Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Fort St John, BC

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,625 a month against $1,949 in Fort St John, BC, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
94

Cost of Living Index in Fort St John, BC
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Fort St John, BC Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,625

/mo nomad

Fort St John, BC

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,949

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Fort St John, BC

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 Fort St John, BC actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,625 in Medellin versus $1,949 in Fort St John, BC.

Medellin $1,625
Fort St John, BC $1,949

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,412 in Medellin versus $3,002 in Fort St John, BC.

Medellin $2,412
Fort St John, BC $3,002

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,199 in Medellin versus $4,055 in Fort St John, BC.

Medellin $3,199
Fort St John, BC $4,055

Living in Medellin costs roughly 17% less than in Fort St John, BC, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Fort St John, BC 44% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.30 COP 26.3K

$17.70 CA$25.02

-53.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.91 COP 148.7K

$42.02 CA$59.4

11.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.24 COP 29.3K

$9.35 CA$13.22

-1.18%

Cappuccino

$3.05 COP 9,676

$3.89 CA$5.49

-21.59%

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

$1.80 COP 5,707

$1.82 CA$2.58

-1.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,382

$1.22 CA$1.73

13.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 COP 10.3K

$6.19 CA$8.75

-47.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.56 COP 17.6K

$4.51 CA$6.38

23.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 COP 4,760

$3.34 CA$4.72

-55.09%

White Bread (500g)

$2.37 COP 7,508

$2.79 CA$3.94

-15.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 COP 5,377

$3.66 CA$5.17

-53.55%

Eggs

$2.96 COP 9,379

$4.18 CA$5.90

-29.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.22 COP 32.4K

$12.02 CA$16.99

-14.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.74 COP 30.9K

$13.69 CA$19.36

-28.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.90 COP 44.1K

$18.57 CA$26.26

-25.15%

Apples (1kg)

$4.13 COP 13.1K

$5.73 CA$8.10

-27.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,839

$0.73 CA$1.03

109.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 COP 7,052

$3.77 CA$5.33

-41.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.27 COP 7,194

$3.61 CA$5.11

-37.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 COP 6,311

$2.82 CA$3.98

-29.43%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 COP 5,285

$2.76 CA$3.90

-39.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 COP 3,742

$2.14 CA$3.03

-44.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,919

$2.52 CA$3.57

-50.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.87 COP 12.3K

$14.36 CA$20.29

-73.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.78 COP 43.7K

$21.42 CA$30.29

-35.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,256

$4.85 CA$6.85

-65.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 COP 7,615

$5.60 CA$7.91

-57.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.24 COP 3,944

$1.44 CA$2.03

-13.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.2 COP 248.0K

$28.86 CA$40.80

171.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 COP 4,044

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.15 COP 6,803

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.37 COP 26.5K

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,288

$1.25 CA$1.76

8.00%

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

$34.8K COP 110.2M

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

$34.7K COP 110.0M

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

$167 COP 528.4K

$126 CA$178

32.48%

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

$13.62 COP 43.2K

$101 CA$142

-86.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.12 COP 92.3K

$61.0 CA$86.2

-52.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.09 COP 143.0K

$13.48 CA$19.06

234.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.18 COP 54.5K

Cinema Ticket

$6.97 COP 22.1K

$10.56 CA$14.94

-34.00%

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

$790 COP 2.5M

$697 CA$985

13.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,041 COP 28.7M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.8 COP 278.4K

$71.2 CA$101

23.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.2 COP 184.4K

$47.43 CA$67.0

22.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$139 COP 440.7K

$105 CA$148

32.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.9 COP 313.5K

$143 CA$202

-30.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 COP 3.3M

$733 CA$1,036

40.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$620 COP 2.0M

$709 CA$1,002

-12.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,881 COP 6.0M

$1,542 CA$2,180

21.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 COP 3.2M

$1,394 CA$1,971

-27.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,988 COP 12.6M

$1,291 CA$1,824

209.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,702 COP 5.4M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$663 COP 2.1M

$3,094 CA$4,374

-78.56%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

6.1

79.34%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 19, 2026

Last update for Fort St John, BC: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$619 38.1%

Fort St John, BC

$709 36.4% 14.4% $89

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$298 18.3%

Fort St John, BC

$450 23.1% 51.1% $152

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$209 12.9%

Fort St John, BC

$287 14.7% 37.2% $78

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$173 10.6%

Fort St John, BC

$165 8.5% 4.5% $7.7

Eating Out

Medellin

$171 10.5%

Fort St John, BC

$268 13.8% 57.2% $98

Getting Around

Medellin

$95 5.9%

Fort St John, BC

$35 * 1.8% 63.6% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$59 3.6%

Fort St John, BC

$35 1.8% 41.4% $24

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 $1,028 in Medellin and $733 in Fort St John, BC. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Fort St John, BC pays 366% 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 $42.00 in Fort St John, BC. Groceries flip the comparison at $298 vs $450, with Medellin cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇦 Fort St John, BC

🕒 Local time

08:31 8:31 AM

06:31 6:31 AM

2 h behind Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

18,609

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Fort St John, BC 6,820 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Fort St John, BC

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 Fort St John, BC: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. The 20% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 366% lower in Fort St John, BC. 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 $733 in Fort St John, BC. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Medellin – a meal for two runs $47.00 versus $42.00 in Fort St John, BC. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,625 per month in Medellin versus $1,949 in Fort St John, BC – a 20% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,625 in Medellin versus $1,949 in Fort St John, BC, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Medellin but tight or insufficient in Fort St John, BC. The gap between the two cities makes Medellin the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Medellin is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Fort St John, BC, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Medellin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 20% less than in Fort St John, BC. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.