Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,589 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $30,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

196

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,086

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,589

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $4,086 per month in London vs $1,589 in Medellin, rent included.

London $4,086
Medellin $1,589

A couple spends around $5,816 per month in London vs $2,364 in Medellin, rent included.

London $5,816
Medellin $2,364

A family of three spends $7,546 per month in London vs $3,139 in Medellin, rent included.

London $7,546
Medellin $3,139

London costs about 157% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both London and Medellin sit above the global median – London by 205%, Medellin by 19%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.62 £20.11

$8.01 COP 25.5K

232.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$46.55 COP 148.3K

131.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 £7.85

$9.43 COP 30.1K

10.18%

Cappuccino

$5.79 £4.38

$2.91 COP 9,277

98.97%

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

$3.01 £2.27

$1.75 COP 5,585

72.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 £1.63

$1.32 COP 4,218

62.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.35 £7.06

$3.13 COP 9,969

198.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.84 £5.93

$5.55 COP 17.7K

41.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.41 COP 4,495

26.95%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 £1.56

$2.44 COP 7,777

-15.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 £1.74

$1.63 COP 5,191

41.72%

Eggs

$5.05 £3.82

$2.82 COP 8,990

79.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.57 £9.50

$9.69 COP 30.9K

29.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.66 £8.05

$9.32 COP 29.7K

14.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.13 £12.94

$13.46 COP 42.9K

27.27%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$4.00 COP 12.8K

-24.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.48 COP 4,719

-4.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 £2.31

$2.12 COP 6,768

43.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.38 £2.56

$2.25 COP 7,178

50.22%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.26

$1.91 COP 6,092

-12.57%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$1.62 COP 5,160

6.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.15 COP 3,658

22.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.26 COP 4,021

42.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.22 £17.55

$3.82 COP 12.2K

507.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.99 £9.82

$13.11 COP 41.8K

-0.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.40

$1.60 COP 5,083

98.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 £3.33

$2.26 COP 7,188

95.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 £2.93

$1.17 COP 3,731

230.77%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$250 £189

$75.0 COP 239.0K

233.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 £4.31

$1.27 COP 4,056

349.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 £2.51

$2.05 COP 6,531

62.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$57.9 £43.76

$8.20 COP 26.1K

606.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.54

$1.27 COP 4,046

60.63%

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

$37.5K £28.4K

$26.8K COP 85.3M

40.23%

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

$40.9K £30.9K

$34.4K COP 109.6M

18.87%

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

$376 £284

$162 COP 516.9K

131.85%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$13.12 COP 41.8K

36.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.01 £30.24

$28.09 COP 89.5K

42.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.2 £46.22

$44.33 COP 141.2K

37.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 £15.93

$16.33 COP 52.0K

29.03%

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.57

$6.09 COP 19.4K

194.75%

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

$2,865 £2,165

$764 COP 2.4M

274.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.7K

$8,904 COP 28.4M

296.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £87.7

$85.0 COP 270.8K

36.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.1 £40.87

$57.5 COP 183.2K

-5.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 £95.7

$132 COP 419.8K

-3.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 £120

$95.8 COP 305.1K

66.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,853 £2,156

$1,028 COP 3.3M

177.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,301 £1,739

$604 COP 1.9M

280.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,201 £3,931

$1,802 COP 5.7M

188.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,723 £2,813

$993 COP 3.2M

275.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.0K £14.4K

$3,921 COP 12.5M

384.83%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,881 £5,955

$1,639 COP 5.2M

380.93%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,818 £3,641

$626 COP 2.0M

669.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

10.94

-57.50%

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

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 56.5%

Medellin

$604 38.3% 73.7% $1.7K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$434 10.7%

Medellin

$203 12.9% 53.1% $231

Eating Out

London

$397 9.7%

Medellin

$166 10.6% 58.1% $230

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.6%

Medellin

$288 18.3% 17.4% $61

Getting Around

London

$288 7.1%

Medellin

$91 5.8% 68.3% $197

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5%

Medellin

$166 10.6% 18.9% $39

Sport & Entertainment

London

$97 2.4%

Medellin

$57 3.6% 41.8% $41

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,853 in London versus $1,028 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 run about 669% higher in London, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $108 in London versus $47.00 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $349 vs $288 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

01:35 1:35 AM

19:35 7:35 PM

6 h behind London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

2,486,723

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.14 USD

10,000 COP = 2.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3,187 COP (10,000 COP = 3.14 USD). 1 EUR = 3,574 COP (10,000 COP = 2.8 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Medellin 8,460 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

London
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

London vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $4,086 in London, $1,589 in Medellin – roughly 157% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $6,129 per month in London and $2,384 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Medellin, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 21% more in London, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $108 in London and $47.00 in Medellin. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Medellin, where all-in costs run around $1,589, than in London at $4,086. In Medellin it covers expenses comfortably, while in London it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. London has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,589 in Medellin to $4,086 in London. 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, London makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.