

$17.19 COP 55.4K

114.95%

Cinema Ticket

$17.75 NOK 163

$6.91 COP 22.3K

156.87%

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

$325 NOK 2,985

$797 COP 2.6M

-59.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,295 NOK 48.6K

$9,112 COP 29.4M

-41.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.8 NOK 632

$84.7 COP 273.2K

-18.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.70 NOK 328

$58.0 COP 186.9K

-38.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 NOK 1,115

$135 COP 435.2K

-10.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$170 NOK 1,563

$97.9 COP 315.6K

73.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,411 NOK 13.0K

$1,208 COP 3.9M

16.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,053 NOK 9,673

$642 COP 2.1M

64.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,352 NOK 21.6K

$2,028 COP 6.5M

15.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,537 NOK 14.1K

$1,012 COP 3.3M

51.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,396 NOK 58.8K

$4,170 COP 13.4M

53.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,354 NOK 40.0K

$1,910 COP 6.2M

127.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,511 NOK 32.3K

$657 COP 2.1M

434.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

-54.30%

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

Last update for Harstad: October 24, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Harstad

$1.1K 40.3%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 39.1% $411

Groceries & Markets

Harstad

$516 19.8%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 42.5% $219

Eating Out

Harstad

$357 13.7%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 52.5% $187

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Harstad

$288 11%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 26.6% $77

Clothing & Footwear

Harstad

$178 6.8%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 5.2% $9.2

Getting Around

Harstad

$134 5.1%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 30.3% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Harstad

$85 3.3%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 32.5% $28

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,411 in Harstad and $1,208 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Harstad pays about 5.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $106 in Harstad vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $516 vs $297 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Harstad

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

20:18 8:18 PM

14:18 2:18 PM

6 h behind Harstad

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

25,119

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.88 USD

100 NOK = 9.75 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 9.19 NOK (1 NOK = 0.109 USD). 1 EUR = 10.26 NOK (100 NOK = 9.75 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 NOK in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Harstad Medellin 9,440 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Harstad
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

Harstad vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin is about 37% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Harstad is about 5.3 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: $1,411 in Harstad versus $1,208 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 74% higher in Harstad. 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 $106 in Harstad. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,639 in Medellin versus $2,611 in Harstad, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Medellin but tight or insufficient in Harstad. The gap between the two cities makes Medellin the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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 Medellin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 37% less than in Harstad. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.