Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medan and Berlin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medan: $613 a month against $2,551 in Berlin, rent and utilities included – about $23,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Medan
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Medan Living Index
124

Cost of Living Index in Berlin
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Berlin Living Index

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Medan

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$613

/mo nomad

Berlin

🇩🇪 Germany

$2,551

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medan and in Berlin

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Medan and in Berlin actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $613 per month in Medan vs $2,551 in Berlin, rent included.

Medan $613
Berlin $2,551

A couple spends around $940 per month in Medan vs $3,845 in Berlin, rent included.

Medan $940
Berlin $3,845

A family of three spends $1,266 per month in Medan vs $5,139 in Berlin, rent included.

Medan $1,266
Berlin $5,139

Medan is about 76% cheaper than Berlin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Medan sits 55% below the global median, while Berlin is 89% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.71 Rp 30.8K

$16.65 €14.81

-89.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$8.30 Rp 149.4K

$76.7 €68.2

-89.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.95 Rp 53.0K

$13.47 €11.98

-78.10%

Cappuccino

$1.53 Rp 27.5K

$4.37 €3.89

-64.99%

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

$0.35 Rp 6,215

$3.48 €3.09

-89.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 Rp 4,534

$3.12 €2.77

-91.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.66 Rp 29.9K

$5.34 €4.75

-68.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.59 Rp 64.6K

$4.39 €3.91

-18.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.11 Rp 20.0K

$1.27 €1.13

-12.60%

White Bread (500g)

$1.18 Rp 21.2K

$2.33 €2.08

-49.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.81 Rp 14.7K

$3.40 €3.02

-76.18%

Eggs

$1.32 Rp 23.8K

$4.50 €4.00

-70.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.12 Rp 146.2K

$16.78 €14.93

-51.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.59 Rp 64.6K

$11.91 €10.59

-69.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.36 Rp 114.5K

$17.90 €15.92

-64.47%

Apples (1kg)

$2.40 Rp 43.1K

$3.46 €3.07

-30.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.05 Rp 18.9K

$1.95 €1.73

-46.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.42 Rp 25.5K

$3.26 €2.90

-56.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.93 Rp 16.7K

$3.71 €3.30

-74.93%

Potato (1kg)

$0.84 Rp 15.1K

$2.10 €1.87

-60.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 Rp 32.3K

$2.09 €1.86

-13.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.38 Rp 6,905

$1.42 €1.27

-73.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 Rp 7,872

$0.95 €0.84

-53.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.87 Rp 51.7K

$10.44 €9.29

-72.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.72 Rp 282.9K

$6.58 €5.85

138.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 Rp 32.9K

$1.27 €1.13

44.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.01 Rp 54.1K

$2.08 €1.85

44.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.27 Rp 4,816

$4.34 €3.86

-93.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$5.93 Rp 106.7K

$71.6 €63.7

-91.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.51 Rp 9,186

$5.26 €4.68

-90.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.19 Rp 3,465

$3.09 €2.75

-93.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$36.34 €32.32

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.80 Rp 14.4K

$2.31 €2.05

-65.37%

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

$24.7K Rp 444.1M

$32.4K €28.8K

-23.93%

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

$32.2K Rp 579.9M

$38.6K €34.3K

-16.57%

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

$84.8 Rp 1.5M

$382 €340

-77.77%

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

$3.17 Rp 57.0K

$18.83 €16.75

-83.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.57 Rp 424.3K

$48.57 €43.20

-51.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.95 Rp 305.0K

$40.21 €35.76

-57.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.41 Rp 151.5K

$34.90 €31.04

-75.90%

Cinema Ticket

$3.29 Rp 59.3K

$15.73 €14.00

-79.08%

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

$112 Rp 2.0M

$142 €126

-21.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,692 Rp 30.5M

$15.8K €14.0K

-89.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.2 Rp 975.9K

$95.4 €84.8

-43.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.53 Rp 693.6K

$46.32 €41.20

-16.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 Rp 1.9M

$104 €92.4

3.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 Rp 2.0M

$143 €128

-22.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$233 Rp 4.2M

$1,469 €1,306

-84.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$89.8 Rp 1.6M

$1,114 €991

-91.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$494 Rp 8.9M

$2,751 €2,447

-82.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$212 Rp 3.8M

$2,107 €1,875

-89.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,158 Rp 20.8M

$8,454 €7,520

-86.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$560 Rp 10.1M

$5,435 €4,834

-89.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$215 Rp 3.9M

$3,543 €3,151

-93.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.25

3.8

143.42%

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

Last update for Medan: October 12, 2026

Last update for Berlin: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Medan

$181 29.5%

Berlin

$343 13.4% 89.6% $162

Clothing & Footwear

Medan

$140 22.9%

Berlin

$175 6.9% 24.8% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medan

$112 18.2%

Berlin

$449 17.6% 303% $337

Accommodation & Living

Medan

$90 14.6%

Berlin

$1.1K 43.7% 1142% $1K

Eating Out

Medan

$59 9.6%

Berlin

$288 11.3% 391% $229

Sport & Entertainment

Medan

$24 3.8%

Berlin

$72 2.8% 205% $48

Getting Around

Medan

$8.5 1.4%

Berlin

$110 4.3% 1195% $101

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $233 in Medan versus $1,469 in Berlin. 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 1546% higher in Berlin, 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 $8.00 in Medan versus $77.0 in Berlin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $181 vs $343 – making Medan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Medan

🇩🇪 Berlin

🕒 Local time

06:04 6:04 AM

01:04 1:04 AM

5 h behind Medan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,097,610

3,769,962 Capital

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medan Berlin 9,370 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Medan
Berlin

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

Medan vs Berlin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Berlin is pricier by about 316%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $920 per month in Medan and $3,826 in Berlin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $613 in Medan and $2,551 in Berlin. That's a gap of about 316%.

Public transport costs about 1107% less in Medan. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Medan, where all-in costs run around $613, than in Berlin at $2,551. In Medan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Berlin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Medan – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Medan. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Berlin makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.