Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Aberdeen

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,692 a month against $2,292 in Aberdeen, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
109

Cost of Living Index in Aberdeen
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Aberdeen Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Aberdeen

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,292

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Aberdeen

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

A single person spends $1,692 per month in Medellin vs $2,292 in Aberdeen, rent included.

Medellin $1,692
Aberdeen $2,292

A couple spends around $2,471 per month in Medellin vs $3,567 in Aberdeen, rent included.

Medellin $2,471
Aberdeen $3,567

A family of three spends $3,249 per month in Medellin vs $4,841 in Aberdeen, rent included.

Medellin $3,249
Aberdeen $4,841

Medellin is about 26% cheaper than Aberdeen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Medellin and Aberdeen sit above the global median – Medellin by 25%, Aberdeen by 70%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 27.0K

$20.00 £14.83

-58.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.9K

$102 £75.7

-54.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.7K

$10.69 £7.93

-11.41%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.2K

$4.75 £3.52

-34.11%

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

$1.77 COP 5,727

$2.86 £2.12

-38.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,619

$2.20 £1.63

-35.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$7.20 £5.34

-56.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.5K

$7.90 £5.86

-27.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,969

$1.55 £1.15

-1.29%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,429

$1.80 £1.33

27.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,306

$2.04 £1.51

-4.90%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,942

$4.46 £3.31

-31.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.4K

$8.63 £6.40

15.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.9K

$12.31 £9.13

-15.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.3K

$16.59 £12.30

-15.85%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$2.90 £2.15

39.66%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,956

$1.36 £1.01

12.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,823

$2.89 £2.14

-27.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,437

$3.79 £2.81

-39.58%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,839

$1.80 £1.33

17.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,542

$1.45 £1.07

17.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,794

$1.26 £0.93

-7.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,123

$1.65 £1.22

-4.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.7K

$22.68 £16.82

-82.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.5K

$11.06 £8.20

26.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,712

$2.68 £1.99

-34.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,793

$3.01 £2.23

-9.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,825

$4.11 £3.05

-71.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 247.4K

$120 £89.2

-36.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,859

$4.03 £2.99

-55.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,904

$2.42 £1.80

-11.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.4K

$24.49 £18.16

-66.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,135

$2.17 £1.61

-41.01%

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

$34.4K COP 111.7M

$38.1K £28.3K

-9.64%

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

$34.1K COP 110.7M

$40.7K £30.1K

-16.03%

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

$178 COP 576.3K

$402 £298

-55.73%

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

$13.89 COP 45.0K

$28.26 £20.96

-50.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.7K

$42.43 £31.47

-27.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 136.0K

$48.03 £35.62

-12.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.5K

$22.14 £16.42

-24.12%

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.2K

$11.47 £8.50

-34.87%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$1,839 £1,364

-57.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.9M

$23.7K £17.6K

-48.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 279.9K

$97.4 £72.2

-11.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 192.2K

$48.27 £35.80

22.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 448.6K

$103 £76.4

34.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 320.4K

$114 £84.7

-13.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$852 £632

57.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$788 £584

-15.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$1,649 £1,223

19.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$1,593 £1,181

-35.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.3M

$2,635 £1,954

55.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$3,197 £2,371

-39.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

$4,053 £3,005

-84.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.11

114.09%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Aberdeen: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Aberdeen

$788 34.3% 18% $120

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Aberdeen

$325 14.2% 5.6% $17

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Aberdeen

$472 20.6% 112% $250

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Aberdeen

$321 14% 86% $148

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Aberdeen

$163 7.1% 5.2% $9

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Aberdeen

$153 6.7% 63.5% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Aberdeen

$71 3.1% 24.7% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,341 in Medellin versus $852 in Aberdeen. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Aberdeen are about 6.3 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $102 in Aberdeen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $307 vs $325 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇬🇧 Aberdeen

🕒 Local time

11:29 11:29 AM

16:29 4:29 PM

5 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

229,060

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.08 USD

10,000 COP = 2.75 EUR

1 GBP = 1.35 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 3,242 COP (10,000 COP = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 3,635 COP (10,000 COP = 2.75 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 0.742 GBP (1 GBP = 1.35 USD). 1 EUR = 0.831 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Aberdeen 8,430 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Aberdeen

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

Medellin vs Aberdeen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Aberdeen costs about 35% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,538 per month in Medellin and $3,439 in Aberdeen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Aberdeen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $852 there versus $1,341 in Medellin.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,692 in Medellin and $2,292 in Aberdeen. That makes Medellin about 26% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 37% less in Medellin. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Medellin costs $1,692 versus $2,292 in Aberdeen. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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