Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Canterbury-Bankstown

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $2,714 in Canterbury-Bankstown, rent and utilities included – about $12,900 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 Canterbury-Bankstown
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Canterbury-Bankstown Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Canterbury-Bankstown

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,714

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Canterbury-Bankstown

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 Canterbury-Bankstown actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $2,714 in Canterbury-Bankstown.

Medellin $1,639
Canterbury-Bankstown $2,714

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $3,798 in Canterbury-Bankstown.

Medellin $2,413
Canterbury-Bankstown $3,798

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $4,882 in Canterbury-Bankstown.

Medellin $3,186
Canterbury-Bankstown $4,882

Living in Medellin costs roughly 40% less than in Canterbury-Bankstown, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Canterbury-Bankstown 99% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$17.21 A$24.46

-52.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$88.7 A$126

-46.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$10.32 A$14.66

-7.95%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$3.92 A$5.57

-23.21%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$2.79 A$3.97

-35.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$2.19 A$3.11

-35.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$8.25 A$11.73

-61.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$7.47 A$10.61

-23.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$1.72 A$2.44

-12.21%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$3.16 A$4.49

-24.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$2.50 A$3.55

-29.20%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$5.62 A$7.98

-48.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$12.05 A$17.12

-15.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$9.44 A$13.42

4.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$16.86 A$23.95

-17.02%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$3.92 A$5.57

1.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$3.14 A$4.46

-50.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$3.51 A$4.99

-37.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$5.03 A$7.14

-56.66%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$3.06 A$4.35

-35.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$2.52 A$3.58

-36.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$2.39 A$3.39

-51.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$1.16 A$1.65

6.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$45.21 A$64.3

-91.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$14.28 A$20.29

-4.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,221

$4.74 A$6.73

-64.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,103

$5.53 A$7.85

-59.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$3.05 A$4.33

-61.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

$88.7 A$126

-12.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$3.42 A$4.86

-62.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$1.63 A$2.31

25.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$40.96 A$58.2

-79.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$1.44 A$2.04

-6.25%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$28.5K A$40.5K

19.50%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$26.2K A$37.2K

32.57%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$182 A$258

-6.68%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$27.52 A$39.10

-50.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$56.1 A$79.7

-49.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$55.9 A$79.4

-21.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

$17.63 A$25.05

-2.50%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$17.23 A$24.48

-59.90%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$2,401 A$3,412

-66.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$20.0K A$28.4K

-54.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$77.0 A$109

9.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$70.8 A$101

-18.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$111 A$158

21.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$135 A$192

-27.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$1,321 A$1,877

-8.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$1,383 A$1,965

-53.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$2,263 A$3,215

-10.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$1,840 A$2,614

-45.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

$5,114 A$7,267

-18.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$5,147 A$7,314

-62.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.92

84.80%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Canterbury-Bankstown: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Canterbury-Bankstown

$1.4K 51% 116% $741

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Canterbury-Bankstown

$394 14.5% 32.6% $97

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Canterbury-Bankstown

$265 9.8% 25.6% $54

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Canterbury-Bankstown

$292 10.8% 72.1% $122

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Canterbury-Bankstown

$177 6.5% 5% $8.4

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Canterbury-Bankstown

$112 4.1% 20.2% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Canterbury-Bankstown

$90 3.3% 57% $33

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $1,321 in Canterbury-Bankstown. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $89 in Canterbury-Bankstown for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $394 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇦🇺 Canterbury-Bankstown

🕒 Local time

14:06 2:06 PM

06:06 6:06 AM

16 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

350,983

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

1 AUD = 0.704 USD

1 AUD = 0.632 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,502 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.704 USD). 1 EUR = 1.58 AUD (1 AUD = 0.632 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Canterbury-Bankstown 14,320 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Canterbury-Bankstown

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 Canterbury-Bankstown: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin and Canterbury-Bankstown differ by about 66% in total monthly costs ($1,639 vs $2,714 including rent). Medellin is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,459 in Medellin and $4,071 in Canterbury-Bankstown 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: $1,208 in Medellin versus $1,321 in Canterbury-Bankstown. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Medellin – a meal for two runs $47 versus $89 in Canterbury-Bankstown. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,639 per month in Medellin versus $2,714 in Canterbury-Bankstown – a 66% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,639 in Medellin versus $2,714 in Canterbury-Bankstown, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Medellin but tight or insufficient in Canterbury-Bankstown. 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 40% less than in Canterbury-Bankstown. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.