Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Burnaby

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $2,678 in Burnaby, rent and utilities included – about $12,500 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
128

Cost of Living Index in Burnaby
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Burnaby Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Burnaby

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,678

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Burnaby

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $2,678 in Burnaby.

Medellin $1,639
Burnaby $2,678

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $3,827 in Burnaby.

Medellin $2,413
Burnaby $3,827

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $4,976 in Burnaby.

Medellin $3,186
Burnaby $4,976

Living in Medellin costs roughly 39% less than in Burnaby, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Burnaby 97% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$21.23 CA$29.79

-61.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$86.5 CA$121

-45.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$9.53 CA$13.37

-0.31%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$4.67 CA$6.56

-35.55%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$2.45 CA$3.44

-26.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$1.80 CA$2.52

-21.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$8.57 CA$12.03

-62.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$6.18 CA$8.67

-6.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$2.34 CA$3.28

-35.47%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$2.76 CA$3.88

-13.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$3.52 CA$4.95

-49.72%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$3.17 CA$4.45

-8.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$14.05 CA$19.72

-27.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$14.07 CA$19.75

-29.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$25.31 CA$35.52

-44.73%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$4.42 CA$6.20

-10.18%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$1.28 CA$1.80

21.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$4.61 CA$6.47

-52.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$4.61 CA$6.48

-52.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$2.81 CA$3.95

-30.25%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$3.54 CA$4.96

-55.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$2.74 CA$3.84

-58.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$2.10 CA$2.95

-40.95%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$14.23 CA$19.96

-72.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$13.39 CA$18.79

2.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,221

$2.05 CA$2.88

-19.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,103

$2.33 CA$3.27

-3.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$2.54 CA$3.56

-53.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

$81.6 CA$115

-5.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$2.88 CA$4.04

-55.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$1.51 CA$2.12

35.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$26.45 CA$37.12

-67.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$1.37 CA$1.92

-1.46%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$28.5K CA$40.1K

19.35%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$20.9K CA$29.4K

65.53%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$126 CA$177

34.37%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$44.96 CA$63.1

-69.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$52.7 CA$74.0

-46.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$31.23 CA$43.83

39.93%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

$10.52 CA$14.77

63.40%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$14.23 CA$19.97

-51.44%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$649 CA$910

22.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$52.2 CA$73.3

62.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$51.4 CA$72.1

12.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$103 CA$145

30.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$79.0 CA$111

23.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$1,693 CA$2,376

-28.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$1,406 CA$1,973

-54.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$2,623 CA$3,681

-22.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$1,985 CA$2,786

-49.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

$6,886 CA$9,663

-39.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$5,338 CA$7,491

-64.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$3,149 CA$4,419

-79.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

4.76

129.83%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Burnaby: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Burnaby

$1.4K 52.5% 119% $765

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Burnaby

$431 16.1% 45.1% $134

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Burnaby

$224 8.4% 6% $13

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Burnaby

$327 12.2% 92.6% $157

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Burnaby

$129 4.8% 23.8% $40

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Burnaby

$102 3.8% 9.2% $8.7

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Burnaby

$60 2.2% 3.8% $2.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $1,693 in Burnaby. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Burnaby pays about 4.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $87 in Burnaby for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $431 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇦 Burnaby

🕒 Local time

17:58 5:58 PM

15:58 3:58 PM

2 h behind Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

249,125

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

1 CAD = 0.713 USD

1 CAD = 0.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, 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).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.713 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.64 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Burnaby 6,510 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Burnaby

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 Burnaby: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $2,678 in Burnaby, so Medellin is about 39% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 79% 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 $1,693 in Burnaby. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $797 in Medellin versus $649 in Burnaby. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 45% higher in Burnaby. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,639 in Medellin versus $2,678 in Burnaby, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Medellin but tight or insufficient in Burnaby. The gap between the two cities makes Medellin the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Expats usually find Medellin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 39% less than in Burnaby. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.