Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Busselton

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,614 a month against $2,623 in Busselton, rent and utilities included – about $12,100 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
123

Cost of Living Index in Busselton
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Busselton Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Busselton

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,623

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Busselton

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,614 in Medellin versus $2,623 in Busselton.

Medellin $1,614
Busselton $2,623

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,402 in Medellin versus $3,698 in Busselton.

Medellin $2,402
Busselton $3,698

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,190 in Medellin versus $4,773 in Busselton.

Medellin $3,190
Busselton $4,773

Living in Medellin costs roughly 38% less than in Busselton, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Busselton 94% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.93 COP 25.3K

$17.42 A$24.95

-54.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.13 COP 147.1K

$84.1 A$120

-45.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.3K

$10.59 A$15.17

-10.29%

Cappuccino

$3.11 COP 9,920

$4.42 A$6.33

-29.64%

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

$1.83 COP 5,832

$2.06 A$2.95

-11.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,384

$2.03 A$2.91

-32.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 COP 9,725

$8.49 A$12.16

-64.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.50 COP 17.5K

$8.15 A$11.68

-32.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 COP 4,625

$1.72 A$2.46

-15.70%

White Bread (500g)

$2.36 COP 7,537

$3.11 A$4.45

-24.12%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,358

$2.04 A$2.92

-17.65%

Eggs

$2.86 COP 9,127

$5.14 A$7.36

-44.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.5K

$9.23 A$13.22

10.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 COP 30.4K

$9.18 A$13.16

3.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.04 COP 44.8K

$13.90 A$19.92

1.01%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 COP 13.0K

$4.57 A$6.54

-10.94%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,768

$3.08 A$4.41

-51.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 COP 6,929

$3.31 A$4.74

-34.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 COP 7,350

$4.94 A$7.07

-53.24%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 COP 6,147

$2.90 A$4.15

-33.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,224

$1.97 A$2.82

-16.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,590

$2.28 A$3.27

-50.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 COP 3,976

$1.37 A$1.96

-8.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 COP 12.7K

$41.72 A$59.8

-90.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 COP 42.6K

$12.65 A$18.12

5.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 COP 5,413

$4.35 A$6.24

-60.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,566

$3.38 A$4.85

-29.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 COP 3,848

$2.48 A$3.55

-51.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 243.9K

$82.6 A$118

-7.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 COP 4,202

$3.55 A$5.09

-62.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,811

$1.38 A$1.98

55.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 COP 27.0K

$41.16 A$59.0

-79.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 COP 4,137

$1.40 A$2.01

-7.14%

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

$28.0K COP 89.2M

$27.7K A$39.7K

1.02%

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

$35.4K COP 112.9M

$29.6K A$42.4K

19.54%

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

$172 COP 548.6K

$195 A$279

-11.59%

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

$13.37 COP 42.6K

$32.93 A$47.18

-59.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.73 COP 91.6K

$64.4 A$92.2

-55.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 COP 144.2K

$49.68 A$71.2

-8.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.3K

$16.07 A$23.02

6.04%

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 COP 20.0K

$17.71 A$25.37

-64.54%

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

$770 COP 2.5M

$2,274 A$3,258

-66.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.7M

$23.1K A$33.0K

-60.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.4 COP 275.5K

$78.8 A$113

9.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 COP 182.1K

$64.5 A$92.4

-11.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 435.3K

$120 A$172

13.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 312.1K

$162 A$232

-39.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 COP 3.4M

$1,247 A$1,786

-15.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$616 COP 2.0M

$1,288 A$1,846

-52.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

$2,204 A$3,158

-14.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.3M

$1,776 A$2,544

-42.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

$5,785 A$8,287

-29.83%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.4M

$4,348 A$6,228

-61.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.91

85.11%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Last update for Busselton: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$616 38.2%

Busselton

$1.3K 49.1% 109% $673

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$295 18.3%

Busselton

$364 13.9% 23.4% $69

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$214 13.3%

Busselton

$292 11.1% 36.3% $78

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$170 10.5%

Busselton

$192 7.3% 12.6% $21

Eating Out

Medellin

$168 10.4%

Busselton

$299 11.4% 77.7% $131

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.8%

Busselton

$103 3.9% 10.3% $9.6

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.6%

Busselton

$85 3.2% 47.2% $27

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,055 in Medellin and $1,247 in Busselton. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $46.00 in Medellin vs $84.0 in Busselton for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $295 vs $364 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇦🇺 Busselton

🕒 Local time

13:11 1:11 PM

02:11 2:11 AM

13 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

27,233

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.14 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

1 AUD = 0.698 USD

1 AUD = 0.625 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 3,188 COP (10,000 COP = 3.14 USD). 1 EUR = 3,559 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.698 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.625 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Busselton 16,770 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Busselton

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 Busselton: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin and Busselton differ by about 62% in total monthly costs ($1,614 vs $2,623 including rent). Medellin is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,421 in Medellin and $3,934 in Busselton to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,055 in Medellin versus $1,247 in Busselton. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $770 in Medellin versus $2,274 in Busselton. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in Busselton. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,614 in Medellin versus $2,623 in Busselton, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Medellin but tight or insufficient in Busselton. 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.

Safety-wise, Medellin and Busselton are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Medellin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 62% less than in Busselton. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.