Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Ar Ramadi

For one person, living is cheaper in Ar Ramadi: $657 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 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 Ar Ramadi
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Ar Ramadi Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Ar Ramadi

🇮🇶 Iraq

$657

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Ar Ramadi

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $657 in Ar Ramadi, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Ar Ramadi $657

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,037 in Ar Ramadi, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Ar Ramadi $1,037

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $1,416 in Ar Ramadi, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Ar Ramadi $1,416

Medellin costs about 149% more than Ar Ramadi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.6K

$4.74 IQD 7,156

70.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.7K

$22.71 IQD 34.3K

107.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.0K

$5.52 IQD 8,329

72.10%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,532

$2.65 IQD 4,005

13.58%

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

$1.80 COP 5,688

$0.32 IQD 478

462.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,465

$0.20 IQD 297

605.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.0K

$3.25 IQD 4,913

-2.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.2K

$2.86 IQD 4,323

101.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,774

$1.03 IQD 1,552

46.60%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,517

$0.79 IQD 1,190

201.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,601

$1.45 IQD 2,192

22.07%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,138

$1.55 IQD 2,338

86.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.2K

$3.97 IQD 6,001

156.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.2K

$3.52 IQD 5,321

180.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.2K

$11.45 IQD 17.3K

22.18%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.6K

$0.96 IQD 1,447

313.54%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,907

$0.93 IQD 1,405

66.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,901

$0.95 IQD 1,433

129.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,904

$0.64 IQD 967

240.63%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,205

$0.55 IQD 830

256.36%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,025

$0.57 IQD 861

178.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,622

$0.62 IQD 935

85.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,930

$0.50 IQD 754

148.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$1.69 IQD 2,559

134.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.3K

$11.33 IQD 17.1K

20.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,247

$1.51 IQD 2,273

9.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,139

$1.85 IQD 2,789

22.16%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,692

$0.32 IQD 488

265.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 244.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,009

$1.65 IQD 2,497

-23.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,474

$1.13 IQD 1,701

81.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.0K

$6.08 IQD 9,184

40.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,258

$0.48 IQD 730

181.25%

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

$34.1K COP 107.7M

$19.0K IQD 28.6M

79.72%

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

$34.7K COP 109.6M

$16.0K IQD 24.1M

116.88%

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

$170 COP 536.4K

$83.3 IQD 125.8K

103.64%

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

$13.55 COP 42.8K

$12.23 IQD 18.5K

10.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.7K

$27.20 IQD 41.1K

3.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 138.2K

$41.08 IQD 62.0K

6.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.3K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.9K

$10.03 IQD 15.1K

-31.11%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$149 IQD 225.1K

434.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.8M

$2,779 IQD 4.2M

227.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 267.8K

$20.31 IQD 30.7K

317.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 183.2K

$25.65 IQD 38.7K

125.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 426.7K

$63.6 IQD 96.0K

112.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 309.4K

$41.71 IQD 63.0K

134.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$233 IQD 351.5K

418.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$130 IQD 196.2K

393.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$375 IQD 566.3K

440.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$308 IQD 464.9K

228.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.2M

$807 IQD 1.2M

416.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$483 IQD 729.7K

295.29%

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 Ar Ramadi: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Ar Ramadi

$130 19.8% 79.8% $512

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Ar Ramadi

$157 23.8% 47.3% $140

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Ar Ramadi

$123 18.7% 41.9% $89

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Ar Ramadi

$110 16.8% 34.9% $59

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Ar Ramadi

$68 10.4% 59.7% $101

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Ar Ramadi

$8.6 * 1.3% 90.8% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Ar Ramadi

$61 9.3% 6.3% $3.6

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 $233 in Ar Ramadi. 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 $23 in Ar Ramadi. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $157 – making Ar Ramadi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇮🇶 Ar Ramadi

🕒 Local time

15:24 3:24 PM

23:24 11:24 PM

8 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

223,500

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.16 USD

10,000 COP = 2.84 EUR

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.94 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 29, 2026: 1 USD = 3,162 COP (10,000 COP = 3.16 USD). 1 EUR = 3,523 COP (10,000 COP = 2.84 EUR).

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 1,510 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,683 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.94 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Ar Ramadi 12,220 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Ar Ramadi

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 Ar Ramadi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin costs about 149% more than Ar Ramadi, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $986 in Ar Ramadi. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Ar Ramadi, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $233 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $657 in Ar Ramadi. That makes Ar Ramadi about 60% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $797 per month in Medellin and $149 in Ar Ramadi. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Ar Ramadi, where all-in costs run around $657, than in Medellin at $1,639. In Ar Ramadi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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