Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Artem

For one person, living is cheaper in Artem: $1,221 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Artem
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Artem Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Artem

🇷🇺 Russia

$1,221

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Artem

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,692 in Medellin versus $1,221 in Artem.

Medellin $1,692
Artem $1,221

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,471 in Medellin versus $1,881 in Artem.

Medellin $2,471
Artem $1,881

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,249 in Medellin versus $2,540 in Artem.

Medellin $3,249
Artem $2,540

Living in Medellin is roughly 39% more expensive than in Artem, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 25% above, Artem is 10% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 26.9K

$12.45 ₽1,016

-33.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.3K

$36.27 ₽2,958

28.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.6K

$6.87 ₽560

37.85%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.1K

$3.71 ₽303

-15.63%

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

$1.77 COP 5,705

$1.25 ₽102

41.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,601

$0.68 ₽55.3

108.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$1.70 ₽139

85.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.4K

$2.50 ₽204

128.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,950

$1.75 ₽143

-12.57%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,401

$0.68 ₽55.7

236.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,282

$1.85 ₽151

4.86%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,905

$2.61 ₽213

17.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.3K

$14.08 ₽1,149

-29.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.7K

$6.46 ₽526

61.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.1K

$11.39 ₽929

22.56%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$3.17 ₽259

27.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,937

$2.17 ₽177

-29.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,797

$2.84 ₽231

-26.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,409

$5.03 ₽410

-54.47%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,813

$1.12 ₽91.3

88.39%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,521

$1.18 ₽96.4

44.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,780

$1.24 ₽101

-5.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,104

$1.26 ₽103

25.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.6K

$3.12 ₽254

25.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.4K

$8.69 ₽708

61.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,690

$1.22 ₽99.7

44.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,760

$2.03 ₽165

33.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,811

$0.54 ₽43.87

118.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 246.4K

$25.81 ₽2,105

195.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,836

$2.41 ₽196

-24.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,878

$0.35 ₽28.50

508.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.3K

$6.08 ₽496

33.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,119

$0.85 ₽69.5

50.59%

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

$34.4K COP 111.2M

$53.7K ₽4.4M

-35.81%

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

$34.1K COP 110.3M

$41.5K ₽3.4M

-17.83%

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

$178 COP 574.1K

$162 ₽13.2K

10.04%

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

$13.89 COP 44.9K

$8.01 ₽654

73.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.3K

$9.60 ₽783

220.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 135.5K

$32.91 ₽2,684

27.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.3K

$22.89 ₽1,867

-26.61%

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.1K

$6.39 ₽521

16.90%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$364 ₽29.7K

117.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.7M

$6,422 ₽523.8K

91.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 278.9K

$89.0 ₽7,257

-2.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 191.4K

$62.7 ₽5,111

-5.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 446.9K

$113 ₽9,201

22.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 319.2K

$149 ₽12.1K

-33.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$436 ₽35.5K

207.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$323 ₽26.3K

106.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$861 ₽70.2K

129.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$567 ₽46.3K

82.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.2M

$2,031 ₽165.7K

101.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$1,450 ₽118.2K

33.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

23.6

-53.64%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Artem: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Artem

$323 26.4% 51.6% $344

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Artem

$270 22.1% 12.3% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Artem

$179 14.7% 19.4% $43

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Artem

$186 15.2% 7.8% $13

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Artem

$186 15.2% 8% $14

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Artem

$32 2.6% 65.6% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Artem

$46 3.7% 19.7% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,341 in Medellin and $436 in Artem. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $36 in Artem for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $307 vs $270 per month, with Artem cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇷🇺 Artem

🕒 Local time

23:05 11:05 PM

14:05 2:05 PM

15 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

104,926

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

100 RUB = 1.23 USD

100 RUB = 1.09 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3,230 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,626 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 81.56 RUB (100 RUB = 1.23 USD). 1 EUR = 91.56 RUB (100 RUB = 1.09 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Artem 13,830 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Artem

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 Artem: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Artem wins on cost – living expenses run 28% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Artem the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $2,538 in Medellin and $1,832 in Artem to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,341 in Medellin versus $436 in Artem. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Artem runs roughly 66% less than in Medellin. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $790 in Medellin versus $364 in Artem. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Artem is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Artem gentler on the wallet – expenses run 28% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.