Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Longyearbyen and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,692 a month against $2,850 in Longyearbyen, rent and utilities included – about $13,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

136

Cost of Living Index in Longyearbyen
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Longyearbyen Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Longyearbyen

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,850

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,850 in Longyearbyen versus $1,692 in Medellin.

Longyearbyen $2,850
Medellin $1,692

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,306 in Longyearbyen versus $2,471 in Medellin.

Longyearbyen $4,306
Medellin $2,471

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,761 in Longyearbyen versus $3,249 in Medellin.

Longyearbyen $5,761
Medellin $3,249

Living in Longyearbyen is roughly 68% more expensive than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Longyearbyen 111% above, Medellin 25% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.56 NOK 191

$8.34 COP 26.8K

146.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$107 NOK 993

$46.53 COP 149.7K

130.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.57 NOK 172

$9.47 COP 30.5K

96.09%

Cappuccino

$7.17 NOK 66.5

$3.13 COP 10.1K

129.07%

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

$6.30 NOK 58.4

$1.77 COP 5,681

255.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.80 NOK 53.9

$1.42 COP 4,582

308.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.56 NOK 70.2

$3.15 COP 10.1K

140.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.24 NOK 85.8

$5.70 COP 18.3K

62.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.53 NOK 23.49

$1.53 COP 4,930

65.36%

White Bread (500g)

$3.83 NOK 35.57

$2.29 COP 7,370

67.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.48 NOK 41.61

$1.94 COP 6,257

130.93%

Eggs

$5.02 NOK 46.61

$3.07 COP 9,864

63.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.71 NOK 136

$9.99 COP 32.1K

47.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$20.74 NOK 193

$10.45 COP 33.6K

98.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$32.68 NOK 303

$13.96 COP 44.9K

134.10%

Apples (1kg)

$6.79 NOK 63.1

$4.05 COP 13.0K

67.65%

Banana (1kg)

$2.73 NOK 25.37

$1.53 COP 4,916

78.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$7.03 NOK 65.3

$2.10 COP 6,769

234.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.87 NOK 63.7

$2.29 COP 7,378

200.00%

Potato (1kg)

$5.60 NOK 52.0

$2.11 COP 6,785

165.40%

Onion (1kg)

$4.76 NOK 44.17

$1.71 COP 5,498

178.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$4.57 NOK 42.40

$1.17 COP 3,764

290.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.68 NOK 34.16

$1.58 COP 5,083

132.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$18.05 NOK 168

$3.91 COP 12.6K

361.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.96 NOK 139

$14.04 COP 45.2K

6.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.56 NOK 33.03

$1.76 COP 5,667

102.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.43 NOK 41.09

$2.71 COP 8,724

63.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.76 NOK 44.16

$1.18 COP 3,795

303.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$86.2 NOK 800

$76.3 COP 245.4K

12.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$9.58 NOK 88.9

$1.81 COP 5,812

429.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.83 NOK 16.94

$2.13 COP 6,849

-14.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$70.4 NOK 653

$8.13 COP 26.2K

765.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 NOK 20.58

$1.28 COP 4,102

73.44%

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

$49.8K NOK 462.2K

$34.4K COP 110.8M

44.61%

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

$45.2K NOK 419.5K

$34.1K COP 109.8M

32.44%

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

$275 NOK 2,554

$178 COP 571.7K

54.82%

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

$33.68 NOK 313

$13.89 COP 44.7K

142.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.5 NOK 515

$30.74 COP 98.9K

80.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.11 NOK 456

$41.94 COP 134.9K

17.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$38.07 NOK 353

$16.80 COP 54.0K

126.61%

Cinema Ticket

$17.68 NOK 164

$7.47 COP 24.0K

136.68%

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

$244 NOK 2,261

$790 COP 2.5M

-69.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.6K NOK 125.8K

$12.3K COP 39.6M

10.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 NOK 964

$86.3 COP 277.7K

20.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.7 NOK 536

$59.3 COP 190.6K

-2.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$130 NOK 1,203

$138 COP 445.0K

-6.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$158 NOK 1,464

$98.8 COP 317.8K

59.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,159 NOK 10.8K

$1,341 COP 4.3M

-13.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,059 NOK 9,826

$667 COP 2.1M

58.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,092 NOK 19.4K

$1,976 COP 6.4M

5.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,703 NOK 15.8K

$1,033 COP 3.3M

64.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,445 NOK 59.8K

$4,098 COP 13.2M

57.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,297 NOK 39.9K

$1,940 COP 6.2M

121.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,894 NOK 26.9K

$646 COP 2.1M

347.92%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.94

10.94

-54.84%

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

Last update for Longyearbyen: November 1, 2026

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Longyearbyen

$1.1K 37.2%

Medellin

$667 39.4% 37% $392

Groceries & Markets

Longyearbyen

$606 21.3%

Medellin

$307 18.2% 49.3% $298

Eating Out

Longyearbyen

$411 14.4%

Medellin

$173 10.2% 58% $238

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Longyearbyen

$364 12.8%

Medellin

$222 13.1% 39% $142

Clothing & Footwear

Longyearbyen

$202 7.1%

Medellin

$172 10.2% 14.8% $30

Getting Around

Longyearbyen

$124 4.4%

Medellin

$93 5.5% 24.6% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Longyearbyen

$84 3%

Medellin

$57 3.4% 32.7% $28

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,159 in Longyearbyen and $1,341 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Longyearbyen pays about 4.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $107 in Longyearbyen vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $606 vs $307 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Longyearbyen

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

02:17 2:17 AM

20:17 8:17 PM

6 h behind Longyearbyen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,400

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.78 USD

100 NOK = 9.6 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.11 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 9.28 NOK (1 NOK = 0.108 USD). 1 EUR = 10.42 NOK (100 NOK = 9.6 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3,217 COP (10,000 COP = 3.11 USD). 1 EUR = 3,611 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

USD to NOK in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Longyearbyen Medellin 9,350 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Longyearbyen
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

Longyearbyen vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin is about 41% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Longyearbyen is about 4.5 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: $1,159 in Longyearbyen versus $1,341 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Medellin runs roughly 11% less than in Longyearbyen. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $244 in Longyearbyen versus $790 in Medellin. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,692 in Medellin versus $2,850 in Longyearbyen, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Medellin but tight or insufficient in Longyearbyen. The gap between the two cities makes Medellin the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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, Longyearbyen on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.