Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Fourways

For one person, living is cheaper in Fourways: $1,031 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $7,300 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 Fourways
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Fourways Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Fourways

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,031

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Fourways

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $1,031 in Fourways, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Fourways $1,031

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,591 in Fourways, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Fourways $1,591

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $2,151 in Fourways, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Fourways $2,151

Medellin costs about 59% more than Fourways, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Fourways is 24% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$9.11 R 152

-11.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$36.79 R 614

27.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$5.32 R 88.8

78.57%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$2.18 R 36.38

38.07%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$1.02 R 17.07

76.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$0.81 R 13.46

74.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$2.35 R 39.27

35.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$2.74 R 45.75

109.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$1.16 R 19.43

30.17%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$1.12 R 18.74

112.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$1.67 R 27.83

5.99%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$2.40 R 40.09

20.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$7.56 R 126

34.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$4.35 R 72.7

126.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$7.02 R 117

99.29%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$1.38 R 23.11

187.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$1.59 R 26.59

-2.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$1.76 R 29.41

23.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$1.54 R 25.73

41.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$1.12 R 18.71

75.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$1.21 R 20.23

31.40%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$1.22 R 20.39

-5.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$1.09 R 18.21

13.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$3.19 R 53.3

24.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$5.01 R 83.6

173.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$1.52 R 25.45

9.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$1.96 R 32.71

15.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$0.29 R 4.77

337.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$0.80 R 13.39

156.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$14.28 R 238

-40.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$1.56 R 26.00

-13.46%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$28.7K R 479.0K

18.72%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$26.7K R 445.7K

29.85%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$87.3 R 1,457

94.44%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$36.98 R 617

-63.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$36.87 R 615

-23.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$32.58 R 544

34.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

$16.27 R 272

5.65%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$7.12 R 119

-2.95%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$256 R 4,273

211.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$7,815 R 130.5K

16.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$53.0 R 885

59.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$31.76 R 530

82.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$77.2 R 1,289

74.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$84.3 R 1,407

16.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$386 R 6,440

213.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$387 R 6,458

65.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$740 R 12.3K

174.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$704 R 11.8K

43.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$1,572 R 26.2K

-58.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

11.34

-3.53%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Fourways: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Fourways

$387 37.5% 39.7% $255

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Fourways

$181 17.6% 39% $116

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Fourways

$161 15.6% 23.7% $50

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Fourways

$140 13.5% 17.7% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Fourways

$111 10.8% 34.4% $58

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Fourways

$4.3 * 0.4% 95.4% $89

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Fourways

$47 4.5% 18.6% $11

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $386 in Fourways. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Fourways are about 2.4 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 $37 in Fourways. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $181 – making Fourways the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇿🇦 Fourways

🕒 Local time

21:32 9:32 PM

04:32 4:32 AM

7 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

100 ZAR = 5.99 USD

100 ZAR = 5.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, 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 = 3,605 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 16.69 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.99 USD). 1 EUR = 18.64 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.37 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Fourways 11,670 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Fourways

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 Fourways: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin costs about 59% more than Fourways, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $1,546 in Fourways. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Fourways, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $386 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $37 in Fourways. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 64% more in Medellin, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,639 in Medellin and $1,031 in Fourways. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Fourways costs $1,031 versus $1,639 in Medellin. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.