Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Alton

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $2,607 in Alton, rent and utilities included – about $11,600 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
125

Cost of Living Index in Alton
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Alton Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Alton

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,607

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Alton

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $2,607 in Alton, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Alton $2,607

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $3,875 in Alton, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Alton $3,875

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $5,143 in Alton, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Alton $5,143

Medellin is about 37% cheaper than Alton, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Medellin and Alton sit above the global median – Medellin by 20%, Alton by 92%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$27.13 £20.42

-70.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$105 £78.7

-55.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$10.75 £8.09

-11.63%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$5.69 £4.28

-47.10%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$3.03 £2.28

-40.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$2.20 £1.66

-35.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$9.07 £6.83

-64.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$7.96 £5.99

-27.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$1.81 £1.37

-16.57%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$2.02 £1.52

17.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$2.51 £1.89

-29.48%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$3.39 £2.55

-14.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$12.77 £9.61

-20.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$10.86 £8.18

-9.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$17.24 £12.98

-18.85%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$3.14 £2.36

26.43%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$1.42 £1.07

9.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$2.99 £2.25

-27.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$3.40 £2.56

-35.88%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$1.68 £1.26

16.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$1.81 £1.36

-12.15%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$1.47 £1.11

-21.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$1.85 £1.39

-32.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$23.77 £17.89

-83.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$10.50 £7.90

30.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,221

$2.35 £1.77

-29.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,103

$2.74 £2.06

-17.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$3.49 £2.62

-66.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

$98.0 £73.8

-21.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$5.46 £4.11

-76.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$3.39 £2.55

-39.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$25.69 £19.33

-66.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$2.10 £1.58

-35.71%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$38.2K £28.8K

-10.92%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$40.2K £30.2K

-13.68%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$369 £278

-54.08%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$18.30 £13.77

-25.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$40.58 £30.54

-30.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$46.16 £34.74

-5.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$17.88 £13.45

-61.35%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$2,877 £2,165

-72.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$35.7K £26.9K

-74.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$117 £87.9

-27.48%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$54.5 £41.04

6.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$128 £96.6

5.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$165 £124

-40.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$1,246 £938

-3.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$1,019 £767

-37.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$2,098 £1,579

-3.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$1,683 £1,267

-39.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

$5,091 £3,832

-18.09%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$3,807 £2,865

-49.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

4.74

130.80%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Alton: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Alton

$1K 39.1% 58.9% $378

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Alton

$334 12.8% 12.6% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Alton

$428 16.4% 103% $217

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Alton

$400 15.3% 136% $230

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Alton

$209 8% 23.7% $40

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Alton

$134 5.2% 43.6% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Alton

$82 3.1% 42.4% $24

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $1,246 in Alton. 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 $105 in Alton. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $334 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇬🇧 Alton

🕒 Local time

13:04 1:04 PM

18:04 6:04 PM

5 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

17,816

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 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 October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,502 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.753 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.838 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Alton 8,400 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Alton

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 Alton: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,639 in Medellin, $2,607 in Alton – roughly 59% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $3,911 in Alton. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $1,208 in Medellin and $1,246 in Alton. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Public transport costs about 21% less in Medellin. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $797 per month in Medellin and $2,877 in Alton. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Medellin, where all-in costs run around $1,639, than in Alton at $2,607. In Medellin it covers expenses comfortably, while in Alton it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

For expats, Medellin is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and the 59% gap matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.