Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Aswan

For one person, living is cheaper in Aswan: $434 a month against $1,625 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $14,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Medellin
🇨🇴 Colombia
$1,625
/mo nomad
Aswan
🇪🇬 Egypt
$434
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Aswan

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

A single person spends $1,625 per month in Medellin vs $434 in Aswan, rent included.

  • Medellin $1,625
  • Aswan $434

A couple spends around $2,412 per month in Medellin vs $701 in Aswan, rent included.

  • Medellin $2,412
  • Aswan $701

A family of three spends $3,199 per month in Medellin vs $969 in Aswan, rent included.

  • Medellin $3,199
  • Aswan $969

Medellin costs about 274% more than Aswan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Aswan is 68% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Medellin
Aswan
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$8.30 COP 26.3K
$3.88 E£207
113.92%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$46.91 COP 148.7K
$14.90 E£796
214.83%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.24 COP 29.3K
$4.69 E£250
97.01%
Cappuccino
$3.05 COP 9,676
$1.31 E£70.0
132.82%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.80 COP 5,707
$0.30 E£15.98
500.00%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.38 COP 4,382
$0.14 E£7.36
885.71%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.24 COP 10.3K
$1.30 E£69.2
149.23%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.56 COP 17.6K
$2.88 E£154
93.06%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Medellin
Aswan
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.50 COP 4,760
$0.87 E£46.25
72.41%
White Bread (500g)
$2.37 COP 7,508
$0.65 E£34.78
264.62%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.70 COP 5,377
$0.58 E£31.05
193.10%
Eggs
$2.96 COP 9,379
$1.20 E£64.2
146.67%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.22 COP 32.4K
$3.24 E£173
215.43%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.74 COP 30.9K
$4.08 E£218
138.73%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$13.90 COP 44.1K
$7.85 E£419
77.07%
Apples (1kg)
$4.13 COP 13.1K
$1.47 E£78.3
180.95%
Banana (1kg)
$1.53 COP 4,839
$0.67 E£35.88
128.36%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.22 COP 7,052
$0.49 E£26.11
353.06%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.27 COP 7,194
$0.35 E£18.89
548.57%
Potato (1kg)
$1.99 COP 6,311
$0.34 E£18.31
485.29%
Onion (1kg)
$1.67 COP 5,285
$0.33 E£17.85
406.06%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.18 COP 3,742
$0.25 E£13.21
372.00%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.24 COP 3,919
$0.17 E£8.83
629.41%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.87 COP 12.3K
$1.87 E£99.8
106.95%
Wine (Bottle)
$13.78 COP 43.7K
$6.32 E£338
118.04%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.66 COP 5,256
$1.20 E£64.0
38.33%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.40 COP 7,615
$2.00 E£107
20.00%
🚌 Getting Around
Medellin
Aswan
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.24 COP 3,944
$0.18 E£9.69
588.89%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$78.2 COP 248.0K
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.28 COP 4,044
$0.40 E£21.12
220.00%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.15 COP 6,803
$0.22 E£11.60
877.27%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$8.37 COP 26.5K
$1.19 E£63.8
603.36%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.35 COP 4,288
$0.45 E£24.21
200.00%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$34.8K COP 110.2M
$31.9K E£1.7M
9.02%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$34.7K COP 110.0M
$25.1K E£1.3M
38.45%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Medellin
Aswan
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$167 COP 528.4K
$15.10 E£806
1003.64%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$13.62 COP 43.2K
$6.64 E£354
105.12%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$29.12 COP 92.3K
$13.16 E£703
121.28%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Medellin
Aswan
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$45.09 COP 143.0K
$16.36 E£874
175.61%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$17.18 COP 54.5K
$4.78 E£255
259.41%
Cinema Ticket
$6.97 COP 22.1K
$2.93 E£157
137.88%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Medellin
Aswan
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$790 COP 2.5M
$86.6 E£4,622
812.73%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$9,041 COP 28.7M
$1,865 E£99.6K
384.86%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Medellin
Aswan
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$87.8 COP 278.4K
$16.97 E£906
417.38%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$58.2 COP 184.4K
$45.04 E£2,405
29.11%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$139 COP 440.7K
$115 E£6,132
21.03%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$98.9 COP 313.5K
$55.8 E£2,982
77.06%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Medellin
Aswan
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,028 COP 3.3M
$133 E£7,091
674.37%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$620 COP 2.0M
$76.9 E£4,108
705.28%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,881 COP 6.0M
$253 E£13.5K
643.21%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,008 COP 3.2M
$144 E£7,713
597.58%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,988 COP 12.6M
$767 E£40.9K
420.21%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,702 COP 5.4M
$347 E£18.5K
390.27%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Medellin
Aswan
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$663 COP 2.1M
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
10.94
16.21
-32.51%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 19, 2026

Last update for Aswan: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Medellin
$619
Aswan
$77 87.6% $543
Groceries & Markets
Medellin
$298
Aswan
$118 60.3% $179
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Medellin
$209
Aswan
$35 83.3% $175
Clothing & Footwear
Medellin
$173
Aswan
$105 39.4% $68
Eating Out
Medellin
$171
Aswan
$75 56.2% $96
Getting Around
Medellin
$95
Aswan
$2.2 * 97.7% $93
Sport & Entertainment
Medellin
$59
Aswan
$22 62.3% $37

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,028 in Medellin versus $133 in Aswan. 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 $47.00 in Medellin versus $15.00 in Aswan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $298 vs $118 – making Aswan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇨🇴 Medellin
🇪🇬 Aswan
🕒 Local time
07:31 7:31 AM
15:31 3:31 PM
8 h ahead of Medellin
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
2,486,723
241,261
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

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).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 53.4 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 60.03 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Medellin Aswan 11,570 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Medellin
  • Aswan

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 Aswan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Aswan cheaper than Medellin?
Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 274%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,437 per month in Medellin and $651 in Aswan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Aswan, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.
Is eating out cheaper in Medellin or in Aswan?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $47.00 in Medellin and $15.00 in Aswan. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
How do food prices compare in Medellin and in Aswan?
Groceries cost about 152% more in Medellin, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Medellin or in Aswan?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Aswan, where all-in costs run around $434, than in Medellin at $1,625. In Aswan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Medellin or Aswan more family-friendly?
Families tend to lean toward Aswan – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Aswan. 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.

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