Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Chiayi

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiayi: $1,041 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 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
50

Cost of Living Index in Chiayi
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Chiayi Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Chiayi

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,041

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Chiayi

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $1,041 in Chiayi.

Medellin $1,639
Chiayi $1,041

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $1,471 in Chiayi.

Medellin $2,413
Chiayi $1,471

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $1,901 in Chiayi.

Medellin $3,186
Chiayi $1,901

Living in Medellin is roughly 58% more expensive than in Chiayi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Chiayi is 24% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$4.59 NT$150

76.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$46.34 NT$1,511

1.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$5.65 NT$184

68.14%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$3.29 NT$107

-8.51%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$0.85 NT$27.72

111.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$0.67 NT$21.81

110.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$2.98 NT$97.2

6.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$3.58 NT$117

60.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$2.95 NT$96.2

-48.81%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$1.95 NT$63.5

22.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$3.05 NT$99.5

-41.97%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$2.63 NT$85.8

9.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$18.97 NT$619

-46.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$9.89 NT$322

-0.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$21.28 NT$694

-34.26%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$4.72 NT$154

-15.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$3.28 NT$107

-52.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$2.87 NT$93.5

-24.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$4.23 NT$138

-48.46%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$2.65 NT$86.2

-26.04%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$2.20 NT$71.6

-27.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$1.72 NT$56.1

-33.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$1.12 NT$36.48

10.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$3.75 NT$122

5.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$4.48 NT$146

205.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$1.58 NT$51.4

5.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$2.13 NT$69.5

6.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$12.12 NT$395

538.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$2.54 NT$82.8

-50.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$0.45 NT$14.70

355.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$8.97 NT$292

-4.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$1.00 NT$32.62

35.00%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$34.1K NT$1.1M

-0.00%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$23.5K NT$765.9K

47.60%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$64.7 NT$2,108

162.37%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$17.55 NT$572

-22.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$26.76 NT$872

4.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$30.55 NT$996

43.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$9.62 NT$314

-28.17%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$712 NT$23.2K

11.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$16.1K NT$525.9K

-43.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$62.2 NT$2,027

36.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$39.01 NT$1,272

48.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$82.8 NT$2,698

63.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$102 NT$3,317

-3.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$374 NT$12.2K

222.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$244 NT$7,940

163.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$3,070 NT$100.1K

35.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$1,843 NT$60.1K

3.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$2,038 NT$66.4K

-67.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

2.4

355.83%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Chiayi: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Chiayi

$244 23.4% 62% $398

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Chiayi

$372 35.7% 25.1% $75

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Chiayi

$109 10.5% 48.4% $102

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Chiayi

$121 11.7% 28.5% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Chiayi

$129 12.4% 23.9% $40

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Chiayi

$17 * 1.6% 81.9% $77

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Chiayi

$50 4.8% 13.5% $7.7

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $374 in Chiayi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Chiayi pays about 3.1 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $46 in Chiayi. Groceries flip the comparison at $297 vs $372, with Medellin cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇹🇼 Chiayi

🕒 Local time

05:40 5:40 AM

18:40 6:40 PM

13 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

269,874

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

100 TWD = 3.07 USD

100 TWD = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TWD, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,603 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 32.61 TWD (100 TWD = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 36.39 TWD (100 TWD = 2.75 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Chiayi 16,280 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Chiayi

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 Chiayi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiayi wins on cost – living expenses run 37% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Chiayi the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 68% lower in Medellin. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,208 in Medellin versus $374 in Chiayi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $797 in Medellin versus $712 in Chiayi. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

A monthly transit pass in Chiayi runs roughly 84% less than in Medellin. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Chiayi is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.