Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Bathgate

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,692 a month against $2,412 in Bathgate, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Medellin, Colombia
Bathgate, United Kingdom
Medellin
🇨🇴 Colombia
$1,692
/mo nomad
Bathgate
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
$2,412
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Bathgate

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

A single person spends $1,692 per month in Medellin vs $2,412 in Bathgate, rent included.

  • Medellin $1,692
  • Bathgate $2,412

A couple spends around $2,471 per month in Medellin vs $3,398 in Bathgate, rent included.

  • Medellin $2,471
  • Bathgate $3,398

A family of three spends $3,249 per month in Medellin vs $4,385 in Bathgate, rent included.

  • Medellin $3,249
  • Bathgate $4,385

Medellin is about 30% cheaper than Bathgate, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Medellin and Bathgate sit above the global median – Medellin by 25%, Bathgate by 78%.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Medellin
Bathgate
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$8.34 COP 26.9K
$20.46 £15.18
-59.24%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$46.53 COP 150.1K
$81.9 £60.8
-43.21%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.47 COP 30.5K
$11.03 £8.18
-14.14%
Cappuccino
$3.13 COP 10.1K
$5.18 £3.85
-39.58%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.77 COP 5,696
$3.35 £2.49
-47.16%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.42 COP 4,594
$2.46 £1.82
-42.28%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.15 COP 10.2K
$6.61 £4.91
-52.34%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.70 COP 18.4K
$6.73 £5.00
-15.30%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Medellin
Bathgate
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.53 COP 4,943
$1.50 £1.11
2.00%
White Bread (500g)
$2.29 COP 7,389
$1.86 £1.38
23.12%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.94 COP 6,273
$2.21 £1.64
-12.22%
Eggs
$3.07 COP 9,889
$3.75 £2.78
-18.13%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$9.99 COP 32.2K
$9.43 £7.00
5.94%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$10.45 COP 33.7K
$9.01 £6.69
15.98%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$13.96 COP 45.0K
$14.22 £10.55
-1.83%
Apples (1kg)
$4.05 COP 13.1K
$2.84 £2.11
42.61%
Banana (1kg)
$1.53 COP 4,929
$1.91 £1.42
-19.90%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.10 COP 6,786
$2.91 £2.16
-27.84%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.29 COP 7,397
$3.61 £2.68
-36.57%
Potato (1kg)
$2.11 COP 6,803
$1.71 £1.27
23.39%
Onion (1kg)
$1.71 COP 5,512
$1.43 £1.06
19.58%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.17 COP 3,774
$1.18 £0.87
-0.85%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.58 COP 5,096
$1.75 £1.30
-9.71%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.91 COP 12.6K
$22.54 £16.72
-82.65%
Wine (Bottle)
$14.04 COP 45.3K
$10.66 £7.91
31.71%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.76 COP 5,682
$3.18 £2.36
-44.65%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.71 COP 8,746
$3.83 £2.84
-29.24%
🚌 Getting Around
Medellin
Bathgate
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.18 COP 3,805
$4.34 £3.22
-72.81%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$76.3 COP 246.0K
$102 £75.9
-25.45%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.81 COP 5,827
$6.82 £5.06
-73.46%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.13 COP 6,867
$1.77 £1.31
20.34%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$8.13 COP 26.2K
$24.04 £17.84
-66.18%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.28 COP 4,113
$2.17 £1.61
-41.01%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$34.4K COP 111.1M
$39.3K £29.2K
-12.47%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$34.1K COP 110.1M
$40.1K £29.7K
-14.83%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Medellin
Bathgate
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$178 COP 573.2K
$243 £180
-26.78%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$13.89 COP 44.8K
$17.58 £13.04
-20.99%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.74 COP 99.1K
$41.20 £30.57
-25.39%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Medellin
Bathgate
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$41.94 COP 135.3K
$39.61 £29.39
5.88%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$16.80 COP 54.2K
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$7.47 COP 24.1K
$11.89 £8.82
-37.17%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Medellin
Bathgate
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$790 COP 2.5M
$1,301 £965
-39.25%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$12.3K COP 39.7M
$26.7K £19.8K
-53.96%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Medellin
Bathgate
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$86.3 COP 278.4K
$87.0 £64.5
-0.74%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$59.3 COP 191.1K
$46.74 £34.68
26.79%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$138 COP 446.2K
$105 £78.1
31.36%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$98.8 COP 318.7K
$97.4 £72.3
1.44%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Medellin
Bathgate
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,341 COP 4.3M
$1,126 £836
19.08%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$667 COP 2.2M
$1,124 £834
-40.66%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,976 COP 6.4M
$2,254 £1,673
-12.36%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,033 COP 3.3M
$1,549 £1,149
-33.30%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,098 COP 13.2M
$4,868 £3,612
-15.83%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,940 COP 6.3M
$3,699 £2,745
-47.56%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Medellin
Bathgate
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$646 COP 2.1M
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
10.94
5.03
117.50%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Bathgate: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Medellin
$667
Bathgate
$1.1K 68.5% $457
Groceries & Markets
Medellin
$307
Bathgate
$308 0% $0.1
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Medellin
$222
Bathgate
$302 35.6% $79
Eating Out
Medellin
$173
Bathgate
$329 90.4% $156
Clothing & Footwear
Medellin
$172
Bathgate
$151 12.1% $21
Getting Around
Medellin
$93
Bathgate
$135 44.9% $42
Sport & Entertainment
Medellin
$57
Bathgate
$63 11.4% $6.5

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,341 in Medellin versus $1,126 in Bathgate. 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 $47 in Medellin versus $82 in Bathgate. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $307 vs $308 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇨🇴 Medellin
🇬🇧 Bathgate
🕒 Local time
06:01 6:01 AM
11:01 11:01 AM
5 h ahead of Medellin
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
2,486,723
23,600
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 3,225 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,624 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.742 GBP (1 GBP = 1.35 USD). 1 EUR = 0.834 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Medellin Bathgate 8,310 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Medellin
  • Bathgate

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 Bathgate: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Medellin or Bathgate?
Bathgate costs about 43% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.
How much do you need to earn to live comfortably in Medellin and in Bathgate?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,538 per month in Medellin and $3,618 in Bathgate. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Where is rent cheaper, Medellin or Bathgate?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Bathgate, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,126 there versus $1,341 in Medellin.
How do dining costs compare in Medellin and in Bathgate?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $82 in Bathgate. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
How expensive is transport in Medellin compared to Bathgate?
Public transport costs about 25% less in Medellin. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.
Which city offers a better quality of life: Medellin or Bathgate?
It depends on your priorities. Medellin has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,692 in Medellin to $2,412 in Bathgate. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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