Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Guelma

For one person, living is cheaper in Guelma: $522 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $14,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
25

Cost of Living Index in Guelma
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Guelma Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Guelma

🇩🇿 Algeria

$522

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Guelma

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,692 in Medellin versus $522 in Guelma.

Medellin $1,692
Guelma $522

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,471 in Medellin versus $850 in Guelma.

Medellin $2,471
Guelma $850

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,249 in Medellin versus $1,179 in Guelma.

Medellin $3,249
Guelma $1,179

Living in Medellin is roughly 224% more expensive than in Guelma, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 25% above, Guelma is 61% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 27.0K

$3.14 DZD 425

165.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.9K

$17.36 DZD 2,347

168.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.7K

$3.80 DZD 514

149.21%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.2K

$0.63 DZD 85.2

396.83%

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

$1.77 COP 5,727

$0.59 DZD 80.0

200.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,619

$0.26 DZD 35.39

446.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$1.51 DZD 204

108.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.5K

$2.14 DZD 289

166.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,969

$0.84 DZD 114

82.14%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,429

$0.15 DZD 20.21

1426.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,306

$1.15 DZD 155

68.70%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,942

$1.18 DZD 160

160.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.4K

$7.74 DZD 1,046

29.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.9K

$3.86 DZD 522

170.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.3K

$14.45 DZD 1,953

-3.39%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$2.03 DZD 274

99.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,956

$2.82 DZD 382

-45.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,823

$1.10 DZD 149

90.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,437

$0.96 DZD 130

138.54%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,839

$0.62 DZD 83.8

240.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,542

$0.49 DZD 65.9

248.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,794

$0.70 DZD 95.1

67.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,123

$0.27 DZD 36.69

485.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.7K

$2.70 DZD 366

44.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.5K

$6.54 DZD 884

114.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,712

$1.24 DZD 168

41.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,793

$1.91 DZD 259

41.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,825

$0.24 DZD 32.54

391.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 247.4K

$6.84 DZD 925

1015.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,859

$0.53 DZD 72.0

241.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,904

$0.43 DZD 58.4

395.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.4K

$5.29 DZD 715

53.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,135

$0.35 DZD 47.43

265.71%

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

$34.4K COP 111.7M

$31.6K DZD 4.3M

8.82%

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

$34.1K COP 110.7M

$34.4K DZD 4.7M

-0.86%

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

$178 COP 576.3K

$36.43 DZD 4,924

387.87%

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

$13.89 COP 45.0K

$9.42 DZD 1,273

47.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.7K

$12.15 DZD 1,642

153.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 136.0K

$22.47 DZD 3,037

86.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.5K

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.2K

$4.53 DZD 612

64.90%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$340 DZD 45.9K

132.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.9M

$4,850 DZD 655.7K

153.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 279.9K

$31.78 DZD 4,296

171.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 192.2K

$34.46 DZD 4,659

71.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 448.6K

$69.1 DZD 9,342

100.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 320.4K

$80.6 DZD 10.9K

22.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$142 DZD 19.2K

844.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$92.1 DZD 12.5K

624.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$267 DZD 36.1K

640.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$197 DZD 26.7K

423.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.3M

$953 DZD 128.8K

330.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$1,037 DZD 140.3K

86.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

$300 DZD 40.5K

115.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.3

106.42%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Guelma: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Guelma

$92 17.7% 86.2% $575

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Guelma

$173 33.2% 43.6% $134

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Guelma

$58 11.1% 73.9% $164

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Guelma

$59 11.4% 65.6% $113

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Guelma

$97 18.6% 43.6% $75

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Guelma

$11 2% 88.8% $83

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Guelma

$32 6% 44.6% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,341 in Medellin and $142 in Guelma. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays about 2.2 times 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 in Medellin vs $17 in Guelma for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $307 vs $173 per month, with Guelma cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇩🇿 Guelma

🕒 Local time

15:56 3:56 PM

21:56 9:56 PM

6 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

120,847

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Algerian Dinar DZD د.ج

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.08 USD

10,000 COP = 2.74 EUR

1,000 DZD = 7.4 USD

1,000 DZD = 6.57 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

DZD, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 3,242 COP (10,000 COP = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 3,650 COP (10,000 COP = 2.74 EUR).

Algerian Dinar exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 135 DZD (1,000 DZD = 7.4 USD). 1 EUR = 152 DZD (1,000 DZD = 6.57 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Medellin Guelma 8,970 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

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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 Guelma: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,692 in Medellin and $522 in Guelma, so Guelma is about 69% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Medellin is about 2.2 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,341 in Medellin versus $142 in Guelma. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 77% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Guelma – a meal for two runs $17 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $522 in Guelma versus $1,692 in Medellin, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Guelma but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Guelma the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Expats usually find Guelma gentler on the wallet – expenses run 69% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.