Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Burns Lake

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $2,278 in Burns Lake, rent and utilities included – about $7,700 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
109

Cost of Living Index in Burns Lake
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Burns Lake Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Burns Lake

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Burns Lake

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $2,278 in Burns Lake, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Burns Lake $2,278

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $3,271 in Burns Lake, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Burns Lake $3,271

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $4,265 in Burns Lake, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Burns Lake $4,265

Medellin is about 28% cheaper than Burns Lake, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Medellin and Burns Lake sit above the global median – Medellin by 20%, Burns Lake by 67%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$19.06 CA$26.74

-57.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$63.1 CA$88.5

-25.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$12.14 CA$17.04

-21.75%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$3.21 CA$4.50

-6.23%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$1.82 CA$2.56

-1.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$1.44 CA$2.02

-2.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$4.90 CA$6.88

-35.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$5.38 CA$7.55

6.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$2.17 CA$3.05

-30.41%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$2.57 CA$3.61

-7.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$3.14 CA$4.40

-43.63%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$3.19 CA$4.48

-9.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$9.00 CA$12.63

13.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$11.80 CA$16.56

-16.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$15.17 CA$21.29

-7.78%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$3.78 CA$5.31

5.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$1.24 CA$1.74

25.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$3.86 CA$5.41

-43.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$4.36 CA$6.12

-50.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$2.39 CA$3.35

-17.99%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$2.14 CA$3.01

-25.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$2.27 CA$3.18

-49.34%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$1.78 CA$2.49

-30.34%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$14.50 CA$20.36

-72.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$14.28 CA$20.04

-4.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,221

$2.98 CA$4.18

-44.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,103

$3.41 CA$4.79

-33.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$2.11 CA$2.96

-44.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

$69.8 CA$97.9

10.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$2.50 CA$3.50

-49.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$1.42 CA$1.99

44.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$24.39 CA$34.23

-64.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$1.09 CA$1.52

23.85%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$28.2K CA$39.6K

20.75%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$18.6K CA$26.0K

86.85%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$140 CA$196

21.23%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$38.23 CA$53.7

-64.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$55.0 CA$77.2

-48.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$37.67 CA$52.9

16.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

$18.49 CA$25.94

-7.03%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$10.82 CA$15.18

-36.14%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$636 CA$892

25.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$15.3K CA$21.5K

-40.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$48.36 CA$67.9

75.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$41.52 CA$58.3

39.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$87.3 CA$122

54.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$104 CA$146

-6.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$1,309 CA$1,837

-7.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$1,135 CA$1,593

-43.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$1,984 CA$2,784

2.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$1,701 CA$2,387

-40.51%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

$4,598 CA$6,452

-9.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$3,249 CA$4,560

-41.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

4.68

133.76%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Burns Lake: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Burns Lake

$1.1K 49.9% 76.9% $494

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Burns Lake

$360 15.8% 21.2% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Burns Lake

$233 10.2% 10.4% $22

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Burns Lake

$276 12.1% 62.5% $106

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Burns Lake

$127 5.6% 25.1% $42

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Burns Lake

$88 3.9% 6.2% $5.8

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Burns Lake

$59 2.6% 3.1% $1.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $1,309 in Burns Lake. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $63 in Burns Lake. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $360 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇦 Burns Lake

🕒 Local time

18:07 6:07 PM

16:07 4:07 PM

2 h behind Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

1,779

💱 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 Burns Lake 6,960 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Burns Lake

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 Burns Lake: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Burns Lake costs about 39% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. 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 $3,416 in Burns Lake. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $1,208 in Medellin and $1,309 in Burns Lake. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Groceries cost about 21% more in Burns Lake, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $63 in Burns Lake. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

It depends on your priorities. Medellin has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,639 in Medellin to $2,278 in Burns Lake. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.