Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Huaibei

For one person, living is cheaper in Huaibei: $715 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $10,800 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
35

Cost of Living Index in Huaibei
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Huaibei Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Huaibei

🇨🇳 China

$715

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Huaibei

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,614 in Medellin versus $715 in Huaibei.

Medellin $1,614
Huaibei $715

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,402 in Medellin versus $1,135 in Huaibei.

Medellin $2,402
Huaibei $1,135

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,190 in Medellin versus $1,555 in Huaibei.

Medellin $3,190
Huaibei $1,555

Living in Medellin is roughly 126% more expensive than in Huaibei, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Huaibei is 47% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.93 COP 25.2K

$2.82 ¥18.88

181.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.13 COP 146.3K

$21.31 ¥142

116.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$4.98 ¥33.31

90.76%

Cappuccino

$3.11 COP 9,866

$2.99 ¥19.97

4.01%

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

$1.83 COP 5,800

$0.44 ¥2.91

315.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,360

$0.29 ¥1.95

375.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 COP 9,672

$0.93 ¥6.21

227.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.50 COP 17.4K

$2.07 ¥13.85

165.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 COP 4,600

$1.81 ¥12.07

-19.89%

White Bread (500g)

$2.36 COP 7,496

$1.62 ¥10.86

45.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,328

$0.96 ¥6.42

75.00%

Eggs

$2.86 COP 9,077

$1.59 ¥10.63

79.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.3K

$12.83 ¥85.8

-20.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 COP 30.2K

$3.10 ¥20.72

207.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.04 COP 44.5K

$10.39 ¥69.5

35.13%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 COP 12.9K

$1.89 ¥12.64

115.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,742

$1.24 ¥8.32

20.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 COP 6,891

$1.54 ¥10.30

40.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 COP 7,310

$1.09 ¥7.28

111.93%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 COP 6,113

$0.71 ¥4.75

171.83%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,196

$0.95 ¥6.38

72.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,571

$0.56 ¥3.72

101.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 COP 3,954

$0.55 ¥3.67

127.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 COP 12.6K

$3.06 ¥20.43

30.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 COP 42.3K

$10.57 ¥70.7

26.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 COP 5,384

$0.78 ¥5.24

117.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,525

$1.57 ¥10.53

50.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 COP 3,827

$0.27 ¥1.79

348.15%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

$16.89 ¥113

352.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 COP 4,179

$1.42 ¥9.49

-7.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,774

$0.35 ¥2.34

511.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 COP 26.8K

$6.82 ¥45.57

24.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 COP 4,114

$1.16 ¥7.78

12.07%

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

$28.0K COP 88.7M

$19.5K ¥130.3K

43.66%

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

$35.4K COP 112.3M

$17.0K ¥113.5K

108.70%

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

$172 COP 545.6K

$45.82 ¥306

275.58%

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

$13.37 COP 42.4K

$9.77 ¥65.3

36.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.73 COP 91.1K

$11.74 ¥78.5

144.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 COP 143.5K

$41.75 ¥279

8.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

$13.66 ¥91.3

24.74%

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 COP 19.9K

$5.87 ¥39.23

6.98%

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

$770 COP 2.4M

$338 ¥2,259

127.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.6M

$17.0K ¥113.9K

-47.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.4 COP 274.0K

$43.32 ¥290

99.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 COP 181.1K

$30.07 ¥201

89.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 432.9K

$72.3 ¥483

88.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 310.4K

$71.3 ¥477

37.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 COP 3.3M

$279 ¥1,866

278.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$616 COP 2.0M

$191 ¥1,275

222.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

$581 ¥3,887

225.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.2M

$364 ¥2,432

181.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

$3,034 ¥20.3K

33.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

$2,055 ¥13.7K

-18.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

3.89

181.23%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Last update for Huaibei: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$616 38.2%

Huaibei

$191 26.7% 69% $425

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$295 18.3%

Huaibei

$199 27.9% 32.4% $95

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$214 13.3%

Huaibei

$67 9.4% 68.6% $147

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$170 10.5%

Huaibei

$98 13.7% 42.6% $72

Eating Out

Medellin

$168 10.4%

Huaibei

$85 11.9% 49.5% $83

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.8%

Huaibei

$21 3% 77.4% $72

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.6%

Huaibei

$53 7.5% 7.5% $4.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,055 in Medellin and $279 in Huaibei. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $46.00 in Medellin vs $21.00 in Huaibei for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $295 vs $199 per month, with Huaibei cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇳 Huaibei

🕒 Local time

03:42 3:42 AM

16:42 4:42 PM

13 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

1,970,265

💱 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 20, 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 20, 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 Huaibei 15,360 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

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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 Huaibei: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Huaibei wins on cost – living expenses run 126% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Huaibei the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $2,421 in Medellin and $1,072 in Huaibei 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,055 in Medellin versus $279 in Huaibei. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,614 per month in Medellin versus $715 in Huaibei – a 126% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Huaibei runs roughly 353% less than in Medellin. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $715 in Huaibei versus $1,614 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Huaibei but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Huaibei the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Huaibei delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $715 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Huaibei hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Huaibei gentler on the wallet – expenses run 126% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.