Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Bacong

For one person, living is cheaper in Bacong: $647 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $11,600 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
31

Cost of Living Index in Bacong
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Bacong Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Bacong

🇵🇭 Philippines

$647

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Bacong

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

A single person spends $1,614 per month in Medellin vs $647 in Bacong, rent included.

Medellin $1,614
Bacong $647

A couple spends around $2,402 per month in Medellin vs $981 in Bacong, rent included.

Medellin $2,402
Bacong $981

A family of three spends $3,190 per month in Medellin vs $1,314 in Bacong, rent included.

Medellin $3,190
Bacong $1,314

Medellin costs about 149% more than Bacong, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Bacong is 52% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.93 COP 25.2K

$2.73 ₱172

190.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.13 COP 146.3K

$18.84 ₱1,186

144.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$3.14 ₱198

202.55%

Cappuccino

$3.11 COP 9,866

$2.02 ₱127

53.96%

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

$1.83 COP 5,800

$0.68 ₱42.84

169.12%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,360

$0.33 ₱20.79

318.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 COP 9,672

$0.92 ₱57.9

231.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.50 COP 17.4K

$1.72 ₱108

219.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 COP 4,600

$1.60 ₱101

-9.38%

White Bread (500g)

$2.36 COP 7,496

$1.15 ₱72.5

105.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,328

$0.88 ₱55.4

90.91%

Eggs

$2.86 COP 9,077

$2.07 ₱130

38.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.3K

$5.95 ₱374

71.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 COP 30.2K

$3.98 ₱251

139.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.04 COP 44.5K

$6.30 ₱397

122.86%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 COP 12.9K

$3.28 ₱206

24.09%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,742

$1.08 ₱67.8

38.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 COP 6,891

$2.93 ₱184

-25.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 COP 7,310

$1.43 ₱90.3

61.54%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 COP 6,113

$2.38 ₱150

-18.91%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,196

$2.72 ₱172

-39.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,571

$1.39 ₱87.6

-18.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 COP 3,954

$0.81 ₱51.3

54.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 COP 12.6K

$2.99 ₱188

33.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 COP 42.3K

$6.46 ₱407

106.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 COP 5,384

$1.08 ₱67.8

57.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,525

$1.31 ₱82.3

80.92%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 COP 3,827

$0.22 ₱14.13

450.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

$9.96 ₱627

667.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 COP 4,179

$0.79 ₱49.61

67.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,774

$0.36 ₱22.84

494.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 COP 26.8K

$2.45 ₱155

245.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 COP 4,114

$0.99 ₱62.6

31.31%

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

$28.0K COP 88.7M

$21.0K ₱1.3M

33.01%

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

$35.4K COP 112.3M

$19.0K ₱1.2M

86.69%

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

$172 COP 545.6K

$51.4 ₱3,233

235.07%

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

$13.37 COP 42.4K

$9.28 ₱584

44.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.73 COP 91.1K

$27.26 ₱1,716

5.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 COP 143.5K

$32.11 ₱2,022

40.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

$3.98 ₱251

328.14%

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 COP 19.9K

$4.66 ₱294

34.76%

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

$770 COP 2.4M

$32.30 ₱2,034

2284.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.6M

$8,576 ₱539.9K

5.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.4 COP 274.0K

$33.62 ₱2,117

157.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 COP 181.1K

$19.41 ₱1,222

194.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 432.9K

$56.3 ₱3,543

142.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 310.4K

$23.62 ₱1,487

314.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 COP 3.3M

$147 ₱9,270

616.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$616 COP 2.0M

$191 ₱12.0K

222.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

$587 ₱36.9K

222.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.2M

$305 ₱19.2K

235.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

$2,384 ₱150.1K

70.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

$1,056 ₱66.5K

59.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

7.33

49.25%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Last update for Bacong: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$616 38.2%

Bacong

$191 29.5% 69% $425

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$295 18.3%

Bacong

$187 28.8% 36.7% $108

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$214 13.3%

Bacong

$88 13.6% 59% $126

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$170 10.5%

Bacong

$60 9.2% 64.8% $110

Eating Out

Medellin

$168 10.4%

Bacong

$68 10.4% 59.9% $101

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.8%

Bacong

$13 2.1% 85.6% $80

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.6%

Bacong

$41 6.4% 28.3% $16

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,055 in Medellin versus $147 in Bacong. 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 $46.00 in Medellin versus $19.00 in Bacong. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $295 vs $187 – making Bacong the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇵🇭 Bacong

🕒 Local time

17:09 5:09 PM

06:09 6:09 AM

13 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

41,207

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Bacong 17,300 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Bacong

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 Bacong: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 149%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,421 per month in Medellin and $971 in Bacong. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Bacong, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $46.00 in Medellin and $19.00 in Bacong. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,614 in Medellin and $647 in Bacong. That's a gap of about 149%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Bacong, where all-in costs run around $647, than in Medellin at $1,614. In Bacong it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Bacong – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Bacong. 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.