Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Bålsta

For one person, living is cheaper in Bålsta: $1,563 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $910 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
75

Cost of Living Index in Bålsta
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Bålsta Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Bålsta

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,563

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Bålsta

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $1,563 in Bålsta.

Medellin $1,639
Bålsta $1,563

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $2,445 in Bålsta.

Medellin $2,413
Bålsta $2,445

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $3,328 in Bålsta.

Medellin $3,186
Bålsta $3,328

Living in Medellin is roughly 5% more expensive than in Bålsta, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Bålsta 15% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$13.67 SEK 134

-40.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.7K

$66.8 SEK 656

-29.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.6K

$8.80 SEK 86.4

7.95%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,722

$3.95 SEK 38.79

-23.80%

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

$1.80 COP 5,801

$2.68 SEK 26.31

-32.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,554

$2.24 SEK 21.99

-37.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.2K

$7.16 SEK 70.3

-55.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.5K

$6.96 SEK 68.3

-17.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,869

$1.49 SEK 14.62

1.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,667

$2.00 SEK 19.66

19.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,712

$3.51 SEK 34.42

-49.57%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,320

$3.71 SEK 36.45

-22.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$11.01 SEK 108

-7.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.8K

$12.21 SEK 120

-19.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.1K

$11.02 SEK 108

26.95%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$2.50 SEK 24.52

58.80%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,005

$2.60 SEK 25.54

-40.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,039

$2.07 SEK 20.32

5.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,041

$2.90 SEK 28.42

-24.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,328

$1.50 SEK 14.75

30.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,125

$1.18 SEK 11.59

34.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,694

$1.55 SEK 15.20

-25.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,009

$0.99 SEK 9.73

25.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$7.26 SEK 71.3

-45.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.1K

$10.20 SEK 100

34.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,352

$1.54 SEK 15.07

7.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,281

$1.96 SEK 19.26

15.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,766

$3.28 SEK 32.18

-64.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.5K

$79.1 SEK 776

-2.15%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,089

$6.03 SEK 59.2

-78.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,603

$1.54 SEK 15.16

33.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$77.4 SEK 760

-88.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,343

$1.76 SEK 17.28

-23.30%

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

$34.1K COP 109.8M

$33.2K SEK 325.6K

2.68%

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

$34.7K COP 111.8M

$33.8K SEK 331.6K

2.59%

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

$170 COP 547.0K

$50.1 SEK 491

238.89%

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

$13.55 COP 43.7K

$20.16 SEK 198

-32.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.5K

$39.59 SEK 389

-29.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 140.9K

$37.16 SEK 365

17.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.4K

$26.37 SEK 259

-34.81%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$12.93 SEK 127

-46.56%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$121 SEK 1,189

557.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$5,046 SEK 49.5K

80.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.2K

$69.2 SEK 679

22.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 186.9K

$9.93 SEK 97.4

483.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.2K

$81.0 SEK 794

66.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 315.6K

$113 SEK 1,107

-13.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$801 SEK 7,861

50.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$610 SEK 5,982

5.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$1,368 SEK 13.4K

48.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$1,030 SEK 10.1K

-1.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.4M

$4,003 SEK 39.3K

4.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$2,823 SEK 27.7K

-32.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$3,868 SEK 38.0K

-83.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

2.8

290.71%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Bålsta: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Bålsta

$610 39% 5% $32

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Bålsta

$299 19.1% 0.6% $1.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Bålsta

$110 7% 48% $101

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Bålsta

$253 16.2% 48.9% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Bålsta

$123 7.9% 27.3% $46

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Bålsta

$106 6.8% 13.2% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Bålsta

$63 4% 9.6% $5.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $801 in Bålsta. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bålsta pays about 5.9 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $67 in Bålsta for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $299 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇸🇪 Bålsta

🕒 Local time

19:06 7:06 PM

01:06 1:06 AM

6 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

13,138

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

100 SEK = 10.19 USD

100 SEK = 9.13 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,224 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,600 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 9.81 SEK (1 SEK = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 SEK (100 SEK = 9.13 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Bålsta 9,580 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Bålsta

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 Bålsta: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bålsta wins on cost – living expenses run 5% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Bålsta the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 83% 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 $801 in Bålsta. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,639 per month in Medellin versus $1,563 in Bålsta – Bålsta is about 5% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Dining out is cheaper in Medellin – a meal for two runs $47 versus $67 in Bålsta. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Bålsta is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.