Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Bialystok

For one person, living is cheaper in Bialystok: $1,434 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
69

Cost of Living Index in Bialystok
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Bialystok Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Bialystok

🇵🇱 Poland

$1,434

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Bialystok

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $1,434 in Bialystok, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Bialystok $1,434

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $2,029 in Bialystok, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Bialystok $2,029

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $2,625 in Bialystok, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Bialystok $2,625

Medellin costs about 14% more than Bialystok, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Medellin and Bialystok sit above the global median – Medellin by 20%, Bialystok by 5%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$9.61 zł 38.01

-15.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$45.44 zł 180

3.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$8.97 zł 35.46

5.91%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$3.60 zł 14.25

-16.39%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$1.81 zł 7.15

-0.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$1.55 zł 6.11

-9.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$3.36 zł 13.30

-5.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$3.02 zł 11.94

90.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$1.01 zł 3.98

49.50%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$1.01 zł 4.01

135.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$2.13 zł 8.42

-16.90%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$3.75 zł 14.83

-22.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$8.99 zł 35.52

13.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$5.70 zł 22.52

73.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$11.28 zł 44.60

24.02%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$1.24 zł 4.92

220.16%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$1.82 zł 7.18

-14.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$1.64 zł 6.47

32.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$2.00 zł 7.91

9.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$1.04 zł 4.12

88.46%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$1.15 zł 4.55

38.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$1.17 zł 4.63

-1.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$0.61 zł 2.41

103.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$5.11 zł 20.19

-22.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$6.20 zł 24.52

120.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$1.15 zł 4.54

44.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$1.47 zł 5.81

53.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

$1.25 zł 4.94

-6.40%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$33.13 zł 131

133.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$2.06 zł 8.14

-38.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$0.69 zł 2.74

197.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$12.56 zł 49.66

-31.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$1.58 zł 6.25

-14.56%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$30.4K zł 120.2K

12.03%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$28.3K zł 111.7K

22.69%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$302 zł 1,193

-43.80%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$8.14 zł 32.18

66.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$17.99 zł 71.1

56.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$43.77 zł 173

-0.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

$26.81 zł 106

-35.88%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$8.16 zł 32.25

-15.32%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$353 zł 1,396

125.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$4,215 zł 16.7K

116.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$97.9 zł 387

-13.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$36.30 zł 143

59.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$85.5 zł 338

57.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$89.0 zł 352

9.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$558 zł 2,206

116.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$474 zł 1,876

35.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$812 zł 3,209

149.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$669 zł 2,645

51.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$2,817 zł 11.1K

48.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$2,240 zł 8,855

-14.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$1,454 zł 5,748

-54.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

7.07

54.74%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Bialystok: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Bialystok

$474 33.1% 26% $167

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Bialystok

$205 14.3% 30.9% $92

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Bialystok

$328 22.9% 55.3% $117

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Bialystok

$183 12.8% 8.1% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Bialystok

$139 9.7% 17.8% $30

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Bialystok

$44 3% 53.4% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Bialystok

$60 4.2% 4.4% $2.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $558 in Bialystok. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Bialystok are about 2.2 times higher, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $45 in Bialystok. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $205 – making Bialystok the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇵🇱 Bialystok

🕒 Local time

20:58 8:58 PM

02:58 2:58 AM

6 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

297,554

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Polish Złoty PLN zł

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

1 PLN = 0.253 USD

1 PLN = 0.227 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PLN, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,605 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Polish Złoty exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3.95 PLN (1 PLN = 0.253 USD). 1 EUR = 4.41 PLN (1 PLN = 0.227 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Bialystok 10,030 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Bialystok

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 Bialystok: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin costs about 14% more than Bialystok, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $2,151 in Bialystok. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Bialystok, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $558 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

Kindergarten costs $797 per month in Medellin and $353 in Bialystok. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 45% more in Medellin, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,639 in Medellin and $1,434 in Bialystok. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Bialystok – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

For expats, Bialystok is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 13% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.