Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Az Zubayr

For one person, living is cheaper in Az Zubayr: $656 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 Az Zubayr
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Az Zubayr Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Az Zubayr

🇮🇶 Iraq

$656

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Az Zubayr

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $656 in Az Zubayr.

Medellin $1,639
Az Zubayr $656

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $1,021 in Az Zubayr.

Medellin $2,413
Az Zubayr $1,021

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $1,387 in Az Zubayr.

Medellin $3,186
Az Zubayr $1,387

Living in Medellin is roughly 150% more expensive than in Az Zubayr, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Az Zubayr is 52% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$4.37 IQD 6,602

85.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.7K

$19.52 IQD 29.5K

141.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.6K

$5.58 IQD 8,436

70.25%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,722

$2.65 IQD 4,001

13.58%

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

$1.80 COP 5,801

$0.33 IQD 497

445.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,554

$0.20 IQD 297

605.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.2K

$3.38 IQD 5,107

-5.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.5K

$2.28 IQD 3,447

152.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,869

$1.00 IQD 1,513

51.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,667

$0.76 IQD 1,152

213.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,712

$1.59 IQD 2,399

11.32%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,320

$1.46 IQD 2,203

97.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$4.38 IQD 6,621

132.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.8K

$3.43 IQD 5,189

187.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.1K

$12.09 IQD 18.3K

15.72%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$1.07 IQD 1,623

271.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,005

$0.99 IQD 1,502

56.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,039

$1.03 IQD 1,561

111.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,041

$0.66 IQD 994

230.30%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,328

$0.57 IQD 855

243.86%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,125

$0.67 IQD 1,012

137.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,694

$0.56 IQD 852

105.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,009

$0.44 IQD 671

181.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$1.47 IQD 2,225

169.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.1K

$11.27 IQD 17.0K

21.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,352

$1.42 IQD 2,149

16.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,281

$1.62 IQD 2,450

39.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,766

$0.32 IQD 479

265.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,089

$1.68 IQD 2,543

-24.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,603

$1.12 IQD 1,698

83.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$5.39 IQD 8,146

58.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,343

$0.53 IQD 803

154.72%

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

$34.1K COP 109.8M

$15.9K IQD 24.0M

114.69%

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

$34.7K COP 111.8M

$16.5K IQD 24.9M

110.51%

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

$170 COP 547.0K

$94.9 IQD 143.4K

78.80%

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

$13.55 COP 43.7K

$11.70 IQD 17.7K

15.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.5K

$27.28 IQD 41.2K

2.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 140.9K

$39.31 IQD 59.4K

11.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.4K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$7.83 IQD 11.8K

-11.75%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$137 IQD 206.7K

482.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$2,772 IQD 4.2M

228.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.2K

$18.27 IQD 27.6K

363.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 186.9K

$21.75 IQD 32.9K

166.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.2K

$53.7 IQD 81.2K

151.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 315.6K

$39.29 IQD 59.4K

149.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$200 IQD 302.7K

502.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$133 IQD 200.3K

384.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$418 IQD 631.5K

385.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$315 IQD 476.0K

221.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.4M

$833 IQD 1.3M

400.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$479 IQD 723.6K

298.88%

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 Az Zubayr: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Az Zubayr

$133 20.2% 79.3% $509

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Az Zubayr

$159 24.2% 46.6% $138

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Az Zubayr

$134 20.4% 36.6% $77

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Az Zubayr

$107 16.3% 36.9% $63

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Az Zubayr

$60 9.1% 64.6% $109

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Az Zubayr

$8.6 * 1.3% 90.8% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Az Zubayr

$55 8.4% 4.4% $2.6

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 $1,208 in Medellin and $200 in Az Zubayr. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $20 in Az Zubayr for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $159 per month, with Az Zubayr cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇮🇶 Az Zubayr

🕒 Local time

15:35 3:35 PM

23:35 11:35 PM

8 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

370,000

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.93 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 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).

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,687 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.93 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Az Zubayr 12,740 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Az Zubayr

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 Az Zubayr: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $656 in Az Zubayr, so Az Zubayr is about 60% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,459 in Medellin and $983 in Az Zubayr 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: $1,208 in Medellin versus $200 in Az Zubayr. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 87% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,639 per month in Medellin versus $656 in Az Zubayr – Az Zubayr is about 60% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $656 in Az Zubayr versus $1,639 in Medellin, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Az Zubayr but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Az Zubayr 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.