Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kafue and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Kafue: $586 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $12,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Kafue, Zambia
Medellin, Colombia
Kafue
🇿🇲 Zambia
$586
/mo nomad
Medellin
🇨🇴 Colombia
$1,639
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $586 per month in Kafue vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

  • Kafue $586
  • Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $932 per month in Kafue vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

  • Kafue $932
  • Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $1,277 per month in Kafue vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

  • Kafue $1,277
  • Medellin $3,186

Kafue is about 64% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Kafue sits 57% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Kafue
Medellin
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$5.54 ZMW 112
$8.09 COP 26.1K
-31.52%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$30.48 ZMW 616
$47.05 COP 151.9K
-35.22%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.11 ZMW 103
$9.50 COP 30.7K
-46.21%
Cappuccino
$2.77 ZMW 55.9
$3.01 COP 9,734
-7.97%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.77 ZMW 15.53
$1.80 COP 5,809
-57.22%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.49 ZMW 9.94
$1.41 COP 4,560
-65.25%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.21 ZMW 24.51
$3.18 COP 10.3K
-61.95%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.27 ZMW 45.86
$5.75 COP 18.6K
-60.52%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Kafue
Medellin
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.75 ZMW 35.40
$1.51 COP 4,875
15.89%
White Bread (500g)
$1.23 ZMW 24.91
$2.38 COP 7,677
-48.32%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.04 ZMW 41.23
$1.77 COP 5,719
15.25%
Eggs
$1.89 ZMW 38.27
$2.89 COP 9,332
-34.60%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.46 ZMW 211
$10.19 COP 32.9K
2.65%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.27 ZMW 127
$9.87 COP 31.9K
-36.47%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$6.56 ZMW 133
$13.99 COP 45.2K
-53.11%
Apples (1kg)
$3.31 ZMW 66.8
$3.97 COP 12.8K
-16.62%
Banana (1kg)
$2.49 ZMW 50.4
$1.55 COP 5,011
60.65%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.57 ZMW 72.2
$2.18 COP 7,047
63.76%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.52 ZMW 30.69
$2.18 COP 7,050
-30.28%
Potato (1kg)
$2.58 ZMW 52.1
$1.96 COP 6,336
31.63%
Onion (1kg)
$1.80 ZMW 36.36
$1.59 COP 5,131
13.21%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.11 ZMW 22.46
$1.15 COP 3,698
-3.48%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.78 ZMW 15.85
$1.24 COP 4,014
-37.10%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.04 ZMW 61.3
$3.96 COP 12.8K
-23.23%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.15 ZMW 205
$13.68 COP 44.2K
-25.80%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.44 ZMW 29.14
$1.66 COP 5,359
-13.25%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.33 ZMW 46.98
$2.26 COP 7,290
3.10%
🚌 Getting Around
Kafue
Medellin
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
-
$1.17 COP 3,770
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$77.4 COP 249.8K
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.50 ZMW 50.4
$1.27 COP 4,094
96.85%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.46 ZMW 29.43
$2.05 COP 6,611
-28.78%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.08 ZMW 103
$8.55 COP 27.6K
-40.58%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.53 ZMW 30.92
$1.35 COP 4,348
13.33%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$7,420 ZMW 149.9K
$34.1K COP 110.0M
-78.22%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$27.8K ZMW 562.5K
$34.7K COP 111.9M
-19.68%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Kafue
Medellin
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$81.8 ZMW 1,651
$170 COP 547.7K
-51.81%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$10.49 ZMW 212
$13.55 COP 43.7K
-22.58%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$54.0 ZMW 1,091
$28.07 COP 90.6K
92.38%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Kafue
Medellin
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
-
$43.70 COP 141.1K
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$17.19 COP 55.5K
-
Cinema Ticket
$6.08 ZMW 123
$6.91 COP 22.3K
-12.01%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Kafue
Medellin
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$140 ZMW 2,824
$797 COP 2.6M
-82.45%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$16.3K ZMW 329.7K
$9,112 COP 29.4M
79.11%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Kafue
Medellin
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$23.10 ZMW 467
$84.7 COP 273.5K
-72.73%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$15.54 ZMW 314
$58.0 COP 187.1K
-73.19%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$45.21 ZMW 913
$135 COP 435.7K
-66.50%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$72.7 ZMW 1,468
$97.9 COP 316.0K
-25.77%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Kafue
Medellin
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
-
$1,208 COP 3.9M
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
-
$642 COP 2.1M
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
-
$2,028 COP 6.5M
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
-
$1,012 COP 3.3M
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$4,170 COP 13.5M
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$1,910 COP 6.2M
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Kafue
Medellin
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
-
$657 COP 2.1M
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
29
10.94
165.08%

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

Last update for Kafue: October 24, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Groceries & Markets
Kafue
$239
Medellin
$297 24.4% $58
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Kafue
$146
Medellin
$211 44.5% $65
Eating Out
Kafue
$109
Medellin
$170 56.3% $61
Clothing & Footwear
Kafue
$70
Medellin
$169 140% $99
Sport & Entertainment
Kafue
$12 *
Medellin
$58 373% $45
Getting Around
Kafue
$9.8 *
Medellin
$94 857% $84
Accommodation & Living
Kafue
- *
Medellin
$642

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30 in Kafue versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $239 vs $297 – making Kafue the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇿🇲 Kafue
🇨🇴 Medellin
🕒 Local time
01:53 1:53 AM
18:53 6:53 PM
7 h behind Kafue
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
104,174
2,486,723
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to ZMW – Zambian Kwacha Converter

Zambian Kwacha exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 20.2 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.95 USD). 1 EUR = 22.64 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.42 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,619 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Kafue Medellin 11,670 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Kafue
  • 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
Kafue vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
How do living costs in Kafue and in Medellin compare overall?
Monthly costs with rent: $586 in Kafue, $1,639 in Medellin – Kafue comes out roughly 64% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.
What salary covers living expenses in Kafue compared to Medellin?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $879 per month in Kafue and $2,459 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city is more expensive overall: Kafue or Medellin?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $586 in Kafue and $1,639 in Medellin. That makes Kafue about 64% cheaper.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Kafue and Medellin?
Kindergarten costs $140 per month in Kafue and $797 in Medellin. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.
Which city is more doable on $1,200 per month?
A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Kafue, where all-in costs run around $586, than in Medellin at $1,639. In Kafue it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
How does quality of life compare between Kafue and Medellin?
It depends on your priorities. Medellin has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $586 in Kafue to $1,639 in Medellin. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Kafue vs other spots: cost of living compared

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