Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Bethune

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,692 a month against $1,757 in Bethune, rent and utilities included – about $780 less a year. The total is higher in Bethune despite lower rent and utilities.

80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
84

Cost of Living Index in Bethune
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Bethune Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Bethune

🇫🇷 France

$1,757

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Bethune

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,692 in Medellin versus $1,757 in Bethune.

Medellin $1,692
Bethune $1,757

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,471 in Medellin versus $2,766 in Bethune.

Medellin $2,471
Bethune $2,766

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,249 in Medellin versus $3,775 in Bethune.

Medellin $3,249
Bethune $3,775

Living in Medellin costs roughly 4% less than in Bethune, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 25% above, Bethune 30% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 26.9K

$18.11 €16.19

-53.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.2K

$73.9 €66.1

-37.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.6K

$13.47 €12.04

-29.70%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.1K

$3.26 €2.92

-3.99%

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

$1.77 COP 5,702

$2.84 €2.54

-37.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,599

$1.68 €1.50

-15.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$6.69 €5.99

-52.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.4K

$5.48 €4.90

4.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,948

$1.31 €1.17

16.79%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,397

$1.94 €1.74

18.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,279

$2.96 €2.65

-34.46%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,900

$4.03 €3.60

-23.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.3K

$21.15 €18.91

-52.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.7K

$12.49 €11.17

-16.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.1K

$23.13 €20.68

-39.65%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$2.92 €2.61

38.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,934

$2.12 €1.90

-27.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,794

$2.39 €2.13

-12.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,405

$3.09 €2.76

-25.89%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,810

$1.87 €1.67

12.83%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,518

$2.07 €1.85

-17.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,778

$1.45 €1.30

-19.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,101

$0.54 €0.49

192.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.6K

$13.81 €12.35

-71.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.3K

$7.86 €7.03

78.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,688

$1.82 €1.62

-3.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,756

$2.61 €2.34

3.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,809

$1.83 €1.63

-35.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 246.3K

$49.19 €43.99

55.09%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,833

$2.18 €1.95

-16.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,874

$2.15 €1.92

-0.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.3K

$23.93 €21.40

-66.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,117

$2.02 €1.81

-36.63%

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

$34.4K COP 111.2M

$34.0K €30.4K

1.27%

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

$34.1K COP 110.2M

$38.8K €34.7K

-12.14%

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

$178 COP 573.8K

$177 €158

0.40%

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

$13.89 COP 44.8K

$15.34 €13.72

-9.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.2K

$30.32 €27.11

1.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 135.4K

$35.62 €31.85

17.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.2K

$17.08 €15.27

-1.64%

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.1K

$9.87 €8.83

-24.32%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$628 €561

25.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.7M

$8,269 €7,394

48.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 278.7K

$87.6 €78.3

-1.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 191.3K

$38.02 €34.00

55.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 446.6K

$75.6 €67.6

83.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 319.0K

$95.0 €84.9

4.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$777 €694

72.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$629 €562

6.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$1,488 €1,330

32.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$1,172 €1,048

-11.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.2M

$4,193 €3,750

-2.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$3,156 €2,822

-38.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

$3,677 €3,288

-82.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

3.92

179.08%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Bethune: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Bethune

$629 35.8% 5.8% $38

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Bethune

$360 20.5% 17.2% $53

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Bethune

$223 12.7% 0.2% $0.3

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Bethune

$287 16.3% 66.2% $114

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Bethune

$133 7.6% 22.6% $39

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Bethune

$69 4% 25.7% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Bethune

$55 3.2% 2.7% $1.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,341 in Medellin and $777 in Bethune. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bethune pays about 5.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $74 in Bethune for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $307 vs $360 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇫🇷 Bethune

🕒 Local time

18:22 6:22 PM

00:22 12:22 AM

6 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

24,992

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,610 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 0.894 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Bethune 8,640 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Bethune

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 Bethune: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin wins on cost – living expenses run 4% lower than in Bethune. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Medellin the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 82% 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: $1,341 in Medellin versus $777 in Bethune. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $790 in Medellin versus $628 in Bethune. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 17% higher in Bethune. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $2,500 a month, though Medellin gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Medellin wins on affordability, Bethune on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.