Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Bellville

For one person, living is cheaper in Bellville: $1,146 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 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
55

Cost of Living Index in Bellville
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Bellville Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Bellville

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,146

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Bellville

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,614 in Medellin versus $1,146 in Bellville.

Medellin $1,614
Bellville $1,146

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,402 in Medellin versus $1,762 in Bellville.

Medellin $2,402
Bellville $1,762

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,190 in Medellin versus $2,378 in Bellville.

Medellin $3,190
Bellville $2,378

Living in Medellin is roughly 41% more expensive than in Bellville, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Bellville is 15% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.93 COP 25.2K

$12.01 R 198

-33.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.13 COP 146.3K

$24.41 R 402

88.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$6.08 R 100

56.25%

Cappuccino

$3.11 COP 9,866

$1.90 R 31.30

63.68%

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

$1.83 COP 5,800

$1.26 R 20.82

45.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,360

$1.01 R 16.62

36.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 COP 9,672

$2.27 R 37.46

34.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.50 COP 17.4K

$3.64 R 59.9

51.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 COP 4,600

$1.34 R 22.05

8.21%

White Bread (500g)

$2.36 COP 7,496

$1.20 R 19.83

96.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,328

$2.17 R 35.74

-22.58%

Eggs

$2.86 COP 9,077

$2.95 R 48.66

-3.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.3K

$8.63 R 142

18.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 COP 30.2K

$6.80 R 112

40.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.04 COP 44.5K

$9.68 R 159

45.04%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 COP 12.9K

$1.92 R 31.67

111.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,742

$1.96 R 32.36

-23.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 COP 6,891

$1.73 R 28.51

25.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 COP 7,310

$2.12 R 35.00

8.96%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 COP 6,113

$1.50 R 24.65

28.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,196

$1.48 R 24.42

10.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,571

$1.30 R 21.40

-13.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 COP 3,954

$1.17 R 19.31

6.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 COP 12.6K

$3.53 R 58.2

13.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 COP 42.3K

$5.95 R 98.0

124.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 COP 5,384

$1.38 R 22.72

23.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,525

$2.11 R 34.81

12.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 COP 3,827

$1.48 R 24.38

-18.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 COP 4,179

$0.61 R 10.13

116.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,774

$1.46 R 24.04

46.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 COP 26.8K

$5.07 R 83.6

67.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 COP 4,114

$1.51 R 24.88

-13.91%

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

$28.0K COP 88.7M

$34.9K R 574.4K

-19.73%

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

$35.4K COP 112.3M

$31.8K R 523.7K

11.40%

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

$172 COP 545.6K

$118 R 1,943

45.90%

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

$13.37 COP 42.4K

$28.41 R 468

-52.94%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.73 COP 91.1K

$39.33 R 648

-26.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 COP 143.5K

$31.81 R 524

42.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

$10.55 R 174

61.52%

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 COP 19.9K

$9.26 R 153

-32.18%

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

$770 COP 2.4M

$266 R 4,375

190.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.6M

$6,822 R 112.4K

32.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.4 COP 274.0K

$56.0 R 922

54.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 COP 181.1K

$32.60 R 537

75.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 432.9K

$121 R 1,989

13.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 310.4K

$105 R 1,726

-6.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 COP 3.3M

$388 R 6,400

171.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$616 COP 2.0M

$366 R 6,031

68.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

$733 R 12.1K

158.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.2M

$728 R 12.0K

40.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

$884 R 14.6K

359.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

$664 R 10.9K

152.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

10.97

-0.27%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Last update for Bellville: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$616 38.2%

Bellville

$366 32% 40.5% $250

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$295 18.3%

Bellville

$223 19.5% 24.2% $71

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$214 13.3%

Bellville

$186 16.2% 13.3% $28

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$170 10.5%

Bellville

$141 12.3% 16.9% $29

Eating Out

Medellin

$168 10.4%

Bellville

$165 14.4% 2.1% $3.5

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.8%

Bellville

$14 * 1.2% 85.2% $79

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.6%

Bellville

$50 4.4% 13% $7.5

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,055 in Medellin and $388 in Bellville. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $46.00 in Medellin vs $24.00 in Bellville for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $295 vs $223 per month, with Bellville cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇿🇦 Bellville

🕒 Local time

07:43 7:43 AM

14:43 2:43 PM

7 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

112,507

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Bellville 10,790 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Bellville

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 Bellville: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bellville wins on cost – living expenses run 41% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Bellville the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $2,421 in Medellin and $1,718 in Bellville to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,055 in Medellin versus $388 in Bellville. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 32% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,614 per month in Medellin versus $1,146 in Bellville – a 41% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,146 in Bellville versus $1,614 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Bellville but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Bellville the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Bellville delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,146 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Bellville hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Medellin and Bellville 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 Bellville gentler on the wallet – expenses run 41% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.