Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Auckland

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $2,421 in Auckland, rent and utilities included – about $9,400 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
117

Cost of Living Index in Auckland
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Auckland Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Auckland

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,421

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Auckland

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $2,421 in Auckland.

Medellin $1,639
Auckland $2,421

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $3,382 in Auckland.

Medellin $2,413
Auckland $3,382

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $4,343 in Auckland.

Medellin $3,186
Auckland $4,343

Living in Medellin costs roughly 32% less than in Auckland, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Auckland 78% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$14.26 NZ$25.32

-43.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.7K

$67.0 NZ$119

-29.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.6K

$9.12 NZ$16.20

4.17%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,722

$3.47 NZ$6.17

-13.26%

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

$1.80 COP 5,801

$2.04 NZ$3.62

-11.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,554

$1.75 NZ$3.10

-19.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.2K

$6.79 NZ$12.05

-53.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.5K

$6.78 NZ$12.03

-15.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,869

$1.92 NZ$3.40

-21.35%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,667

$2.17 NZ$3.85

9.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,712

$1.83 NZ$3.26

-3.28%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,320

$6.16 NZ$10.94

-53.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$8.97 NZ$15.93

13.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.8K

$9.99 NZ$17.73

-1.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.1K

$17.72 NZ$31.47

-21.05%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$2.97 NZ$5.27

33.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,005

$2.08 NZ$3.70

-25.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,039

$3.07 NZ$5.46

-28.99%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,041

$5.72 NZ$10.15

-61.89%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,328

$2.17 NZ$3.85

-9.68%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,125

$1.54 NZ$2.74

3.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,694

$2.04 NZ$3.63

-43.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,009

$1.10 NZ$1.95

12.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$27.07 NZ$48.06

-85.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.1K

$10.21 NZ$18.13

33.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,352

$2.87 NZ$5.10

-42.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,281

$3.38 NZ$6.00

-33.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,766

$1.93 NZ$3.43

-39.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.5K

$123 NZ$218

-37.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,089

$2.29 NZ$4.06

-44.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,603

$2.02 NZ$3.59

1.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$32.32 NZ$57.4

-73.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,343

$1.83 NZ$3.25

-26.23%

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

$34.1K COP 109.8M

$27.2K NZ$48.3K

25.12%

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

$34.7K COP 111.8M

$22.2K NZ$39.3K

56.53%

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

$170 COP 547.0K

$184 NZ$327

-8.01%

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

$13.55 COP 43.7K

$26.77 NZ$47.53

-49.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.5K

$51.6 NZ$91.5

-45.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 140.9K

$42.05 NZ$74.7

3.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.4K

$18.31 NZ$32.50

-6.12%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$12.18 NZ$21.62

-43.27%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$1,063 NZ$1,888

-25.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$19.5K NZ$34.7K

-53.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.2K

$80.3 NZ$143

5.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 186.9K

$39.90 NZ$70.8

45.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.2K

$92.7 NZ$165

45.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 315.6K

$113 NZ$200

-13.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$1,271 NZ$2,256

-4.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$1,213 NZ$2,153

-47.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$2,222 NZ$3,945

-8.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$1,658 NZ$2,943

-38.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.4M

$7,413 NZ$13.2K

-43.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$5,429 NZ$9,638

-64.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$2,958 NZ$5,251

-77.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.37

103.72%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Auckland: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Auckland

$1.2K 50.1% 89% $571

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Auckland

$344 14.2% 15.7% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Auckland

$263 10.9% 24.4% $51

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Auckland

$246 10.2% 44.9% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Auckland

$147 6.1% 13.3% $22

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Auckland

$143 5.9% 52.9% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Auckland

$66 2.7% 15.4% $8.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $1,271 in Auckland. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Auckland pays about 4.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $67 in Auckland for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $344 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇳🇿 Auckland

🕒 Local time

15:14 3:14 PM

09:14 9:14 AM

18 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

1,463,000

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.504 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 3,224 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,600 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.563 USD). 1 EUR = 1.98 NZD (1 NZD = 0.504 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Auckland 12,170 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Auckland

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 Auckland: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin wins on cost – living expenses run 32% lower than in Auckland. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Medellin the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 78% lower in Medellin. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,208 in Medellin versus $1,271 in Auckland. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $797 in Medellin versus $1,063 in Auckland. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 16% higher in Auckland. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both work as nomad bases, but Medellin delivers better value at $1,639 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Medellin hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Medellin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 32% less than in Auckland. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.