Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Boroko

For one person, living is cheaper in Boroko: $868 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $9,300 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
42

Cost of Living Index in Boroko
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Boroko Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Boroko

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea

$868

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Boroko

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $868 in Boroko, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Boroko $868

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,259 in Boroko, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Boroko $1,259

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $1,649 in Boroko, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Boroko $1,649

Medellin costs about 89% more than Boroko, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Boroko is 36% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$7.29 PGK 31.67

10.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$34.42 PGK 149

36.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$5.35 PGK 23.26

77.57%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$2.48 PGK 10.76

21.37%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$0.71 PGK 3.06

153.52%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$0.64 PGK 2.78

120.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$2.58 PGK 11.22

23.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$3.42 PGK 14.85

68.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$1.50 PGK 6.51

0.67%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$1.16 PGK 5.02

105.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$1.16 PGK 5.03

52.59%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$3.55 PGK 15.40

-18.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$4.98 PGK 21.65

104.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$4.79 PGK 20.79

106.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$6.61 PGK 28.72

111.65%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$3.85 PGK 16.70

3.12%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$3.08 PGK 13.38

-49.68%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$2.72 PGK 11.80

-19.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$2.70 PGK 11.74

-19.26%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$2.82 PGK 12.24

-30.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$0.84 PGK 3.65

89.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$1.12 PGK 4.86

2.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$0.42 PGK 1.83

195.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$5.42 PGK 23.53

-26.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$4.95 PGK 21.52

176.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,221

$1.07 PGK 4.67

55.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,103

$1.49 PGK 6.48

51.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$0.42 PGK 1.83

178.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

$28.88 PGK 125

167.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$4.40 PGK 19.11

-71.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$1.34 PGK 5.83

52.99%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$10.97 PGK 47.66

-22.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$0.80 PGK 3.47

68.75%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$35.7K PGK 155.0K

-4.55%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$17.6K PGK 76.4K

96.98%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$61.6 PGK 267

175.45%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$20.71 PGK 90.0

-34.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$82.1 PGK 357

-65.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$41.86 PGK 182

4.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

$14.29 PGK 62.1

20.29%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$6.47 PGK 28.09

6.80%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$333 PGK 1,445

139.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$2,215 PGK 9,621

311.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$34.50 PGK 150

145.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$12.91 PGK 56.1

348.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$44.28 PGK 192

204.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$26.31 PGK 114

271.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$3,336 PGK 14.5K

-63.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$221 PGK 959

190.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$3,257 PGK 14.1K

-37.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$218 PGK 947

363.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$352 PGK 1,530

86.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

-0.55%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Boroko: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Boroko

$221 25.4% 65.6% $421

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Boroko

$204 23.5% 31.3% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Boroko

$164 18.9% 22.2% $47

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Boroko

$129 14.9% 23.8% $40

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Boroko

$53 6.1% 68.6% $116

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Boroko

$42 4.8% 55.4% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Boroko

$55 6.3% 4.8% $2.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $3,336 in Boroko. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 86% higher in Medellin, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $34 in Boroko. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $204 – making Boroko the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇵🇬 Boroko

🕒 Local time

17:06 5:06 PM

08:06 8:06 AM

15 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Papua New Guinean Kina PGK K

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

1 PGK = 0.23 USD

1 PGK = 0.207 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PGK, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,502 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

Papua New Guinean Kina exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.34 PGK (1 PGK = 0.23 USD). 1 EUR = 4.84 PGK (1 PGK = 0.207 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Boroko 15,290 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Boroko

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 Boroko: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin costs about 89% more than Boroko, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. 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 $1,302 in Boroko. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Medellin, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,208 there versus $3,336 in Boroko.

Kindergarten costs $797 per month in Medellin and $333 in Boroko. 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.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,639 in Medellin and $868 in Boroko. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Medellin has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $868 in Boroko to $1,639 in Medellin. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Boroko. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Medellin makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.