Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Imphal and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Imphal: $351 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $16,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

17

Cost of Living Index in Imphal
Learn more

Imphal Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index

Jump to prices

Imphal

🇮🇳 India

$351

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $351 in Imphal versus $1,692 in Medellin.

Imphal $351
Medellin $1,692

Estimated couple costs with rent: $572 in Imphal versus $2,471 in Medellin.

Imphal $572
Medellin $2,471

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $792 in Imphal versus $3,249 in Medellin.

Imphal $792
Medellin $3,249

Living in Imphal costs roughly 79% less than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Imphal is 74% below, Medellin is 25% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.15 ₹203

$8.34 COP 26.8K

-74.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$8.58 ₹810

$46.53 COP 149.7K

-81.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.48 ₹423

$9.47 COP 30.5K

-52.69%

Cappuccino

$0.76 ₹71.6

$3.13 COP 10.1K

-75.72%

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

$0.42 ₹39.83

$1.77 COP 5,681

-76.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.18 ₹16.78

$1.42 COP 4,582

-87.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.03 ₹97.4

$3.15 COP 10.1K

-67.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.83 ₹268

$5.70 COP 18.3K

-50.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.73 ₹68.8

$1.53 COP 4,930

-52.29%

White Bread (500g)

$0.80 ₹75.6

$2.29 COP 7,370

-65.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.40 ₹37.77

$1.94 COP 6,257

-79.38%

Eggs

$1.29 ₹121

$3.07 COP 9,864

-57.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.64 ₹439

$9.99 COP 32.1K

-53.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.88 ₹272

$10.45 COP 33.6K

-72.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 44.9K

Apples (1kg)

$1.88 ₹177

$4.05 COP 13.0K

-53.58%

Banana (1kg)

$0.69 ₹65.0

$1.53 COP 4,916

-54.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.94 ₹88.9

$2.10 COP 6,769

-55.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.45 ₹42.61

$2.29 COP 7,378

-80.35%

Potato (1kg)

$0.38 ₹36.13

$2.11 COP 6,785

-81.99%

Onion (1kg)

$0.41 ₹39.11

$1.71 COP 5,498

-76.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.52 ₹48.80

$1.17 COP 3,764

-55.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.25 ₹23.79

$1.58 COP 5,083

-84.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.92 ₹465

$3.91 COP 12.6K

25.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.32 ₹1,070

$14.04 COP 45.2K

-19.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 ₹142

$1.76 COP 5,667

-14.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.45 ₹137

$2.71 COP 8,724

-46.49%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$5.40 ₹510

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 ₹29.15

$1.18 COP 3,795

-73.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.60 ₹718

$76.3 COP 245.4K

-90.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.08 ₹102

$1.81 COP 5,812

-40.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.33 ₹31.54

$2.13 COP 6,849

-84.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.42 ₹134

$8.13 COP 26.2K

-82.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.11 ₹105

$1.28 COP 4,102

-13.28%

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

$12.3K ₹1.2M

$34.4K COP 110.8M

-64.39%

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

$17.2K ₹1.6M

$34.1K COP 109.8M

-49.69%

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

$67.6 ₹6,389

$178 COP 571.7K

-61.95%

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

$3.20 ₹302

$13.89 COP 44.7K

-76.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$4.88 ₹461

$30.74 COP 98.9K

-84.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$5.35 ₹505

$41.94 COP 134.9K

-87.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$1.62 ₹153

$16.80 COP 54.0K

-90.36%

Cinema Ticket

$2.65 ₹250

$7.47 COP 24.0K

-64.52%

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

$14.65 ₹1,384

$790 COP 2.5M

-98.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,556 ₹147.0K

$12.3K COP 39.6M

-87.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$20.87 ₹1,972

$86.3 COP 277.7K

-75.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$20.74 ₹1,959

$59.3 COP 190.6K

-65.00%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$31.35 ₹2,962

$138 COP 445.0K

-77.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$32.24 ₹3,046

$98.8 COP 317.8K

-67.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$88.9 ₹8,400

$1,341 COP 4.3M

-93.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$42.95 ₹4,058

$667 COP 2.1M

-93.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$251 ₹23.7K

$1,976 COP 6.4M

-87.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$181 ₹17.1K

$1,033 COP 3.3M

-82.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$423 ₹39.9K

$4,098 COP 13.2M

-89.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$258 ₹24.3K

$1,940 COP 6.2M

-86.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$184 ₹17.4K

$646 COP 2.1M

-71.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

14.35

10.94

31.17%

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

Last update for Imphal: November 2, 2026

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Imphal

$110 31.3%

Medellin

$307 18.2% 179% $197

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Imphal

$76 21.6%

Medellin

$222 13.1% 194% $147

Eating Out

Imphal

$53 15.1%

Medellin

$173 10.2% 226% $120

Clothing & Footwear

Imphal

$47 13.5%

Medellin

$172 10.2% 264% $125

Accommodation & Living

Imphal

$43 12.2%

Medellin

$667 39.4% 1453% $624

Getting Around

Imphal

$12 3.3%

Medellin

$93 5.5% 706% $82

Sport & Entertainment

Imphal

$11 3%

Medellin

$57 3.4% 434% $46

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $89 in Imphal and $1,341 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays about 3.5 times more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $9 in Imphal vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $110 vs $307 per month, with Imphal cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇳 Imphal

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

05:25 5:25 AM

18:55 6:55 PM

10 h 30 min behind Imphal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

500,000

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Indian Rupee INR ₹

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 INR = 10.59 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.11 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to INR – Indian Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇳 Indian Rupee (₹)

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 94.47 INR (100 INR = 1.06 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 3,217 COP (10,000 COP = 3.11 USD). 1 EUR = 3,611 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

USD to INR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Imphal Medellin 16,380 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Imphal
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

Imphal vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $351 in Imphal and $1,692 in Medellin, so Imphal is about 79% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 72% lower in Imphal. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $89 in Imphal versus $1,341 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 179% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Imphal – a meal for two runs $9 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $351 in Imphal versus $1,692 in Medellin, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Imphal but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Imphal 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 Imphal gentler on the wallet – expenses run 79% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.