Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lexington, KY and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $2,266 in Lexington, KY, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

109

Cost of Living Index in Lexington, KY
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Lexington, KY Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Lexington, KY

🇺🇸 United States

$2,266

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,266 in Lexington, KY versus $1,639 in Medellin.

Lexington, KY $2,266
Medellin $1,639

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,326 in Lexington, KY versus $2,413 in Medellin.

Lexington, KY $3,326
Medellin $2,413

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,386 in Lexington, KY versus $3,186 in Medellin.

Lexington, KY $4,386
Medellin $3,186

Living in Lexington, KY is roughly 38% more expensive than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lexington, KY 66% above, Medellin 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.76 $12.76

$8.09 COP 26.1K

57.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.3 $57.3

$47.05 COP 151.9K

21.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.94 $8.94

$9.50 COP 30.7K

-5.89%

Cappuccino

$4.92 $4.92

$3.01 COP 9,734

63.46%

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

$2.52 $2.52

$1.80 COP 5,809

40.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 $2.11

$1.41 COP 4,560

49.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.14 $5.14

$3.18 COP 10.3K

61.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.17 $6.17

$5.75 COP 18.6K

7.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.73 $0.73

$1.51 COP 4,875

-51.66%

White Bread (500g)

$2.86 $2.86

$2.38 COP 7,677

20.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.89 $3.89

$1.77 COP 5,719

119.77%

Eggs

$3.52 $3.52

$2.89 COP 9,332

21.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.17 $10.17

$10.19 COP 32.9K

-0.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.35 $10.35

$9.87 COP 31.9K

4.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.16 $14.16

$13.99 COP 45.2K

1.22%

Apples (1kg)

$5.48 $5.48

$3.97 COP 12.8K

38.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 $1.54

$1.55 COP 5,011

-0.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.54 $5.54

$2.18 COP 7,047

154.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.45 $4.45

$2.18 COP 7,050

104.13%

Potato (1kg)

$4.07 $4.07

$1.96 COP 6,336

107.65%

Onion (1kg)

$3.20 $3.20

$1.59 COP 5,131

101.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.11 $2.11

$1.15 COP 3,698

83.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.19 $3.19

$1.24 COP 4,014

157.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.81 $8.81

$3.96 COP 12.8K

122.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.18 $13.18

$13.68 COP 44.2K

-3.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.70 $2.70

$1.66 COP 5,359

62.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.15 $4.15

$2.26 COP 7,290

83.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.03 $1.03

$1.17 COP 3,770

-11.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.42 $29.42

$77.4 COP 249.8K

-61.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.10 $5.10

$1.27 COP 4,094

301.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,611

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.93 $0.93

$1.35 COP 4,348

-31.11%

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

$27.3K $27.3K

$34.1K COP 110.0M

-19.91%

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

$26.3K $26.3K

$34.7K COP 111.9M

-24.12%

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

$192 $192

$170 COP 547.7K

13.32%

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

$108 $108

$13.55 COP 43.7K

693.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$75.1 $75.1

$28.07 COP 90.6K

167.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.36 $27.36

$43.70 COP 141.1K

-37.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.72 $29.72

$17.19 COP 55.5K

72.89%

Cinema Ticket

$14.94 $14.94

$6.91 COP 22.3K

116.21%

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

$2,240 $2,240

$797 COP 2.6M

181.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.2K $25.2K

$9,112 COP 29.4M

176.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.6 $50.6

$84.7 COP 273.5K

-40.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 $31.75

$58.0 COP 187.1K

-45.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$115 $115

$135 COP 435.7K

-14.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$153 $153

$97.9 COP 316.0K

56.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,710 $1,710

$1,208 COP 3.9M

41.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 $1,008

$642 COP 2.1M

57.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,665 $2,665

$2,028 COP 6.5M

31.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,684 $1,684

$1,012 COP 3.3M

66.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,294 $2,294

$4,170 COP 13.5M

-45.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,961 $1,961

$1,910 COP 6.2M

2.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,152 $4,152

$657 COP 2.1M

531.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.82

10.94

-37.66%

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

Last update for Lexington, KY: October 24, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lexington, KY

$1K 44.5%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 36.3% $366

Groceries & Markets

Lexington, KY

$385 17%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 22.8% $88

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lexington, KY

$375 16.6%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 43.6% $164

Eating Out

Lexington, KY

$245 10.8%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 30.6% $75

Clothing & Footwear

Lexington, KY

$158 7%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 7.1% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Lexington, KY

$57 2.5%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 0.5% $0.3

Getting Around

Lexington, KY

$39 * 1.7%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 142% $55

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,710 in Lexington, KY and $1,208 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lexington, KY pays about 6.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $57 in Lexington, KY vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $385 vs $297 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Lexington, KY

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

15:11 3:11 PM

Same time as Lexington, KY

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

322,570

2,486,723

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 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).

COP to USD in detail →

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Lexington, KY Medellin 3,650 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Lexington, KY
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

Lexington, KY vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin wins on cost – living expenses run 28% lower than in Lexington, KY. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Medellin the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Lexington, KY is about 6.3 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,710 in Lexington, KY versus $1,208 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Medellin – a meal for two runs $47 versus $57 in Lexington, KY. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,266 per month in Lexington, KY versus $1,639 in Medellin – Medellin is about 28% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $2,500 a month, though Medellin gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Medellin wins on affordability, Lexington, KY on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.