Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Chenzhou

For one person, living is cheaper in Chenzhou: $721 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $11,000 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
36

Cost of Living Index in Chenzhou
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Chenzhou Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Chenzhou

🇨🇳 China

$721

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Chenzhou

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $721 in Chenzhou, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Chenzhou $721

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,197 in Chenzhou, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Chenzhou $1,197

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $1,674 in Chenzhou, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Chenzhou $1,674

Medellin costs about 127% more than Chenzhou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Chenzhou is 47% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$3.03 ¥20.18

167.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$22.13 ¥148

112.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$4.86 ¥32.38

95.47%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$1.54 ¥10.26

95.45%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$0.51 ¥3.42

252.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$0.27 ¥1.81

422.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$1.29 ¥8.59

146.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$1.89 ¥12.61

204.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$1.97 ¥13.11

-23.35%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$2.38 ¥15.85

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$0.79 ¥5.24

124.05%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$1.72 ¥11.48

68.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$13.15 ¥87.6

-22.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$4.13 ¥27.51

138.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$11.57 ¥77.1

20.92%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$0.59 ¥3.93

572.88%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$1.18 ¥7.84

31.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$0.73 ¥4.88

198.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$1.19 ¥7.91

83.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$0.97 ¥6.50

102.06%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$1.54 ¥10.26

3.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$0.61 ¥4.05

88.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$0.49 ¥3.24

153.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$3.02 ¥20.11

31.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$12.71 ¥84.7

7.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,222

$1.04 ¥6.92

59.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,104

$1.57 ¥10.47

43.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$0.31 ¥2.05

277.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

$15.40 ¥103

402.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$1.52 ¥10.11

-16.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$0.29 ¥1.93

606.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$4.60 ¥30.64

85.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$1.29 ¥8.60

4.65%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$19.3K ¥128.6K

76.64%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$17.4K ¥115.8K

99.53%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$56.3 ¥375

201.23%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$8.94 ¥59.6

51.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$11.27 ¥75.1

149.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$42.59 ¥284

2.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

$14.67 ¥97.8

17.18%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$6.48 ¥43.20

6.64%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$329 ¥2,192

142.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$16.9K ¥112.5K

-46.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$84.2 ¥562

0.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$35.01 ¥233

65.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$89.1 ¥594

51.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$58.9 ¥392

66.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$310 ¥2,064

290.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$163 ¥1,087

293.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$584 ¥3,892

247.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$414 ¥2,757

144.60%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

$3,531 ¥23.5K

18.09%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$1,917 ¥12.8K

-0.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

3.46

216.18%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Chenzhou: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Chenzhou

$163 22.6% 74.6% $478

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Chenzhou

$215 29.8% 27.6% $82

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Chenzhou

$77 10.6% 63.8% $135

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Chenzhou

$71 9.8% 58.4% $99

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Chenzhou

$120 16.7% 28.8% $49

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Chenzhou

$20 2.7% 79% $74

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Chenzhou

$56 7.7% 3.4% $2

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $310 in Chenzhou. 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 $22 in Chenzhou. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $215 – making Chenzhou the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇳 Chenzhou

🕒 Local time

06:58 6:58 AM

19:58 7:58 PM

13 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

4,667,134

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, 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 = 3,501 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 6.67 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.42 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Chenzhou 16,330 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Chenzhou

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 Chenzhou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,639 in Medellin, $721 in Chenzhou – roughly 127% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $1,081 in Chenzhou. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Chenzhou, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $310 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

Public transport costs about 80% less in Chenzhou. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $797 per month in Medellin and $329 in Chenzhou. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Chenzhou, where all-in costs run around $721, than in Medellin at $1,639. In Chenzhou it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Chenzhou – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

For expats, Chenzhou is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and the 127% gap matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.