Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kiruna and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $1,742 in Kiruna, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. The total is higher in Kiruna despite lower rent and utilities.

84

Cost of Living Index in Kiruna
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Kiruna Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Kiruna

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,742

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,742 per month in Kiruna vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

Kiruna $1,742
Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $2,892 per month in Kiruna vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

Kiruna $2,892
Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $4,043 per month in Kiruna vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

Kiruna $4,043
Medellin $3,186

Kiruna costs about 6% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Kiruna and Medellin sit above the global median – Kiruna by 28%, Medellin by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.69 SEK 136

$8.09 COP 25.4K

69.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$127 SEK 1,258

$47.05 COP 148.0K

169.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.03 SEK 99.6

$9.50 COP 29.9K

5.58%

Cappuccino

$4.51 SEK 44.82

$3.01 COP 9,485

49.83%

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

$2.59 SEK 25.72

$1.80 COP 5,660

43.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.24 SEK 22.20

$1.41 COP 4,443

58.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.79 SEK 97.3

$3.18 COP 9,990

207.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.39 SEK 63.4

$5.75 COP 18.1K

11.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 SEK 17.00

$1.51 COP 4,751

13.25%

White Bread (500g)

$2.75 SEK 27.31

$2.38 COP 7,480

15.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.41 SEK 33.86

$1.77 COP 5,573

92.66%

Eggs

$4.05 SEK 40.18

$2.89 COP 9,093

40.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.35 SEK 123

$10.19 COP 32.1K

21.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.00 SEK 119

$9.87 COP 31.1K

21.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.56 SEK 174

$13.99 COP 44.0K

25.52%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 SEK 30.59

$3.97 COP 12.5K

-22.42%

Banana (1kg)

$2.52 SEK 25.03

$1.55 COP 4,883

62.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.92 SEK 29.01

$2.18 COP 6,867

33.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.32 SEK 42.91

$2.18 COP 6,870

98.17%

Potato (1kg)

$1.54 SEK 15.30

$1.96 COP 6,174

-21.43%

Onion (1kg)

$1.62 SEK 16.04

$1.59 COP 5,000

1.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 SEK 22.88

$1.15 COP 3,604

100.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 SEK 14.40

$1.24 COP 3,911

16.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.03 SEK 69.8

$3.96 COP 12.5K

77.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.89 SEK 98.2

$13.68 COP 43.0K

-27.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.00 SEK 19.89

$1.66 COP 5,221

20.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 SEK 22.73

$2.26 COP 7,103

1.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.25 SEK 32.27

$1.17 COP 3,674

177.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.8 SEK 783

$77.4 COP 243.4K

1.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.98 SEK 59.4

$1.27 COP 3,989

370.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.73 SEK 17.14

$2.05 COP 6,442

-15.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$59.5 SEK 591

$8.55 COP 26.9K

596.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 SEK 21.85

$1.35 COP 4,237

62.96%

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

$33.5K SEK 332.9K

$34.1K COP 107.2M

-1.60%

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

$32.9K SEK 327.2K

$34.7K COP 109.1M

-4.97%

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

$103 SEK 1,027

$170 COP 533.7K

-39.07%

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

$25.42 SEK 252

$13.55 COP 42.6K

87.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.39 SEK 401

$28.07 COP 88.3K

43.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.00 SEK 377

$43.70 COP 137.5K

-13.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.84 SEK 257

$17.19 COP 54.1K

50.32%

Cinema Ticket

$16.00 SEK 159

$6.91 COP 21.7K

131.55%

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

$160 SEK 1,592

$797 COP 2.5M

-79.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,005 SEK 49.7K

$9,112 COP 28.7M

-45.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$96.9 SEK 962

$84.7 COP 266.5K

14.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.55 SEK 393

$58.0 COP 182.3K

-31.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.1 SEK 905

$135 COP 424.6K

-32.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$144 SEK 1,427

$97.9 COP 307.9K

46.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$818 SEK 8,126

$1,208 COP 3.8M

-32.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$598 SEK 5,934

$642 COP 2.0M

-6.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,347 SEK 13.4K

$2,028 COP 6.4M

-33.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,092 SEK 10.8K

$1,012 COP 3.2M

7.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,058 SEK 40.3K

$4,170 COP 13.1M

-2.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,839 SEK 28.2K

$1,910 COP 6.0M

48.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,257 SEK 32.3K

$657 COP 2.1M

395.64%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

-63.44%

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

Last update for Kiruna: October 25, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kiruna

$598 34.3%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 7.4% $44

Groceries & Markets

Kiruna

$357 20.5%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 16.8% $60

Eating Out

Kiruna

$275 15.8%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 38.3% $105

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kiruna

$169 9.7%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 24.9% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Kiruna

$167 9.6%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 1.2% $1.9

Getting Around

Kiruna

$106 6.1%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 12.1% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Kiruna

$70 4%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 17.8% $12

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $818 in Kiruna versus $1,208 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 in Kiruna are about 5 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $127 in Kiruna versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $357 vs $297 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇪 Kiruna

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

18:59 6:59 PM

12:59 12:59 PM

6 h behind Kiruna

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

22,454

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Swedish Krona SEK kr

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 SEK = 10.07 USD

100 SEK = 9.05 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to SEK – Swedish Krona Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇪 Swedish Krona (kr)

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 9.93 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.06 SEK (100 SEK = 9.05 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,502 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

USD to SEK in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Kiruna Medellin 9,570 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Kiruna
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

Kiruna vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,742 in Kiruna, $1,639 in Medellin – roughly 6% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,613 per month in Kiruna and $2,459 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kiruna, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $818 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,742 in Kiruna and $1,639 in Medellin. That’s a gap of about 6%.

Kindergarten costs $160 per month in Kiruna and $797 in Medellin. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$2,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,742 in Kiruna and $1,639 in Medellin, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Medellin has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,639 in Medellin to $1,742 in Kiruna. 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, Kiruna makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.