Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and AL Kharj

For one person, living is cheaper in AL Kharj: $961 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in AL Kharj
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AL Kharj Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

AL Kharj

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$961

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in AL Kharj

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 Kharj actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $961 in AL Kharj, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
AL Kharj $961

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,464 in AL Kharj, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
AL Kharj $1,464

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $1,966 in AL Kharj, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
AL Kharj $1,966

Medellin costs about 71% more than AL Kharj, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while AL Kharj is 29% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$4.79 SAR 17.99

68.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$26.43 SAR 99.2

78.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$8.14 SAR 30.56

16.71%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.16 SAR 8.11

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.32 SAR 4.94

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$3.06 SAR 11.49

-1.63%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$0.85 SAR 3.21

111.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$0.12 SAR 0.44

1075.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$1.49 SAR 5.58

1.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$0.28 SAR 1.06

750.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$2.44 SAR 9.17

-27.46%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$2.12 SAR 7.95

36.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$10.38 SAR 38.96

-1.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$4.95 SAR 18.59

99.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$13.09 SAR 49.13

6.88%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$1.71 SAR 6.43

132.16%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$1.37 SAR 5.15

13.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$1.23 SAR 4.60

77.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$1.38 SAR 5.18

57.97%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$1.06 SAR 3.97

84.91%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$1.05 SAR 3.94

51.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$0.55 SAR 2.05

109.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$0.54 SAR 2.02

129.63%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.20 SAR 8.26

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 SAR 3.91

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.47 SAR 9.28

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$6.45 SAR 24.21

-38.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$23.07 SAR 86.6

235.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$2.66 SAR 9.97

-52.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$0.51 SAR 1.90

301.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$13.22 SAR 49.60

-35.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$0.61 SAR 2.27

121.31%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$26.6K SAR 100.0K

27.84%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$22.5K SAR 84.3K

54.27%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$107 SAR 400

59.10%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$26.42 SAR 99.2

-48.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$50.6 SAR 190

-44.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$72.4 SAR 272

-39.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

$40.69 SAR 153

-57.75%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$13.41 SAR 50.3

-48.47%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$289 SAR 1,084

175.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$3,810 SAR 14.3K

139.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$57.5 SAR 216

47.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$52.4 SAR 197

10.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$46.60 SAR 175

189.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$78.9 SAR 296

24.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$692 SAR 2,597

74.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$267 SAR 1,002

140.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$590 SAR 2,214

243.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$461 SAR 1,729

119.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$2,793 SAR 10.5K

-76.47%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.54

97.47%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for AL Kharj: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

AL Kharj

$267 27.8% 58.4% $375

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

AL Kharj

$174 18.1% 41.5% $123

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

AL Kharj

$184 19.1% 13.1% $28

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

AL Kharj

$103 10.8% 39% $66

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

AL Kharj

$106 11% 37.3% $63

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

AL Kharj

$28 * 2.9% 69.8% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

AL Kharj

$99 10.3% 72.4% $42

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $692 in AL Kharj. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in AL Kharj are about 4.2 times higher, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $26 in AL Kharj. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $174 – making AL Kharj the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇸🇦 AL Kharj

🕒 Local time

01:14 1:14 AM

09:14 9:14 AM

8 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

425,300

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.239 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SAR, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,605 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.19 SAR (1 SAR = 0.239 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin AL Kharj 12,970 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
AL Kharj

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 Kharj: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,639 in Medellin, $961 in AL Kharj – AL Kharj comes out roughly 41% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $1,442 in AL Kharj. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in AL Kharj, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $692 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

Kindergarten costs $797 per month in Medellin and $289 in AL Kharj. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 71% more in Medellin, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in AL Kharj, where all-in costs run around $961, than in Medellin at $1,639. In AL Kharj it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

For expats, AL Kharj is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 41% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.