Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Aqaba

For one person, living is cheaper in Aqaba: $907 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $8,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Aqaba
Learn more

Aqaba Living Index

Jump to prices

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Aqaba

🇯🇴 Jordan

$907

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Aqaba

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

A single person spends $1,614 per month in Medellin vs $907 in Aqaba, rent included.

Medellin $1,614
Aqaba $907

A couple spends around $2,402 per month in Medellin vs $1,490 in Aqaba, rent included.

Medellin $2,402
Aqaba $1,490

A family of three spends $3,190 per month in Medellin vs $2,073 in Aqaba, rent included.

Medellin $3,190
Aqaba $2,073

Medellin costs about 78% more than Aqaba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Aqaba is 33% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.93 COP 25.2K

$2.78 JOD 1.97

185.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.13 COP 146.3K

$69.4 JOD 49.11

-33.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$4.32 JOD 3.06

119.91%

Cappuccino

$3.11 COP 9,866

$4.39 JOD 3.11

-29.16%

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

$1.83 COP 5,800

$0.60 JOD 0.43

205.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,360

$0.60 JOD 0.42

130.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 COP 9,672

$8.25 JOD 5.84

-63.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.50 COP 17.4K

$10.75 JOD 7.61

-48.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 COP 4,600

$1.43 JOD 1.01

1.40%

White Bread (500g)

$2.36 COP 7,496

$0.51 JOD 0.36

362.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,328

$1.59 JOD 1.12

5.66%

Eggs

$2.86 COP 9,077

$1.72 JOD 1.22

66.28%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.3K

$5.55 JOD 3.93

83.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 COP 30.2K

$4.32 JOD 3.06

120.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.04 COP 44.5K

$10.00 JOD 7.08

40.40%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 COP 12.9K

$1.44 JOD 1.02

182.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,742

$1.40 JOD 0.99

7.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 COP 6,891

$1.07 JOD 0.76

102.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 COP 7,310

$0.69 JOD 0.49

234.78%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 COP 6,113

$0.68 JOD 0.48

183.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,196

$0.72 JOD 0.51

127.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,571

$0.60 JOD 0.42

88.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 COP 3,954

$0.53 JOD 0.38

135.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 COP 12.6K

$3.77 JOD 2.67

5.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 COP 42.3K

$17.23 JOD 12.20

-22.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 COP 5,384

$2.78 JOD 1.97

-38.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,525

$2.53 JOD 1.79

-6.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 COP 3,827

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 COP 4,179

$0.50 JOD 0.36

164.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,774

$1.38 JOD 0.98

55.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 COP 26.8K

$7.14 JOD 5.06

18.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 COP 4,114

$1.44 JOD 1.02

-9.72%

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

$28.0K COP 88.7M

$30.8K JOD 21.8K

-9.00%

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

$35.4K COP 112.3M

$31.6K JOD 22.3K

12.21%

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

$172 COP 545.6K

$127 JOD 90.0

35.38%

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

$13.37 COP 42.4K

$15.73 JOD 11.14

-15.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.73 COP 91.1K

$31.46 JOD 22.27

-8.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 COP 143.5K

$64.1 JOD 45.41

-29.46%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 COP 19.9K

$11.10 JOD 7.86

-43.42%

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

$770 COP 2.4M

$486 JOD 344

58.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.6M

$2,863 JOD 2,027

214.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.4 COP 274.0K

$27.70 JOD 19.61

211.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 COP 181.1K

$42.79 JOD 30.29

33.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 432.9K

$42.82 JOD 30.32

218.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 310.4K

$70.0 JOD 49.53

39.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 COP 3.3M

$277 JOD 196

280.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$616 COP 2.0M

$211 JOD 149

192.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

$669 JOD 474

182.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.2M

$459 JOD 325

122.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

$1,109 JOD 785

265.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

$572 JOD 405

193.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

$553 JOD 391

17.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

6.81

60.65%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Last update for Aqaba: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$616 38.2%

Aqaba

$211 23.3% 65.8% $405

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$295 18.3%

Aqaba

$190 20.9% 35.5% $105

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$214 13.3%

Aqaba

$174 19.2% 18.6% $40

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$170 10.5%

Aqaba

$82 9.1% 51.5% $88

Eating Out

Medellin

$168 10.4%

Aqaba

$155 17.1% 7.7% $13

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.8%

Aqaba

$7.4 * 0.8% 92.1% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.6%

Aqaba

$86 9.5% 49.4% $29

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,055 in Medellin versus $277 in Aqaba. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 18% higher in Medellin, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $46.00 in Medellin versus $69.0 in Aqaba. Groceries tell a different story – $295 in Medellin vs $190 in Aqaba – so Aqaba wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇯🇴 Aqaba

🕒 Local time

21:39 9:39 PM

05:39 5:39 AM

8 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

140,000

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Jordanian Dinar JOD د.ا

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

1 JOD = 1.41 USD

1 JOD = 1.26 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JOD, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Jordanian Dinar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.708 JOD (1 JOD = 1.41 USD). 1 EUR = 0.796 JOD (1 JOD = 1.26 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Aqaba 11,620 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Aqaba

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 Aqaba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 78%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,421 per month in Medellin and $1,360 in Aqaba. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Aqaba, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,614 in Medellin and $907 in Aqaba. That's a gap of about 78%.

Kindergarten costs $770 per month in Medellin and $486 in Aqaba. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Aqaba, where all-in costs run around $907, than in Medellin at $1,614. In Aqaba it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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