Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Hsinchu

For one person, living is cheaper in Hsinchu: $1,140 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $6,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Hsinchu
Learn more

Hsinchu Living Index

Jump to prices

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Hsinchu

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,140

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Hsinchu

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $1,140 in Hsinchu, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Hsinchu $1,140

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,917 in Hsinchu, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Hsinchu $1,917

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $2,693 in Hsinchu, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Hsinchu $2,693

Medellin costs about 44% more than Hsinchu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Hsinchu is 16% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$3.67 NT$120

120.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$27.83 NT$907

69.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$4.75 NT$155

100.00%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$2.99 NT$97.3

0.67%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$0.90 NT$29.37

100.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$0.66 NT$21.37

113.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$1.89 NT$61.7

68.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$2.24 NT$73.1

156.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$2.75 NT$89.7

-45.09%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$1.62 NT$52.9

46.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$4.35 NT$142

-59.31%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$2.76 NT$90.1

4.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$35.37 NT$1,153

-71.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$6.92 NT$226

42.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$20.54 NT$670

-31.89%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$2.60 NT$84.7

52.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$2.43 NT$79.2

-36.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$3.24 NT$106

-32.72%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$3.10 NT$101

-29.68%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$2.36 NT$76.9

-16.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$2.31 NT$75.4

-31.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$1.96 NT$63.9

-41.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$1.36 NT$44.32

-8.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$3.90 NT$127

1.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$12.08 NT$394

13.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$1.88 NT$61.4

-11.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$2.29 NT$74.6

-1.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

$0.51 NT$16.76

129.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$38.54 NT$1,257

100.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$2.99 NT$97.6

-57.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$0.30 NT$9.64

583.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$9.82 NT$320

-12.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$1.01 NT$32.98

33.66%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$34.7K NT$1.1M

-1.89%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$23.6K NT$769.1K

46.99%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$102 NT$3,315

66.83%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$19.11 NT$623

-29.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$20.66 NT$674

35.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$51.0 NT$1,664

-14.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$10.28 NT$335

-32.78%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$735 NT$24.0K

8.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$16.3K NT$531.6K

-44.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$56.1 NT$1,829

51.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$34.95 NT$1,140

65.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$75.7 NT$2,467

78.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$103 NT$3,352

-4.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$418 NT$13.6K

188.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$257 NT$8,377

149.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$1,100 NT$35.9K

84.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$756 NT$24.7K

33.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$6,930 NT$226.0K

-39.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$4,621 NT$150.7K

-58.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$2,398 NT$78.2K

-72.60%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

2.13

413.62%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Hsinchu: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Hsinchu

$257 22.5% 60% $385

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Hsinchu

$405 35.5% 36.2% $108

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Hsinchu

$141 12.4% 33% $70

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Hsinchu

$100 8.7% 41.3% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Hsinchu

$121 10.6% 28.2% $48

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Hsinchu

$45 4% 51.8% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Hsinchu

$72 6.3% 24.4% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $418 in Hsinchu. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Hsinchu are about 3.6 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 $28 in Hsinchu. Groceries tell a different story – $297 in Medellin vs $405 in Hsinchu – so Medellin wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇹🇼 Hsinchu

🕒 Local time

19:58 7:58 PM

08:58 8:58 AM

13 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

453,120

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

100 TWD = 3.07 USD

100 TWD = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TWD, 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).

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 32.61 TWD (100 TWD = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 36.41 TWD (100 TWD = 2.75 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Hsinchu 16,120 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Hsinchu

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 Hsinchu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin costs about 44% more than Hsinchu, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. 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 $1,711 in Hsinchu. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Hsinchu, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $418 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

Public transport costs about 50% less in Hsinchu. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $797 per month in Medellin and $735 in Hsinchu. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,639 in Medellin and $1,140 in Hsinchu. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Hsinchu – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.