Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Dorchester

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,625 a month against $2,240 in Dorchester, rent and utilities included – about $7,400 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
107

Cost of Living Index in Dorchester
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Dorchester Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,625

/mo nomad

Dorchester

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,240

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Dorchester

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,625 in Medellin versus $2,240 in Dorchester.

Medellin $1,625
Dorchester $2,240

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,412 in Medellin versus $3,370 in Dorchester.

Medellin $2,412
Dorchester $3,370

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,199 in Medellin versus $4,500 in Dorchester.

Medellin $3,199
Dorchester $4,500

Living in Medellin costs roughly 27% less than in Dorchester, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Dorchester 65% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.30 COP 26.3K

$16.10 £12.08

-48.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.91 COP 148.7K

$79.0 £59.3

-40.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.24 COP 29.3K

$5.20 £3.90

77.69%

Cappuccino

$3.05 COP 9,676

$4.67 £3.51

-34.69%

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

$1.80 COP 5,707

$2.58 £1.93

-30.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,382

$1.85 £1.39

-25.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 COP 10.3K

$7.80 £5.85

-58.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.56 COP 17.6K

$6.55 £4.91

-15.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 COP 4,760

$1.51 £1.13

-0.66%

White Bread (500g)

$2.37 COP 7,508

$1.30 £0.97

82.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 COP 5,377

$2.07 £1.56

-17.87%

Eggs

$2.96 COP 9,379

$4.39 £3.30

-32.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.22 COP 32.4K

$8.11 £6.08

26.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.74 COP 30.9K

$8.77 £6.58

11.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.90 COP 44.1K

$11.56 £8.67

20.24%

Apples (1kg)

$4.13 COP 13.1K

$2.99 £2.25

38.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,839

$1.73 £1.30

-11.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 COP 7,052

$2.71 £2.04

-18.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.27 COP 7,194

$4.05 £3.04

-43.95%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 COP 6,311

$2.05 £1.53

-2.93%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 COP 5,285

$1.46 £1.09

14.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 COP 3,742

$0.76 £0.57

55.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,919

$2.09 £1.57

-40.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.87 COP 12.3K

$22.94 £17.21

-83.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.78 COP 43.7K

$10.68 £8.01

29.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,256

$2.80 £2.10

-40.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 COP 7,615

$3.48 £2.61

-31.03%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.24 COP 3,944

$3.87 £2.90

-67.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.2 COP 248.0K

$83.0 £62.3

-5.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 COP 4,044

$3.51 £2.63

-63.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.15 COP 6,803

$1.61 £1.21

33.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.37 COP 26.5K

$26.25 £19.69

-68.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,288

$2.13 £1.60

-36.62%

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

$34.8K COP 110.2M

$39.2K £29.4K

-11.23%

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

$34.7K COP 110.0M

$40.4K £30.3K

-14.18%

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

$167 COP 528.4K

$229 £172

-27.33%

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

$13.62 COP 43.2K

$17.12 £12.84

-20.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.12 COP 92.3K

$39.14 £29.36

-25.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.09 COP 143.0K

$46.50 £34.89

-3.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.18 COP 54.5K

Cinema Ticket

$6.97 COP 22.1K

$13.73 £10.30

-49.24%

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

$790 COP 2.5M

$2,244 £1,683

-64.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,041 COP 28.7M

$25.4K £19.0K

-64.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.8 COP 278.4K

$60.1 £45.12

45.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.2 COP 184.4K

$48.42 £36.33

20.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$139 COP 440.7K

$109 £81.8

27.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.9 COP 313.5K

$96.4 £72.4

2.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 COP 3.3M

$1,171 £879

-12.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$620 COP 2.0M

$1,066 £800

-41.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,881 COP 6.0M

$2,330 £1,748

-19.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 COP 3.2M

$1,900 £1,426

-46.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,988 COP 12.6M

$4,565 £3,425

-12.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,702 COP 5.4M

$3,984 £2,989

-57.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$663 COP 2.1M

$1,803 £1,353

-63.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

4.87

124.64%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 19, 2026

Last update for Dorchester: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$619 38.1%

Dorchester

$1.1K 47.6% 72.1% $447

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$298 18.3%

Dorchester

$293 13.1% 1.7% $5.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$209 12.9%

Dorchester

$286 12.8% 36.4% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$173 10.6%

Dorchester

$141 6.3% 18.2% $31

Eating Out

Medellin

$171 10.5%

Dorchester

$270 12.1% 58.2% $100

Getting Around

Medellin

$95 5.9%

Dorchester

$110 4.9% 15.6% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$59 3.6%

Dorchester

$74 3.3% 25.3% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,028 in Medellin and $1,171 in Dorchester. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dorchester pays 172% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $47.00 in Medellin vs $79.0 in Dorchester. Groceries flip the comparison at $298 vs $293, with Dorchester cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇬🇧 Dorchester

🕒 Local time

15:59 3:59 PM

21:59 9:59 PM

6 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

19,500

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 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 October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Dorchester 8,290 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Dorchester

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 Dorchester: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin wins on cost – living expenses run 38% lower than in Dorchester. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Medellin the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 172% lower in Dorchester. 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: $1,028 in Medellin versus $1,171 in Dorchester. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Dorchester pay roughly 2% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in Medellin – a meal for two runs $47.00 versus $79.0 in Dorchester. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,625 in Medellin versus $2,240 in Dorchester, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Medellin but tight or insufficient in Dorchester. The gap between the two cities makes Medellin the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Medellin delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,625 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Medellin hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Medellin and Dorchester are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Medellin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 38% less than in Dorchester. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.