Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Bangkok

For one person, living is cheaper in Bangkok: $1,112 a month against $1,625 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index
54

Cost of Living Index in Bangkok
Learn more

Bangkok Living Index

Jump to prices

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,625

/mo nomad

Bangkok

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,112

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Bangkok

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,625 in Medellin versus $1,112 in Bangkok.

Medellin $1,625
Bangkok $1,112

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,412 in Medellin versus $1,788 in Bangkok.

Medellin $2,412
Bangkok $1,788

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,199 in Medellin versus $2,464 in Bangkok.

Medellin $3,199
Bangkok $2,464

Living in Medellin is roughly 46% more expensive than in Bangkok, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Bangkok is 18% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.30 COP 26.3K

$2.95 ฿98.7

181.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.91 COP 148.7K

$35.13 ฿1,174

33.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.24 COP 29.3K

$7.33 ฿245

26.06%

Cappuccino

$3.05 COP 9,676

$2.73 ฿91.3

11.72%

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

$1.80 COP 5,707

$0.62 ฿20.78

190.32%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,382

$0.36 ฿12.17

283.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 COP 10.3K

$2.63 ฿87.9

23.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.56 COP 17.6K

$4.35 ฿145

27.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 COP 4,760

$1.85 ฿61.8

-18.92%

White Bread (500g)

$2.37 COP 7,508

$1.51 ฿50.5

56.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 COP 5,377

$1.34 ฿44.72

26.87%

Eggs

$2.96 COP 9,379

$2.62 ฿87.4

12.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.22 COP 32.4K

$17.10 ฿572

-40.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.74 COP 30.9K

$3.67 ฿123

165.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.90 COP 44.1K

$12.83 ฿429

8.34%

Apples (1kg)

$4.13 COP 13.1K

$3.73 ฿125

10.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,839

$1.74 ฿58.2

-12.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 COP 7,052

$2.79 ฿93.2

-20.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.27 COP 7,194

$1.88 ฿62.9

20.74%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 COP 6,311

$1.75 ฿58.4

13.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 COP 5,285

$1.49 ฿49.68

12.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 COP 3,742

$1.24 ฿41.51

-4.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,919

$0.55 ฿18.22

125.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.87 COP 12.3K

$4.73 ฿158

-18.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.78 COP 43.7K

$15.10 ฿505

-8.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,256

$1.77 ฿59.0

-6.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 COP 7,615

$3.18 ฿106

-24.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.24 COP 3,944

$1.11 ฿37.19

11.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.2 COP 248.0K

$34.46 ฿1,152

126.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 COP 4,044

$1.06 ฿35.47

20.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.15 COP 6,803

$1.15 ฿38.60

86.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.37 COP 26.5K

$5.81 ฿194

44.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,288

$1.41 ฿47.14

-4.26%

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

$34.8K COP 110.2M

$31.7K ฿1.1M

9.51%

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

$34.7K COP 110.0M

$26.6K ฿887.8K

30.56%

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

$167 COP 528.4K

$108 ฿3,612

54.19%

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

$13.62 COP 43.2K

$15.14 ฿506

-10.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.12 COP 92.3K

$18.15 ฿607

60.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.09 COP 143.0K

$55.6 ฿1,857

-18.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.18 COP 54.5K

$18.54 ฿620

-7.34%

Cinema Ticket

$6.97 COP 22.1K

$7.82 ฿261

-10.87%

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

$790 COP 2.5M

$569 ฿19.0K

38.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,041 COP 28.7M

$16.7K ฿557.0K

-45.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.8 COP 278.4K

$70.9 ฿2,371

23.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.2 COP 184.4K

$42.61 ฿1,424

36.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$139 COP 440.7K

$101 ฿3,361

38.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.9 COP 313.5K

$107 ฿3,560

-7.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 COP 3.3M

$673 ฿22.5K

52.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$620 COP 2.0M

$333 ฿11.1K

85.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,881 COP 6.0M

$1,982 ฿66.2K

-5.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 COP 3.2M

$732 ฿24.5K

37.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,988 COP 12.6M

$6,236 ฿208.4K

-36.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,702 COP 5.4M

$3,096 ฿103.5K

-45.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$663 COP 2.1M

$626 ฿20.9K

6.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.25

108.38%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 19, 2026

Last update for Bangkok: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$619 38.1%

Bangkok

$333 30% 46.2% $286

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$298 18.3%

Bangkok

$272 24.5% 8.6% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$209 12.9%

Bangkok

$141 12.7% 32.5% $68

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$173 10.6%

Bangkok

$144 13% 16.5% $28

Eating Out

Medellin

$171 10.5%

Bangkok

$104 9.4% 39% $67

Getting Around

Medellin

$95 5.9%

Bangkok

$46 4.1% 51.9% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$59 3.6%

Bangkok

$71 6.4% 20.6% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,028 in Medellin and $673 in Bangkok. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays 6% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $47.00 in Medellin vs $35.00 in Bangkok for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $298 vs $272 per month, with Bangkok cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇹🇭 Bangkok

🕒 Local time

11:23 11:23 AM

23:23 11:23 PM

12 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

5,666,264 Capital

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Bangkok 17,750 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Bangkok

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 Bangkok: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin and Bangkok differ by about 46% in total monthly costs ($1,625 vs $1,112 including rent). Bangkok is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 6% higher in Medellin, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,028 in Medellin versus $673 in Bangkok. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Bangkok – a meal for two runs $35.00 versus $47.00 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,625 per month in Medellin versus $1,112 in Bangkok – a 46% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,112 in Bangkok versus $1,625 in Medellin, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bangkok but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Bangkok 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.

Safety-wise, Medellin and Bangkok are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Bangkok gentler on the wallet – expenses run 46% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.