Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Asmara

For one person, living is cheaper in Asmara: $1,374 a month against $1,625 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Medellin outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
67

Cost of Living Index in Asmara
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Asmara Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,625

/mo nomad

Asmara

🇪🇷 Eritrea

$1,374

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Asmara

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,625 in Medellin versus $1,374 in Asmara.

Medellin $1,625
Asmara $1,374

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,412 in Medellin versus $2,159 in Asmara.

Medellin $2,412
Asmara $2,159

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,199 in Medellin versus $2,943 in Asmara.

Medellin $3,199
Asmara $2,943

Living in Medellin is roughly 18% more expensive than in Asmara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Asmara 1% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.30 COP 26.3K

$20.76 ERN 312

-60.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.91 COP 148.7K

$33.78 ERN 507

38.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.24 COP 29.3K

$6.02 ERN 90.5

53.49%

Cappuccino

$3.05 COP 9,676

$0.77 ERN 11.61

296.10%

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

$1.80 COP 5,707

$1.02 ERN 15.37

76.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,382

$0.97 ERN 14.59

42.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 COP 10.3K

$0.61 ERN 9.20

431.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.56 COP 17.6K

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 COP 4,760

$1.56 ERN 23.41

-3.85%

White Bread (500g)

$2.37 COP 7,508

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 COP 5,377

$2.26 ERN 33.95

-24.78%

Eggs

$2.96 COP 9,379

$4.48 ERN 67.3

-33.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.22 COP 32.4K

$2.93 ERN 43.95

248.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.74 COP 30.9K

$27.11 ERN 407

-64.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.90 COP 44.1K

$9.94 ERN 149

39.84%

Apples (1kg)

$4.13 COP 13.1K

$12.25 ERN 184

-66.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,839

$1.26 ERN 18.86

21.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 COP 7,052

$2.03 ERN 30.53

9.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.27 COP 7,194

$1.14 ERN 17.18

99.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 COP 6,311

$1.75 ERN 26.31

13.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 COP 5,285

$0.95 ERN 14.27

75.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 COP 3,742

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,919

$2.25 ERN 33.78

-44.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.87 COP 12.3K

Wine (Bottle)

$13.78 COP 43.7K

$11.98 ERN 180

15.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,256

$0.98 ERN 14.71

69.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 COP 7,615

$1.03 ERN 15.43

133.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.24 COP 3,944

$0.14 ERN 2.10

785.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.2 COP 248.0K

$7.98 ERN 120

880.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 COP 4,044

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.15 COP 6,803

$0.58 ERN 8.70

270.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.37 COP 26.5K

$10.18 ERN 153

-17.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,288

$2.55 ERN 38.23

-47.06%

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

$34.8K COP 110.2M

$67.7K ERN 1.0M

-48.62%

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

$34.7K COP 110.0M

$70.9K ERN 1.1M

-51.06%

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

$167 COP 528.4K

$25.48 ERN 383

554.04%

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

$13.62 COP 43.2K

$68.1 ERN 1,023

-80.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.12 COP 92.3K

$201 ERN 3,012

-85.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.09 COP 143.0K

$26.63 ERN 400

69.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.18 COP 54.5K

$4.86 ERN 73.1

253.50%

Cinema Ticket

$6.97 COP 22.1K

$1.22 ERN 18.28

471.31%

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

$790 COP 2.5M

$24.87 ERN 374

3076.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,041 COP 28.7M

$2,595 ERN 39.0K

248.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.8 COP 278.4K

$137 ERN 2,060

-35.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.2 COP 184.4K

$122 ERN 1,837

-52.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$139 COP 440.7K

$197 ERN 2,964

-29.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.9 COP 313.5K

$148 ERN 2,229

-33.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 COP 3.3M

$252 ERN 3,781

308.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$620 COP 2.0M

$199 ERN 2,984

211.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,881 COP 6.0M

$454 ERN 6,824

313.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 COP 3.2M

$420 ERN 6,305

140.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,988 COP 12.6M

$1,247 ERN 18.7K

219.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,702 COP 5.4M

$2,481 ERN 37.3K

-31.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$663 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

-8.83%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 19, 2026

Last update for Asmara: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$619 38.1%

Asmara

$199 14.5% 67.9% $421

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$298 18.3%

Asmara

$364 * 26.5% 22.3% $66

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$209 12.9%

Asmara

$294 21.4% 40.5% $85

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$173 10.6%

Asmara

$272 19.8% 57.7% $100

Eating Out

Medellin

$171 10.5%

Asmara

$204 * 14.9% 19.7% $34

Getting Around

Medellin

$95 5.9%

Asmara

$11 * 0.8% 88% $84

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$59 3.6%

Asmara

$29 2.1% 50.8% $30

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,028 in Medellin and $252 in Asmara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $47.00 in Medellin vs $34.00 in Asmara. Groceries flip the comparison at $298 vs $364, with Medellin cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇪🇷 Asmara

🕒 Local time

12:48 12:48 PM

20:48 8:48 PM

8 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

579,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Eritrean Nakfa ERN ናቕፋ

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

100 ERN = 6.66 USD

100 ERN = 5.92 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ERN, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Eritrean Nakfa exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 15.02 ERN (100 ERN = 6.66 USD). 1 EUR = 16.89 ERN (100 ERN = 5.92 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Between locations

Medellin Asmara 12,420 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Asmara

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 Asmara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin and Asmara differ by about 18% in total monthly costs ($1,625 vs $1,374 including rent). Asmara is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,437 in Medellin and $2,062 in Asmara 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: $1,028 in Medellin versus $252 in Asmara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Asmara runs roughly 880% less than in Medellin. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $790 in Medellin versus $24.87 in Asmara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,374 in Asmara versus $1,625 in Medellin, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Asmara but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Asmara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Medellin and Asmara are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Asmara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 18% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.