Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lilongwe and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Lilongwe: $641 a month against $1,625 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

34

Cost of Living Index in Lilongwe
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Lilongwe Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Lilongwe

🇲🇼 Malawi

$641

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,625

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $641 in Lilongwe versus $1,625 in Medellin.

Lilongwe $641
Medellin $1,625

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,277 in Lilongwe versus $2,412 in Medellin.

Lilongwe $1,277
Medellin $2,412

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,913 in Lilongwe versus $3,199 in Medellin.

Lilongwe $1,913
Medellin $3,199

Living in Lilongwe costs roughly 61% less than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lilongwe is 53% below, Medellin is 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.98 MWK 8,555

$8.30 COP 26.3K

-40.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.36 MWK 59.0K

$46.91 COP 148.7K

-26.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.11 MWK 17.4K

$9.24 COP 29.3K

9.42%

Cappuccino

$3.29 MWK 5,654

$3.05 COP 9,676

7.87%

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

$1.23 MWK 2,109

$1.80 COP 5,707

-31.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.60 MWK 1,026

$1.38 COP 4,382

-56.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.24 MWK 3,850

$3.24 COP 10.3K

-30.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.00 MWK 6,875

$5.56 COP 17.6K

-28.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.28 MWK 2,204

$1.50 COP 4,760

-14.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.83 MWK 3,145

$2.37 COP 7,508

-22.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 MWK 3,005

$1.70 COP 5,377

2.94%

Eggs

$2.88 MWK 4,952

$2.96 COP 9,379

-2.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.02 MWK 27.5K

$10.22 COP 32.4K

56.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.09 MWK 8,746

$9.74 COP 30.9K

-47.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$3.92 MWK 6,735

$13.90 COP 44.1K

-71.80%

Apples (1kg)

$2.55 MWK 4,370

$4.13 COP 13.1K

-38.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.21 MWK 2,083

$1.53 COP 4,839

-20.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.46 MWK 2,501

$2.22 COP 7,052

-34.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.22 MWK 3,809

$2.27 COP 7,194

-2.20%

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 MWK 3,546

$1.99 COP 6,311

4.02%

Onion (1kg)

$0.99 MWK 1,700

$1.67 COP 5,285

-40.72%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 COP 3,742

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.03 MWK 1,763

$1.24 COP 3,919

-16.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.37 MWK 4,072

$3.87 COP 12.3K

-38.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$23.72 MWK 40.7K

$13.78 COP 43.7K

72.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 MWK 2,042

$1.66 COP 5,256

-28.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 MWK 4,412

$2.40 COP 7,615

7.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.90 MWK 1,551

$1.24 COP 3,944

-27.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$4.28 MWK 7,341

$78.2 COP 248.0K

-94.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 COP 4,044

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.54 MWK 4,355

$2.15 COP 6,803

18.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.20 MWK 3,776

$8.37 COP 26.5K

-73.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.56 MWK 2,679

$1.35 COP 4,288

15.56%

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

$34.8K COP 110.2M

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

$34.7K COP 110.0M

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

$45.36 MWK 77.9K

$167 COP 528.4K

-72.78%

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

$11.62 MWK 20.0K

$13.62 COP 43.2K

-14.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.3 MWK 103.6K

$29.12 COP 92.3K

107.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.44 MWK 52.3K

$45.09 COP 143.0K

-32.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.18 COP 54.5K

Cinema Ticket

$6.97 COP 22.1K

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

$350 MWK 601.5K

$790 COP 2.5M

-55.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,041 COP 28.7M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.8 COP 278.4K

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.2 COP 184.4K

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$139 COP 440.7K

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.9 COP 313.5K

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$544 MWK 933.2K

$1,028 COP 3.3M

-47.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$85.6 MWK 147.0K

$620 COP 2.0M

-86.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$578 MWK 992.6K

$1,881 COP 6.0M

-69.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$694 MWK 1.2M

$1,008 COP 3.2M

-31.13%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,988 COP 12.6M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,702 COP 5.4M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$370 MWK 635.2K

$663 COP 2.1M

-44.23%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

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

Last update for Lilongwe: October 18, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Lilongwe

$251 * 39.1%

Medellin

$298 18.3% 18.7% $47

Eating Out

Lilongwe

$136 21.3%

Medellin

$171 10.5% 25.4% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lilongwe

$117 18.3%

Medellin

$209 12.9% 78.5% $92

Accommodation & Living

Lilongwe

$86 13.4%

Medellin

$619 38.1% 624% $534

Sport & Entertainment

Lilongwe

$30 * 4.8%

Medellin

$59 3.6% 93.9% $29

Getting Around

Lilongwe

$21 * 3.2%

Medellin

$95 5.9% 363% $75

Clothing & Footwear

Lilongwe

- * 0%

Medellin

$173 10.6%

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 $544 in Lilongwe and $1,028 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays 79% 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: $34.00 in Lilongwe vs $47.00 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $251 vs $298 per month, with Lilongwe cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇼 Lilongwe

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

13:38 1:38 PM

06:38 6:38 AM

7 h behind Lilongwe

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

781,538 Capital

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Malawian Kwacha MWK MK

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 MWK = 5.82 USD

10,000 MWK = 5.18 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to MWK – Malawian Kwacha Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇼 Malawian Kwacha (MK)

Malawian Kwacha exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1,717 MWK (10,000 MWK = 5.82 USD). 1 EUR = 1,930 MWK (10,000 MWK = 5.18 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 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 MWK in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lilongwe Medellin 12,260 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Lilongwe
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

Lilongwe vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lilongwe is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 153% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 79% lower in Medellin. 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: $544 in Lilongwe versus $1,028 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 19% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Lilongwe – a meal for two runs $34.00 versus $47.00 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $641 in Lilongwe versus $1,625 in Medellin, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Lilongwe but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Lilongwe the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Lilongwe is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Medellin, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Lilongwe gentler on the wallet – expenses run 153% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.