Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Chester

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,692 a month against $2,405 in Chester, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Chester
Learn more

Chester Living Index

Jump to prices

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Chester

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,405

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Chester

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

A single person spends $1,692 per month in Medellin vs $2,405 in Chester, rent included.

Medellin $1,692
Chester $2,405

A couple spends around $2,471 per month in Medellin vs $3,486 in Chester, rent included.

Medellin $2,471
Chester $3,486

A family of three spends $3,249 per month in Medellin vs $4,568 in Chester, rent included.

Medellin $3,249
Chester $4,568

Medellin is about 30% cheaper than Chester, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Medellin and Chester sit above the global median – Medellin by 25%, Chester by 78%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 26.9K

$19.88 £14.83

-58.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.1K

$88.1 £65.7

-47.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.6K

$10.67 £7.96

-11.25%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.1K

$5.24 £3.91

-40.27%

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

$1.77 COP 5,700

$2.55 £1.90

-30.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,597

$1.80 £1.35

-21.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$6.58 £4.90

-52.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.4K

$6.64 £4.95

-14.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,946

$1.71 £1.28

-10.53%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,394

$1.75 £1.31

30.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,276

$2.30 £1.72

-15.65%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,895

$4.23 £3.15

-27.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.2K

$9.12 £6.80

9.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.7K

$8.97 £6.69

16.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.0K

$14.26 £10.63

-2.10%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$2.94 £2.20

37.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,932

$1.72 £1.28

-11.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,791

$2.87 £2.14

-26.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,402

$2.98 £2.22

-23.15%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,807

$2.00 £1.49

5.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,515

$1.47 £1.10

16.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,776

$1.27 £0.95

-7.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,099

$1.63 £1.21

-3.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.6K

$24.13 £18.00

-83.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.3K

$11.19 £8.35

25.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,685

$3.03 £2.26

-41.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,752

$3.26 £2.43

-16.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,807

$4.13 £3.08

-71.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 246.2K

$72.8 £54.3

4.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,831

$4.73 £3.53

-61.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,871

$1.71 £1.28

24.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.2K

$21.77 £16.23

-62.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,115

$2.06 £1.54

-37.86%

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

$34.4K COP 111.1M

$38.4K £28.6K

-10.25%

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

$34.1K COP 110.1M

$40.9K £30.5K

-16.46%

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

$178 COP 573.5K

$322 £240

-44.73%

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

$13.89 COP 44.8K

$21.03 £15.68

-33.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.2K

$42.39 £31.61

-27.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 135.4K

$36.10 £26.92

16.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.2K

$15.31 £11.41

9.73%

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.1K

$13.54 £10.09

-44.83%

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

$790 COP 2.5M

$1,775 £1,324

-55.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.7M

$24.2K £18.0K

-49.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 278.6K

$88.6 £66.1

-2.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 191.2K

$38.24 £28.52

54.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 446.4K

$102 £75.9

35.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 318.9K

$92.0 £68.6

7.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$1,401 £1,045

-4.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$1,088 £811

-38.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$2,157 £1,608

-8.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$1,706 £1,272

-39.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.2M

$4,350 £3,244

-5.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$3,187 £2,377

-39.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

$4,138 £3,086

-84.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.15

112.43%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Chester: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Chester

$1.1K 45.2% 63% $421

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Chester

$305 12.7% 0.9% $2.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Chester

$385 16% 73.2% $163

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Chester

$317 13.2% 83.9% $145

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Chester

$144 6% 16.3% $28

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Chester

$103 4.3% 9.8% $9.2

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Chester

$63 2.6% 11% $6.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,341 in Medellin versus $1,401 in Chester. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Chester are about 6.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $88 in Chester. Groceries tell a different story – $307 in Medellin vs $305 in Chester – so Chester wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇬🇧 Chester

🕒 Local time

11:15 11:15 AM

16:15 4:15 PM

5 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

119,000

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 3,227 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,613 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 0.746 GBP (1 GBP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.835 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Chester 8,300 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Chester

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 Chester: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chester costs about 42% 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 $2,538 per month in Medellin and $3,608 in Chester. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $1,341 in Medellin and $1,401 in Chester. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $88 in Chester. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Public transport costs about 5% less in Chester. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

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

If budget matters most, go with Medellin. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chester makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.