Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Icheon and Medellin

For one person, living costs are similar in Icheon and in Medellin: $1,595 and $1,614 a month, rent and utilities included.

77

Cost of Living Index in Icheon
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Icheon Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Icheon

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,595

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,595 per month in Icheon vs $1,614 in Medellin, rent included.

Icheon $1,595
Medellin $1,614

A couple spends around $2,043 per month in Icheon vs $2,402 in Medellin, rent included.

Icheon $2,043
Medellin $2,402

A family of three spends $2,491 per month in Icheon vs $3,190 in Medellin, rent included.

Icheon $2,491
Medellin $3,190

Icheon is about 1% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Icheon and Medellin sit above the global median – Icheon by 18%, Medellin by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.20 ₩8,238

$7.93 COP 25.2K

-21.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.38 ₩64.3K

$46.13 COP 146.3K

4.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.62 ₩8,804

$9.50 COP 30.1K

-30.32%

Cappuccino

$3.70 ₩4,924

$3.11 COP 9,866

18.97%

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

$1.33 ₩1,774

$1.83 COP 5,800

-27.32%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.17 ₩1,553

$1.38 COP 4,360

-15.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.80 ₩5,052

$3.05 COP 9,672

24.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.22 ₩5,607

$5.50 COP 17.4K

-23.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.23 ₩2,970

$1.45 COP 4,600

53.79%

White Bread (500g)

$3.27 ₩4,346

$2.36 COP 7,496

38.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.21 ₩4,263

$1.68 COP 5,328

91.07%

Eggs

$2.74 ₩3,650

$2.86 COP 9,077

-4.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.97 ₩14.6K

$10.19 COP 32.3K

7.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.56 ₩14.0K

$9.53 COP 30.2K

10.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$25.36 ₩33.7K

$14.04 COP 44.5K

80.63%

Apples (1kg)

$11.33 ₩15.1K

$4.07 COP 12.9K

178.38%

Banana (1kg)

$3.56 ₩4,731

$1.50 COP 4,742

137.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$8.13 ₩10.8K

$2.17 COP 6,891

274.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.90 ₩7,849

$2.31 COP 7,310

155.41%

Potato (1kg)

$6.05 ₩8,043

$1.93 COP 6,113

213.47%

Onion (1kg)

$3.38 ₩4,489

$1.64 COP 5,196

106.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.74 ₩3,647

$1.13 COP 3,571

142.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 ₩1,701

$1.25 COP 3,954

2.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.29 ₩4,378

$3.99 COP 12.6K

-17.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.65 ₩24.8K

$13.35 COP 42.3K

39.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.44 ₩3,245

$1.70 COP 5,384

43.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.42 ₩4,546

$2.37 COP 7,525

44.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.10 ₩1,466

$1.21 COP 3,827

-9.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.64 ₩4,836

$1.32 COP 4,179

175.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.77 ₩1,028

$2.14 COP 6,774

-64.02%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.77 ₩22.3K

$8.47 COP 26.8K

97.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.37 ₩1,821

$1.30 COP 4,114

5.38%

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

$29.9K ₩39.8M

$28.0K COP 88.7M

6.92%

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

$33.4K ₩44.4M

$35.4K COP 112.3M

-5.70%

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

$200 ₩265.3K

$172 COP 545.6K

15.95%

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

$36.02 ₩47.9K

$13.37 COP 42.4K

169.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.21 ₩36.2K

$28.73 COP 91.1K

-5.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$22.45 ₩29.8K

$45.24 COP 143.5K

-50.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

Cinema Ticket

$11.28 ₩15.0K

$6.28 COP 19.9K

79.62%

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

$642 ₩853.2K

$770 COP 2.4M

-16.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.1K ₩29.4M

$9,011 COP 28.6M

145.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$106 ₩141.3K

$86.4 COP 274.0K

22.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$65.5 ₩87.1K

$57.1 COP 181.1K

14.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.9 ₩124.8K

$137 COP 432.9K

-31.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 ₩171.6K

$97.9 COP 310.4K

31.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$748 ₩994.5K

$1,055 COP 3.3M

-29.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$459 ₩609.7K

$616 COP 2.0M

-25.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.2M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,317 ₩3.1M

$652 COP 2.1M

255.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.9

10.94

-64.35%

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

Last update for Icheon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Icheon

$488 30.6%

Medellin

$295 18.3% 39.6% $194

Accommodation & Living

Icheon

$459 28.8%

Medellin

$616 38.2% 34.3% $157

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Icheon

$263 16.5%

Medellin

$214 13.3% 18.5% $49

Clothing & Footwear

Icheon

$178 11.1%

Medellin

$170 10.5% 4.2% $7.5

Eating Out

Icheon

$151 9.5%

Medellin

$168 10.4% 11.3% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Icheon

$45 2.8%

Medellin

$58 3.6% 28.4% $13

Getting Around

Icheon

$12 * 0.8%

Medellin

$93 5.8% 684% $81

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $748 in Icheon 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 255% higher in Icheon, 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 $48.00 in Icheon versus $46.00 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $488 vs $295 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Icheon

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

05:00 5:00 AM

15:00 3:00 PM

14 h behind Icheon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

213,059

2,486,723

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to KRW – South Korean Won Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇷 South Korean Won (₩)

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1,330 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD). 1 EUR = 1,495 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 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 KRW in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Icheon Medellin 14,610 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Icheon
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

Icheon vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 1%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,393 per month in Icheon 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 Icheon, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $48.00 in Icheon and $46.00 in Medellin. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 66% cheaper in Medellin – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Icheon, where all-in costs run around $1,595, than in Medellin at $1,614. In Icheon it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Icheon – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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