Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Al Kut

For one person, living is cheaper in Al Kut: $660 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $11,700 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
32

Cost of Living Index in Al Kut
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Al Kut Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Al Kut

🇮🇶 Iraq

$660

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Al Kut

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $660 in Al Kut, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Al Kut $660

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,016 in Al Kut, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Al Kut $1,016

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $1,372 in Al Kut, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Al Kut $1,372

Medellin costs about 148% more than Al Kut, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Al Kut is 52% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$4.05 IQD 6,122

99.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$18.78 IQD 28.4K

150.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$6.05 IQD 9,139

57.02%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$2.51 IQD 3,795

19.92%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$0.39 IQD 583

361.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$0.23 IQD 342

513.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$2.84 IQD 4,294

11.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$2.67 IQD 4,030

115.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$1.02 IQD 1,543

48.04%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$0.73 IQD 1,097

226.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$1.49 IQD 2,246

18.79%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$1.60 IQD 2,411

80.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$3.85 IQD 5,821

164.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$3.58 IQD 5,410

175.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$11.64 IQD 17.6K

20.19%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$0.91 IQD 1,376

336.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$1.00 IQD 1,511

55.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$0.85 IQD 1,289

156.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$0.63 IQD 951

246.03%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$0.55 IQD 837

256.36%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$0.57 IQD 864

178.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$0.56 IQD 849

105.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$0.51 IQD 768

143.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$1.71 IQD 2,577

131.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$9.61 IQD 14.5K

42.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,221

$1.36 IQD 2,055

22.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,103

$1.93 IQD 2,918

17.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$0.33 IQD 493

254.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$1.88 IQD 2,848

-32.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$1.14 IQD 1,720

79.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$5.53 IQD 8,349

54.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$0.50 IQD 754

170.00%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$14.1K IQD 21.3M

142.04%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$15.4K IQD 23.3M

125.23%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$86.2 IQD 130.3K

96.79%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$13.28 IQD 20.1K

2.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$29.34 IQD 44.3K

-4.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$36.82 IQD 55.6K

18.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$9.35 IQD 14.1K

-26.10%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$138 IQD 208.6K

476.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$2,820 IQD 4.3M

223.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$20.90 IQD 31.6K

305.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$23.07 IQD 34.9K

151.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$58.9 IQD 88.9K

129.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$37.09 IQD 56.0K

163.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$183 IQD 275.9K

561.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$149 IQD 224.5K

331.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$370 IQD 559.1K

447.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$320 IQD 483.8K

215.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

$846 IQD 1.3M

392.84%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$502 IQD 758.8K

280.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

4.12

165.53%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Al Kut: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Al Kut

$149 22.5% 76.8% $493

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Al Kut

$152 23.1% 48.7% $145

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Al Kut

$129 19.5% 39% $82

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Al Kut

$103 15.6% 39.5% $67

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Al Kut

$63 9.5% 62.7% $106

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Al Kut

$8.9 * 1.4% 90.5% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Al Kut

$56 8.4% 3.5% $2

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 $183 in Al Kut. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $19 in Al Kut. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $152 – making Al Kut the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇮🇶 Al Kut

🕒 Local time

10:01 10:01 AM

18:01 6:01 PM

8 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

422,793

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.95 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IQD, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,501 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,682 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.95 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Al Kut 12,480 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Al Kut

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 Kut: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,639 in Medellin, $660 in Al Kut – roughly 148% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $990 in Al Kut. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Al Kut, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $183 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $660 in Al Kut. That’s a gap of about 148%.

Kindergarten costs $797 per month in Medellin and $138 in Al Kut. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Al Kut, where all-in costs run around $660, than in Medellin at $1,639. In Al Kut it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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