Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Bangi

For one person, living is cheaper in Bangi: $938 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Bangi
Learn more

Bangi Living Index

Jump to prices

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Bangi

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Bangi

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $938 in Bangi.

Medellin $1,639
Bangi $938

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $1,320 in Bangi.

Medellin $2,413
Bangi $1,320

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $1,703 in Bangi.

Medellin $3,186
Bangi $1,703

Living in Medellin is roughly 75% more expensive than in Bangi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Bangi is 31% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$3.40 MYR 13.80

137.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.7K

$13.69 MYR 55.5

243.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.6K

$3.21 MYR 13.02

195.95%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,722

$2.92 MYR 11.85

3.08%

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

$1.80 COP 5,801

$0.78 MYR 3.15

130.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,554

$0.60 MYR 2.42

135.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.2K

$4.44 MYR 18.01

-28.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.5K

$6.34 MYR 25.70

-9.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,869

$1.61 MYR 6.53

-6.21%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,667

$0.76 MYR 3.10

213.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,712

$1.45 MYR 5.87

22.07%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,320

$1.74 MYR 7.07

66.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$18.27 MYR 74.1

-44.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.8K

$4.45 MYR 18.06

121.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.1K

$10.89 MYR 44.17

28.47%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$3.28 MYR 13.31

21.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,005

$1.68 MYR 6.82

-7.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,039

$3.90 MYR 15.80

-44.10%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,041

$1.60 MYR 6.51

36.25%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,328

$1.47 MYR 5.96

33.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,125

$1.72 MYR 6.98

-7.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,694

$1.37 MYR 5.57

-16.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,009

$0.52 MYR 2.09

138.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$4.30 MYR 17.44

-7.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.1K

$14.03 MYR 56.9

-2.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,352

$2.88 MYR 11.69

-42.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,281

$3.04 MYR 12.33

-25.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,766

$0.72 MYR 2.90

62.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.5K

$12.41 MYR 50.3

523.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,089

$1.01 MYR 4.11

25.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,603

$0.76 MYR 3.08

169.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$9.66 MYR 39.18

-11.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,343

$0.52 MYR 2.13

159.62%

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

$34.1K COP 109.8M

$44.0K MYR 178.6K

-22.63%

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

$34.7K COP 111.8M

$35.0K MYR 142.2K

-1.08%

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

$170 COP 547.0K

$52.8 MYR 214

221.25%

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

$13.55 COP 43.7K

$11.10 MYR 45.05

22.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.5K

$28.71 MYR 116

-2.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 140.9K

$33.59 MYR 136

30.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.4K

$5.97 MYR 24.21

187.94%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$4.84 MYR 19.65

42.77%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$238 MYR 967

234.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$4,531 MYR 18.4K

101.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.2K

$55.1 MYR 223

53.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 186.9K

$16.70 MYR 67.8

247.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.2K

$81.8 MYR 332

65.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 315.6K

$95.9 MYR 389

2.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$413 MYR 1,677

192.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$293 MYR 1,190

118.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$553 MYR 2,244

266.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$331 MYR 1,344

205.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.4M

$2,251 MYR 9,134

85.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$1,219 MYR 4,944

56.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$1,230 MYR 4,992

-46.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

4.06

169.46%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Bangi: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Bangi

$293 31.3% 54.3% $348

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Bangi

$264 28.2% 11% $33

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Bangi

$93 9.9% 56.2% $119

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Bangi

$112 12% 33.8% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Bangi

$112 12% 33.6% $57

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Bangi

$20 2.1% 78.5% $73

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Bangi

$43 4.6% 24.8% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $413 in Bangi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bangi pays 87% 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 $14 in Bangi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $264 per month, with Bangi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇲🇾 Bangi

🕒 Local time

11:58 11:58 AM

00:58 12:58 AM

13 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

45,042

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.221 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, 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).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 4.06 MYR (1 MYR = 0.246 USD). 1 EUR = 4.53 MYR (1 MYR = 0.221 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Bangi 18,950 km ≈ 24 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Bangi

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 Bangi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bangi wins on cost – living expenses run 43% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Bangi the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 47% 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 $413 in Bangi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Bangi – a meal for two runs $14 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,639 per month in Medellin versus $938 in Bangi – Bangi is about 43% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Bangi 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.

Expats usually find Bangi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 43% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.