Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Al `arish

For one person, living is cheaper in Al `arish: $427 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $15,200 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
20

Cost of Living Index in Al `arish
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Al `arish Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Al `arish

🇪🇬 Egypt

$427

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Al `arish

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 Al `arish actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,692 in Medellin versus $427 in Al `arish.

Medellin $1,692
Al `arish $427

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,471 in Medellin versus $684 in Al `arish.

Medellin $2,471
Al `arish $684

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,249 in Medellin versus $940 in Al `arish.

Medellin $3,249
Al `arish $940

Living in Medellin is roughly 296% more expensive than in Al `arish, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 25% above, Al `arish is 68% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 26.9K

$3.81 E£211

118.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.2K

$14.41 E£797

222.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.6K

$4.40 E£243

115.23%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.1K

$1.11 E£61.2

181.98%

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

$1.77 COP 5,702

$0.32 E£17.94

453.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,599

$0.13 E£7.04

992.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$1.36 E£75.3

131.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.4K

$2.74 E£152

108.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,948

$0.80 E£44.01

91.25%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,397

$0.32 E£17.53

615.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,279

$0.61 E£33.93

218.03%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,900

$1.27 E£70.3

141.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.3K

$2.26 E£125

342.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.7K

$3.37 E£186

210.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.1K

$7.41 E£410

88.39%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$1.40 E£77.5

189.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,934

$0.56 E£30.97

173.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,794

$0.40 E£22.21

425.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,405

$0.33 E£17.98

593.94%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,810

$0.41 E£22.49

414.63%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,518

$0.43 E£23.64

297.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,778

$0.25 E£13.74

368.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,101

$0.19 E£10.36

731.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.6K

$1.79 E£99.1

118.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.3K

$4.40 E£243

219.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,688

$1.01 E£55.8

74.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,756

$1.54 E£85.2

75.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,809

$0.17 E£9.53

594.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 246.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,833

$0.28 E£15.64

546.43%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,874

$0.37 E£20.51

475.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.3K

$1.15 E£63.6

606.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,117

$0.40 E£22.08

220.00%

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

$34.4K COP 111.2M

$29.9K E£1.7M

15.32%

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

$34.1K COP 110.2M

$23.4K E£1.3M

46.14%

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

$178 COP 573.8K

$14.23 E£787

1148.98%

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

$13.89 COP 44.8K

$6.74 E£372

106.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.2K

$23.26 E£1,286

32.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 135.4K

$15.12 E£836

177.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.2K

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.1K

$3.62 E£200

106.35%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$79.4 E£4,388

895.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.7M

$2,230 E£123.3K

451.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 278.7K

$9.85 E£544

776.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 191.3K

$43.67 E£2,414

35.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 446.6K

$149 E£8,211

-6.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 319.0K

$51.4 E£2,844

92.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$124 E£6,875

978.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$72.3 E£3,997

822.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$240 E£13.3K

722.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$137 E£7,569

654.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.2M

$713 E£39.4K

474.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$334 E£18.5K

480.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

22.5

-51.38%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Al `arish: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Al `arish

$72 16.9% 89.2% $595

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Al `arish

$100 23.5% 67.3% $207

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Al `arish

$44 10.4% 80.1% $178

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Al `arish

$71 16.6% 58.8% $102

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Al `arish

$114 26.7% 33.8% $58

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Al `arish

$2.8 * 0.7% 97% $91

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Al `arish

$22 5.2% 60.7% $35

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,341 in Medellin and $124 in Al `arish. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $14 in Al `arish for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $307 vs $100 per month, with Al `arish cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇪🇬 Al `arish

🕒 Local time

17:16 5:16 PM

00:16 12:16 AM

7 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

199,243

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

100 EGP = 1.81 USD

100 EGP = 1.62 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,610 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 55.29 EGP (100 EGP = 1.81 USD). 1 EUR = 61.83 EGP (100 EGP = 1.62 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Al `arish 11,460 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Al `arish

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 Al `arish: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Al `arish wins on cost – living expenses run 75% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Al `arish the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $2,538 in Medellin and $641 in Al `arish to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,341 in Medellin versus $124 in Al `arish. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 206% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,692 per month in Medellin versus $427 in Al `arish – Al `arish is about 75% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $427 in Al `arish versus $1,692 in Medellin, a $800 budget is realistic in Al `arish but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Al `arish 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.