Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Golden Grove

For one person, living is cheaper in Golden Grove: $1,008 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $7,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Medellin outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
48

Cost of Living Index in Golden Grove
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Golden Grove Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Golden Grove

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$1,008

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Golden Grove

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $1,008 in Golden Grove.

Medellin $1,639
Golden Grove $1,008

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $1,665 in Golden Grove.

Medellin $2,413
Golden Grove $1,665

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $2,322 in Golden Grove.

Medellin $3,186
Golden Grove $2,322

Living in Medellin is roughly 63% more expensive than in Golden Grove, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Golden Grove is 26% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.6K

$13.78 JMD 2,176

-41.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.9K

$74.7 JMD 11.8K

-37.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$8.06 JMD 1,273

17.87%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,540

$5.45 JMD 860

-44.77%

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

$1.80 COP 5,693

$1.18 JMD 187

52.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,469

$0.69 JMD 109

104.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.0K

$2.16 JMD 341

47.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.2K

$3.21 JMD 507

79.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,778

$4.15 JMD 655

-63.61%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,524

$3.71 JMD 587

-35.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,606

$1.56 JMD 247

13.46%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,146

$3.46 JMD 546

-16.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.2K

$11.23 JMD 1,774

-9.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.2K

$6.13 JMD 968

61.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.3K

$10.14 JMD 1,600

37.97%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.6K

$6.17 JMD 974

-35.66%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,911

$3.83 JMD 604

-59.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,907

$7.32 JMD 1,156

-70.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,910

$2.96 JMD 467

-26.35%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,210

$3.15 JMD 498

-37.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,029

$2.61 JMD 412

-39.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,625

$3.14 JMD 496

-63.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,934

$1.44 JMD 227

-13.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$9.30 JMD 1,469

-57.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.3K

$11.23 JMD 1,773

21.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,252

$2.80 JMD 442

-40.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,145

$3.98 JMD 628

-43.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,696

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 244.8K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,013

$1.27 JMD 201

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,480

$3.13 JMD 494

-34.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.1K

$6.40 JMD 1,011

33.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,262

$1.45 JMD 228

-6.90%

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

$34.1K COP 107.8M

$43.4K JMD 6.9M

-21.51%

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

$34.7K COP 109.7M

$32.6K JMD 5.1M

6.31%

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

$170 COP 536.8K

$171 JMD 27.0K

-0.80%

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

$13.55 COP 42.9K

$29.71 JMD 4,692

-54.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.8K

$53.1 JMD 8,390

-47.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 138.3K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.4K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.9K

$13.32 JMD 2,102

-48.12%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$367 JMD 58.0K

117.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.8M

$8,099 JMD 1.3M

12.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 268.1K

$23.46 JMD 3,705

261.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 183.4K

$32.03 JMD 5,058

80.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 427.1K

$79.2 JMD 12.5K

70.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 309.7K

$101 JMD 16.0K

-3.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.2M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

9.45

15.77%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Golden Grove: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Golden Grove

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Golden Grove

$380 37.7% 28.1% $83

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Golden Grove

$254 25.2% 20.2% $43

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Golden Grove

$225 22.3% 32.4% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Golden Grove

$106 10.5% 37.2% $63

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Golden Grove

$17 * 1.7% 81.9% $77

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Golden Grove

$27 * 2.6% 53.7% $31

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $75 in Golden Grove for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $380 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇯🇲 Golden Grove

🕒 Local time

23:28 11:28 PM

Same time as Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

3,058

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.16 USD

10,000 COP = 2.84 EUR

1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JMD, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 3,164 COP (10,000 COP = 3.16 USD). 1 EUR = 3,523 COP (10,000 COP = 2.84 EUR).

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.69 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Golden Grove 1,300 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Golden Grove

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 Golden Grove: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $1,008 in Golden Grove, so Golden Grove is about 38% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,459 in Medellin and $1,513 in Golden Grove to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Shoppers in Medellin pay roughly 22% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you’ll spend $1,639 per month in Medellin versus $1,008 in Golden Grove – Golden Grove is about 38% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Golden Grove gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.