Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Luqa and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $1,845 in Luqa, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in Luqa
Learn more

Luqa Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index

Jump to prices

Luqa

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,845

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,845 in Luqa versus $1,639 in Medellin.

Luqa $1,845
Medellin $1,639

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,902 in Luqa versus $2,413 in Medellin.

Luqa $2,902
Medellin $2,413

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,960 in Luqa versus $3,186 in Medellin.

Luqa $3,960
Medellin $3,186

Living in Luqa is roughly 13% more expensive than in Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Luqa 36% above, Medellin 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.96 €17.81

$8.09 COP 26.1K

146.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$99.9 €89.1

$47.05 COP 151.9K

112.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.81 €9.65

$9.50 COP 30.7K

13.79%

Cappuccino

$3.40 €3.03

$3.01 COP 9,734

12.96%

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

$2.89 €2.58

$1.80 COP 5,809

60.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.41 COP 4,560

39.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.54 €4.05

$3.18 COP 10.3K

42.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.27 €3.81

$5.75 COP 18.6K

-25.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.14 €1.02

$1.51 COP 4,875

-24.50%

White Bread (500g)

$1.16 €1.03

$2.38 COP 7,677

-51.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.17 €2.83

$1.77 COP 5,719

79.10%

Eggs

$3.93 €3.51

$2.89 COP 9,332

35.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.31 €11.87

$10.19 COP 32.9K

30.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.92 €8.85

$9.87 COP 31.9K

0.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.81 €14.10

$13.99 COP 45.2K

13.01%

Apples (1kg)

$2.74 €2.44

$3.97 COP 12.8K

-30.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.55 COP 5,011

27.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.99 €2.66

$2.18 COP 7,047

37.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.72 €3.32

$2.18 COP 7,050

70.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.79 €1.60

$1.96 COP 6,336

-8.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.59 COP 5,131

23.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.93 €1.72

$1.15 COP 3,698

67.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 €0.80

$1.24 COP 4,014

-28.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.84 €6.10

$3.96 COP 12.8K

72.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.17 €6.40

$13.68 COP 44.2K

-47.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 €1.34

$1.66 COP 5,359

-9.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.26 COP 7,290

-0.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.19 €1.95

$1.17 COP 3,770

87.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$14.44 €12.89

$77.4 COP 249.8K

-81.34%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.52 €4.03

$1.27 COP 4,094

255.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.64 €1.46

$2.05 COP 6,611

-20.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.01 €34.81

$8.55 COP 27.6K

356.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 €1.30

$1.35 COP 4,348

8.15%

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

$24.9K €22.2K

$34.1K COP 110.0M

-26.84%

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

$39.5K €35.2K

$34.7K COP 111.9M

13.82%

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

$74.9 €66.8

$170 COP 547.7K

-55.87%

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

$35.83 €31.96

$13.55 COP 43.7K

164.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.44 €29.83

$28.07 COP 90.6K

19.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.2 €47.49

$43.70 COP 141.1K

21.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$55.2 €49.23

$17.19 COP 55.5K

220.94%

Cinema Ticket

$11.10 €9.91

$6.91 COP 22.3K

60.64%

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

$611 €545

$797 COP 2.6M

-23.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.6K €12.1K

$9,112 COP 29.4M

49.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$145 €129

$84.7 COP 273.5K

71.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.0 €49.04

$58.0 COP 187.1K

-5.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.1 €76.0

$135 COP 435.7K

-36.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$135 €121

$97.9 COP 316.0K

38.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$811 €724

$1,208 COP 3.9M

-32.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$819 €731

$642 COP 2.1M

27.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,284 €1,146

$2,028 COP 6.5M

-36.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,298 €1,158

$1,012 COP 3.3M

28.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,945 €2,627

$4,170 COP 13.5M

-29.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,120 €2,784

$1,910 COP 6.2M

63.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,456 €1,299

$657 COP 2.1M

121.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.22

10.94

-70.57%

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

Last update for Luqa: 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

Luqa

$819 44.4%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 21.6% $177

Groceries & Markets

Luqa

$299 16.2%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 0.5% $1.5

Eating Out

Luqa

$284 15.4%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 40.2% $114

Clothing & Footwear

Luqa

$189 10.2%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 10.6% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Luqa

$144 7.8%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 46.6% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Luqa

$75 4.1%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 23.7% $18

Getting Around

Luqa

$36 2%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 161% $58

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $811 in Luqa and $1,208 in Medellin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Luqa pays about 2.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $100 in Luqa vs $47 in Medellin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $299 vs $297 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇹 Luqa

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

20:02 8:02 PM

14:02 2:02 PM

6 h behind Luqa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,900

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

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

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,603 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Luqa Medellin 9,610 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Luqa
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

Luqa vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin wins on cost – living expenses run 11% lower than in Luqa. 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 Luqa is about 2.2 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: $811 in Luqa versus $1,208 in Medellin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Luqa runs roughly 81% less than in Medellin. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

All in, you’ll spend $1,845 per month in Luqa versus $1,639 in Medellin – Medellin is about 11% 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, Luqa on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.