Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Honiara and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,614 a month against $1,718 in Honiara, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

84

Cost of Living Index in Honiara
Learn more

Honiara Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index

Jump to prices

Honiara

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands

$1,718

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,718 per month in Honiara vs $1,614 in Medellin, rent included.

Honiara $1,718
Medellin $1,614

A couple spends around $2,833 per month in Honiara vs $2,402 in Medellin, rent included.

Honiara $2,833
Medellin $2,402

A family of three spends $3,948 per month in Honiara vs $3,190 in Medellin, rent included.

Honiara $3,948
Medellin $3,190

Honiara costs about 6% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both Honiara and Medellin sit above the global median – Honiara by 27%, Medellin by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.94 SBD 56.0

$7.93 COP 25.2K

-12.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 SBD 502

$46.13 COP 146.3K

35.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.56 SBD 101

$9.50 COP 30.1K

32.21%

Cappuccino

$3.49 SBD 28.17

$3.11 COP 9,866

12.22%

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

$1.58 SBD 12.75

$1.83 COP 5,800

-13.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.10 SBD 8.90

$1.38 COP 4,360

-20.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 SBD 20.59

$3.05 COP 9,672

-16.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 SBD 45.93

$5.50 COP 17.4K

3.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.48 SBD 20.01

$1.45 COP 4,600

71.03%

White Bread (500g)

$1.54 SBD 12.42

$2.36 COP 7,496

-34.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.65 SBD 13.29

$1.68 COP 5,328

-1.79%

Eggs

$5.51 SBD 44.40

$2.86 COP 9,077

92.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.43 SBD 51.8

$10.19 COP 32.3K

-36.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.58 SBD 69.2

$9.53 COP 30.2K

-9.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.40 SBD 124

$14.04 COP 44.5K

9.69%

Apples (1kg)

$6.38 SBD 51.4

$4.07 COP 12.9K

56.76%

Banana (1kg)

$2.59 SBD 20.89

$1.50 COP 4,742

72.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$8.44 SBD 68.1

$2.17 COP 6,891

288.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.66 SBD 29.48

$2.31 COP 7,310

58.44%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 SBD 15.60

$1.93 COP 6,113

0.52%

Onion (1kg)

$3.41 SBD 27.53

$1.64 COP 5,196

107.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 SBD 11.72

$1.13 COP 3,571

28.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 SBD 8.62

$1.25 COP 3,954

-14.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.18 SBD 33.67

$3.99 COP 12.6K

4.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.70 SBD 86.3

$13.35 COP 42.3K

-19.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 SBD 14.36

$1.70 COP 5,384

4.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.35 SBD 26.98

$2.37 COP 7,525

41.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.38 SBD 3.09

$1.21 COP 3,827

-68.60%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$24.88 SBD 201

$76.5 COP 242.5K

-67.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.20 SBD 9.70

$1.32 COP 4,179

-9.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.21 SBD 9.79

$2.14 COP 6,774

-43.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.41 SBD 100

$8.47 COP 26.8K

46.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 SBD 10.50

$1.30 COP 4,114

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

$18.8K SBD 151.8K

$28.0K COP 88.7M

-32.74%

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

$34.7K SBD 279.9K

$35.4K COP 112.3M

-1.97%

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

$427 SBD 3,440

$172 COP 545.6K

147.97%

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

$27.52 SBD 222

$13.37 COP 42.4K

105.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$88.8 SBD 716

$28.73 COP 91.1K

208.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.21 SBD 300

$45.24 COP 143.5K

-17.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.24 SBD 74.5

$17.04 COP 54.0K

-45.77%

Cinema Ticket

$4.25 SBD 34.29

$6.28 COP 19.9K

-32.32%

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

$98.2 SBD 792

$770 COP 2.4M

-87.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,891 SBD 23.3K

$9,011 COP 28.6M

-67.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.02 SBD 218

$86.4 COP 274.0K

-68.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$93.7 SBD 756

$57.1 COP 181.1K

64.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.3 SBD 768

$137 COP 432.9K

-30.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 SBD 834

$97.9 COP 310.4K

5.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$901 SBD 7,263

$1,055 COP 3.3M

-14.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$436 SBD 3,518

$616 COP 2.0M

-29.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,867 SBD 15.1K

$1,892 COP 6.0M

-1.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,422 SBD 11.5K

$1,023 COP 3.2M

39.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$86.7K SBD 699.2K

$4,059 COP 12.9M

2036.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$63.1K SBD 508.8K

$1,678 COP 5.3M

3660.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$443 SBD 3,574

$652 COP 2.1M

-32.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

15.67

10.94

43.24%

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

Last update for Honiara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Honiara

$543 31.6%

Medellin

$214 13.3% 60.6% $329

Accommodation & Living

Honiara

$436 25.4%

Medellin

$616 38.2% 41.1% $179

Groceries & Markets

Honiara

$345 20.1%

Medellin

$295 18.3% 14.6% $50

Eating Out

Honiara

$170 9.9%

Medellin

$168 10.4% 1% $1.7

Clothing & Footwear

Honiara

$144 8.4%

Medellin

$170 10.5% 18.3% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Honiara

$46 2.7%

Medellin

$58 3.6% 26.4% $12

Getting Around

Honiara

$34 2%

Medellin

$93 5.8% 177% $60

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $901 in Honiara versus $1,055 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 run about 47% higher in Medellin, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $62.0 in Honiara versus $46.00 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $345 vs $295 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇧 Honiara

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

11:15 11:15 AM

19:15 7:15 PM

16 h behind Honiara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

54,600 Capital

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Solomon Islands Dollar SBD $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 SBD = 0.124 USD

1 SBD = 0.11 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to SBD – Solomon Islands Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands Dollar ($)

Solomon Islands Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 8.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 9.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.11 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

USD to SBD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Honiara Medellin 13,890 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Honiara
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

Honiara vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,718 in Honiara, $1,614 in Medellin – roughly 6% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in utilities.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,577 per month in Honiara and $2,421 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 17% more in Honiara, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $62.0 in Honiara and $46.00 in Medellin. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Medellin, where all-in costs run around $1,614, than in Honiara at $1,718. In Medellin it covers expenses comfortably, while in Honiara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Medellin has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,614 in Medellin to $1,718 in Honiara. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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