Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Bugibba

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $1,739 in Bugibba, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 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
83

Cost of Living Index in Bugibba
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Bugibba Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Bugibba

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,739

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Bugibba

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $1,739 in Bugibba, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Bugibba $1,739

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $2,712 in Bugibba, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Bugibba $2,712

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $3,686 in Bugibba, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Bugibba $3,686

Medellin is about 6% cheaper than Bugibba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Medellin and Bugibba sit above the global median – Medellin by 20%, Bugibba by 28%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$17.04 €15.27

-52.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.7K

$79.1 €70.8

-40.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.6K

$11.25 €10.08

-15.56%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,722

$3.04 €2.73

-0.99%

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

$1.80 COP 5,801

$2.32 €2.08

-22.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,554

$1.98 €1.78

-28.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.2K

$4.60 €4.12

-30.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.5K

$3.26 €2.92

76.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,869

$1.35 €1.21

11.85%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,667

$1.42 €1.27

67.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,712

$2.27 €2.03

-22.03%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,320

$3.26 €2.92

-11.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$10.17 €9.11

0.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.8K

$9.61 €8.61

2.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.1K

$11.89 €10.65

17.66%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$2.29 €2.05

73.36%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,005

$2.09 €1.87

-25.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,039

$2.47 €2.21

-11.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,041

$1.83 €1.64

19.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,328

$1.91 €1.71

2.62%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,125

$1.35 €1.21

17.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,694

$1.68 €1.51

-31.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,009

$0.62 €0.55

100.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$6.12 €5.48

-35.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.1K

$5.66 €5.07

141.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,352

$1.65 €1.48

0.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,281

$1.48 €1.32

52.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,766

$2.48 €2.22

-52.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,089

$3.45 €3.09

-63.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,603

$1.82 €1.63

12.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$32.57 €29.17

-73.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,343

$1.52 €1.36

-11.18%

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

$34.1K COP 109.8M

$24.4K €21.9K

39.43%

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

$34.7K COP 111.8M

$30.2K €27.1K

14.78%

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

$170 COP 547.0K

$75.6 €67.7

124.55%

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

$13.55 COP 43.7K

$17.46 €15.64

-22.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.5K

$28.90 €25.88

-2.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 140.9K

$71.7 €64.2

-39.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.4K

$32.96 €29.52

-47.85%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$11.32 €10.14

-38.96%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$273 €245

191.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$12.5K €11.2K

-27.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.2K

$57.7 €51.6

46.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 186.9K

$68.9 €61.7

-15.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.2K

$113 €101

19.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 315.6K

$132 €118

-25.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$1,089 €975

10.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$827 €741

-22.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$1,643 €1,471

23.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$1,404 €1,257

-27.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.4M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$2,100 €1,881

-68.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

4.05

170.12%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Bugibba: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Bugibba

$827 47.6% 29% $186

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Bugibba

$252 14.5% 15.1% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Bugibba

$122 7% 42.3% $89

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Bugibba

$253 14.6% 49.4% $84

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Bugibba

$167 9.6% 1% $1.7

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Bugibba

$22 * 1.3% 76% $71

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Bugibba

$94 5.4% 63.9% $37

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $1,089 in Bugibba. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Bugibba are about 3.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $79 in Bugibba. Groceries tell a different story – $297 in Medellin vs $252 in Bugibba – so Bugibba wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇲🇹 Bugibba

🕒 Local time

23:37 11:37 PM

05:37 5:37 AM

6 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

32,042

💱 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 = 3,224 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,600 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 Bugibba 9,600 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Bugibba

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 Bugibba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,639 in Medellin, $1,739 in Bugibba – Medellin comes out roughly 6% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $2,608 in Bugibba. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Bugibba, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,089 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $1,739 in Bugibba. That makes Medellin about 6% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $797 per month in Medellin and $273 in Bugibba. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$2,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,639 in Medellin and $1,739 in Bugibba, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Medellin costs $1,639 versus $1,739 in Bugibba. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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