Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Chungju

For one person, living is cheaper in Chungju: $1,472 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Medellin outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
70

Cost of Living Index in Chungju
Learn more

Chungju Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Chungju

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,472

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Chungju

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

A single person spends $1,692 per month in Medellin vs $1,472 in Chungju, rent included.

Medellin $1,692
Chungju $1,472

A couple spends around $2,471 per month in Medellin vs $2,441 in Chungju, rent included.

Medellin $2,471
Chungju $2,441

A family of three spends $3,249 per month in Medellin vs $3,411 in Chungju, rent included.

Medellin $3,249
Chungju $3,411

Medellin costs about 15% more than Chungju, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Medellin and Chungju sit above the global median – Medellin by 25%, Chungju by 9%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 26.9K

$7.65 ₩10.3K

9.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.1K

$48.57 ₩65.1K

-4.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.5K

$6.49 ₩8,706

45.92%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.1K

$3.71 ₩4,977

-15.63%

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

$1.77 COP 5,696

$1.84 ₩2,470

-3.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,594

$1.38 ₩1,849

2.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$3.74 ₩5,014

-15.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.4K

$4.16 ₩5,582

37.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,943

$2.28 ₩3,056

-32.89%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,389

$2.94 ₩3,948

-22.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,273

$3.12 ₩4,186

-37.82%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,889

$2.70 ₩3,623

13.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.2K

$11.06 ₩14.8K

-9.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.7K

$7.22 ₩9,680

44.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.0K

$25.09 ₩33.6K

-44.36%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$9.09 ₩12.2K

-55.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,929

$3.64 ₩4,877

-57.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,786

$8.21 ₩11.0K

-74.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,397

$6.04 ₩8,095

-62.09%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,803

$6.06 ₩8,120

-65.18%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,512

$3.21 ₩4,308

-46.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,774

$2.85 ₩3,824

-58.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,096

$1.32 ₩1,769

19.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.6K

$3.25 ₩4,356

20.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.3K

$18.65 ₩25.0K

-24.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,682

$2.42 ₩3,251

-27.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,746

$2.91 ₩3,903

-6.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,805

$1.13 ₩1,509

4.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 246.0K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,827

$3.53 ₩4,729

-48.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,867

$0.68 ₩909

213.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.2K

$14.61 ₩19.6K

-44.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,113

$1.39 ₩1,870

-7.91%

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

$34.4K COP 111.1M

$39.8K ₩53.4M

-13.52%

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

$34.1K COP 110.1M

$33.2K ₩44.5M

2.91%

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

$178 COP 573.2K

$199 ₩267.3K

-10.88%

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

$13.89 COP 44.8K

$26.32 ₩35.3K

-47.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.1K

$27.05 ₩36.3K

13.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 135.3K

$53.9 ₩72.2K

-22.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.2K

$15.85 ₩21.2K

5.99%

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.1K

$11.77 ₩15.8K

-36.53%

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

$790 COP 2.5M

$628 ₩841.7K

25.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.7M

$21.5K ₩28.8M

-42.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 278.4K

$72.9 ₩97.6K

18.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 191.1K

$37.90 ₩50.8K

56.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 446.2K

$73.6 ₩98.6K

88.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 318.7K

$113 ₩151.9K

-12.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$438 ₩587.0K

206.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$374 ₩501.0K

78.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$1,424 ₩1.9M

38.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$1,002 ₩1.3M

3.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.2M

$6,880 ₩9.2M

-40.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$6,119 ₩8.2M

-68.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

$1,696 ₩2.3M

-61.90%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

4.22

159.24%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Chungju: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Chungju

$374 25.4% 44% $293

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Chungju

$457 31.1% 48.8% $150

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Chungju

$253 17.2% 13.7% $30

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Chungju

$165 11.2% 4.3% $7.5

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Chungju

$134 9.1% 22.2% $38

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Chungju

$11 * 0.8% 87.8% $82

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Chungju

$77 5.3% 36.1% $21

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,341 in Medellin versus $438 in Chungju. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Chungju are about 2.6 times higher, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $49 in Chungju. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $307 vs $457 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇰🇷 Chungju

🕒 Local time

03:51 3:51 AM

17:51 5:51 PM

14 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

208,529

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.46 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 3,225 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,624 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 1,341 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.46 USD). 1 EUR = 1,506 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.64 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Chungju 14,620 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Chungju

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 Chungju: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin costs about 15% more than Chungju, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. 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 $2,208 in Chungju. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Chungju, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $438 there versus $1,341 in Medellin.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,692 in Medellin and $1,472 in Chungju. That makes Chungju about 13% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $790 per month in Medellin and $628 in Chungju. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,692 in Medellin and $1,472 in Chungju. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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