Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Biella

For one person, living is cheaper in Biella: $1,455 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $2,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Medellin outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
70

Cost of Living Index in Biella
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Biella Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Biella

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,455

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Biella

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $1,455 in Biella.

Medellin $1,639
Biella $1,455

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $2,244 in Biella.

Medellin $2,413
Biella $2,244

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $3,034 in Biella.

Medellin $3,186
Biella $3,034

Living in Medellin is roughly 13% more expensive than in Biella, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Biella 7% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$16.68 €14.95

-51.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$67.1 €60.2

-29.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$10.59 €9.49

-10.29%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$1.76 €1.58

71.02%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$2.96 €2.65

-39.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$1.35 €1.21

4.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$5.17 €4.64

-38.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$4.41 €3.95

30.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$1.26 €1.13

19.84%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$2.28 €2.04

4.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$2.95 €2.64

-40.00%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$3.71 €3.32

-22.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$14.40 €12.90

-29.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$8.90 €7.98

10.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$21.24 €19.04

-34.13%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$3.05 €2.74

30.16%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$2.17 €1.94

-28.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$1.94 €1.73

12.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$4.83 €4.33

-54.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$1.85 €1.66

5.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$1.81 €1.62

-12.15%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$1.47 €1.32

-21.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$0.35 €0.32

254.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$6.74 €6.04

-41.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$6.62 €5.94

106.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$2.01 €1.80

-17.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$2.53 €2.27

-10.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

$1.90 €1.71

-38.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$38.48 €34.48

101.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$14.64 €13.12

-91.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$1.66 €1.49

23.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$29.62 €26.54

-71.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$1.99 €1.78

-32.16%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$36.5K €32.7K

-6.77%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$35.9K €32.2K

-3.43%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$190 €170

-10.78%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$7.66 €6.86

76.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$27.66 €24.79

1.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$66.3 €59.4

-34.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

$24.85 €22.27

-30.82%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$9.10 €8.15

-24.07%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$687 €615

16.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$10.2K €9,185

-11.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$87.2 €78.2

-2.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$44.14 €39.56

31.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$82.4 €73.8

63.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$112 €100

-12.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$414 €371

191.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$370 €331

73.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$678 €607

199.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$562 €503

80.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$1,598 €1,432

160.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$850 €762

124.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$1,819 €1,630

-63.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

3.65

199.73%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Biella: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Biella

$370 25.4% 42.4% $272

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Biella

$321 22.1% 8.2% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Biella

$225 15.5% 6.7% $14

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Biella

$238 16.4% 40.5% $69

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Biella

$146 10.1% 13.3% $23

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Biella

$69 4.8% 26.2% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Biella

$84 5.8% 46.8% $27

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $414 in Biella. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Biella pays about 2.8 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $67 in Biella for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $321 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇮🇹 Biella

🕒 Local time

06:09 6:09 AM

12:09 12:09 PM

6 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

45,740

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 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 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,603 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Biella 9,020 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Biella

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 Biella: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $1,455 in Biella, so Biella is about 11% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 64% 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: $1,208 in Medellin versus $414 in Biella. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $797 in Medellin versus $687 in Biella. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Medellin pay roughly 8% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Biella 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.