Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Hefei

For one person, living is cheaper in Hefei: $768 a month against $1,625 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $10,300 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
37

Cost of Living Index in Hefei
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Hefei Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,625

/mo nomad

Hefei

🇨🇳 China

$768

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Hefei

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,625 in Medellin versus $768 in Hefei.

Medellin $1,625
Hefei $768

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,412 in Medellin versus $1,225 in Hefei.

Medellin $2,412
Hefei $1,225

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,199 in Medellin versus $1,681 in Hefei.

Medellin $3,199
Hefei $1,681

Living in Medellin is roughly 112% more expensive than in Hefei, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Hefei is 43% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.30 COP 26.3K

$2.58 ¥17.28

221.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.91 COP 148.7K

$22.44 ¥150

109.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.24 COP 29.3K

$4.36 ¥29.18

111.93%

Cappuccino

$3.05 COP 9,676

$2.75 ¥18.39

10.91%

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

$1.80 COP 5,707

$0.49 ¥3.26

267.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,382

$0.27 ¥1.80

411.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 COP 10.3K

$1.06 ¥7.09

205.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.56 COP 17.6K

$2.00 ¥13.35

178.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 COP 4,760

$1.62 ¥10.84

-7.41%

White Bread (500g)

$2.37 COP 7,508

$2.06 ¥13.75

15.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 COP 5,377

$0.81 ¥5.42

109.88%

Eggs

$2.96 COP 9,379

$1.92 ¥12.84

54.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.22 COP 32.4K

$14.10 ¥94.3

-27.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.74 COP 30.9K

$4.90 ¥32.76

98.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.90 COP 44.1K

$11.57 ¥77.3

20.14%

Apples (1kg)

$4.13 COP 13.1K

$2.31 ¥15.45

78.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,839

$1.72 ¥11.52

-11.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 COP 7,052

$1.64 ¥10.95

35.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.27 COP 7,194

$1.61 ¥10.79

40.99%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 COP 6,311

$0.80 ¥5.37

148.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 COP 5,285

$0.94 ¥6.26

77.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 COP 3,742

$0.79 ¥5.26

49.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,919

$0.70 ¥4.70

77.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.87 COP 12.3K

$3.08 ¥20.59

25.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.78 COP 43.7K

$12.16 ¥81.3

13.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,256

$0.93 ¥6.21

78.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 COP 7,615

$1.99 ¥13.28

20.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.24 COP 3,944

$0.31 ¥2.09

300.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.2 COP 248.0K

$45.22 ¥302

72.95%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 COP 4,044

$1.23 ¥8.21

4.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.15 COP 6,803

$0.33 ¥2.20

551.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.37 COP 26.5K

$3.51 ¥23.48

138.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,288

$1.33 ¥8.91

1.50%

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

$34.8K COP 110.2M

$19.0K ¥127.2K

82.71%

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

$34.7K COP 110.0M

$16.9K ¥112.9K

105.34%

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

$167 COP 528.4K

$48.54 ¥325

243.33%

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

$13.62 COP 43.2K

$9.54 ¥63.8

42.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.12 COP 92.3K

$12.08 ¥80.8

141.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.09 COP 143.0K

$15.66 ¥105

187.93%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.18 COP 54.5K

$15.31 ¥102

12.21%

Cinema Ticket

$6.97 COP 22.1K

$6.41 ¥42.85

8.74%

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

$790 COP 2.5M

$236 ¥1,581

234.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,041 COP 28.7M

$8,656 ¥57.9K

4.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.8 COP 278.4K

$89.7 ¥600

-2.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.2 COP 184.4K

$32.76 ¥219

77.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$139 COP 440.7K

$62.7 ¥419

121.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.9 COP 313.5K

$96.9 ¥648

2.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 COP 3.3M

$241 ¥1,609

327.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$620 COP 2.0M

$179 ¥1,197

246.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,881 COP 6.0M

$532 ¥3,558

253.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 COP 3.2M

$340 ¥2,270

196.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,988 COP 12.6M

$3,573 ¥23.9K

11.63%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,702 COP 5.4M

$1,975 ¥13.2K

-13.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$663 COP 2.1M

$1,011 ¥6,763

-34.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

3.15

247.30%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 19, 2026

Last update for Hefei: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$619 38.1%

Hefei

$179 23.3% 71.1% $441

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$298 18.3%

Hefei

$235 30.6% 21.3% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$209 12.9%

Hefei

$70 9.1% 66.5% $139

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$173 10.6%

Hefei

$127 16.5% 26.5% $46

Eating Out

Medellin

$171 10.5%

Hefei

$79 10.3% 53.7% $92

Getting Around

Medellin

$95 5.9%

Hefei

$49 6.4% 48.2% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$59 3.6%

Hefei

$28 3.7% 51.8% $31

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,028 in Medellin and $241 in Hefei. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Hefei pays 52% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $47.00 in Medellin vs $22.00 in Hefei for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $298 vs $235 per month, with Hefei cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇳 Hefei

🕒 Local time

06:33 6:33 AM

19:33 7:33 PM

13 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

9,369,881

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Medellin Hefei 15,560 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Hefei

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 Hefei: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hefei wins on cost – living expenses run 112% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Hefei the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 52% lower in Hefei. 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 $241 in Hefei. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Hefei – a meal for two runs $22.00 versus $47.00 in Medellin. 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 $768 in Hefei – a 112% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $768 in Hefei versus $1,625 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Hefei but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Hefei the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Hefei delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $768 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Hefei hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Hefei gentler on the wallet – expenses run 112% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.