Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Huainan

For one person, living is cheaper in Huainan: $708 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 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
34

Cost of Living Index in Huainan
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Huainan Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Huainan

🇨🇳 China

$708

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Huainan

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

A single person spends $1,692 per month in Medellin vs $708 in Huainan, rent included.

Medellin $1,692
Huainan $708

A couple spends around $2,471 per month in Medellin vs $1,125 in Huainan, rent included.

Medellin $2,471
Huainan $1,125

A family of three spends $3,249 per month in Medellin vs $1,543 in Huainan, rent included.

Medellin $3,249
Huainan $1,543

Medellin costs about 139% more than Huainan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 25% above the global median, while Huainan is 48% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 26.9K

$2.76 ¥18.39

202.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.3K

$21.64 ¥144

115.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.6K

$4.82 ¥32.11

96.47%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.1K

$2.99 ¥19.91

4.68%

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

$1.77 COP 5,705

$0.43 ¥2.89

311.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,601

$0.27 ¥1.79

425.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$0.88 ¥5.83

257.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.4K

$2.14 ¥14.24

166.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,950

$1.85 ¥12.33

-17.30%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,401

$1.56 ¥10.41

46.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,282

$0.89 ¥5.93

117.98%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,905

$1.58 ¥10.55

94.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.3K

$13.09 ¥87.2

-23.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.7K

$3.14 ¥20.90

232.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.1K

$10.01 ¥66.7

39.46%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$1.79 ¥11.93

126.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,937

$1.26 ¥8.40

21.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,797

$1.47 ¥9.81

42.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,409

$1.10 ¥7.35

108.18%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,813

$0.73 ¥4.89

189.04%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,521

$0.95 ¥6.33

80.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,780

$0.56 ¥3.75

108.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,104

$0.50 ¥3.36

216.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.6K

$3.22 ¥21.42

21.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.4K

$10.63 ¥70.8

32.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,690

$0.81 ¥5.38

117.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,760

$1.57 ¥10.47

72.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,811

$0.27 ¥1.78

337.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 246.4K

$16.80 ¥112

354.11%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,836

$1.43 ¥9.52

26.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,878

$0.33 ¥2.18

545.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.3K

$6.57 ¥43.77

23.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,119

$1.12 ¥7.45

14.29%

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

$34.4K COP 111.2M

$19.8K ¥131.5K

74.32%

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

$34.1K COP 110.3M

$17.5K ¥116.3K

95.39%

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

$178 COP 574.1K

$44.36 ¥295

300.65%

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

$13.89 COP 44.9K

$9.67 ¥64.4

43.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.3K

$11.78 ¥78.5

160.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 135.5K

$42.23 ¥281

-0.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.3K

$13.96 ¥93.0

20.34%

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.1K

$5.77 ¥38.44

29.46%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$336 ¥2,235

135.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.7M

$17.0K ¥112.9K

-27.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 278.9K

$42.97 ¥286

100.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 191.4K

$29.93 ¥199

98.00%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 446.9K

$70.6 ¥470

96.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 319.2K

$71.1 ¥473

38.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$274 ¥1,821

390.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$189 ¥1,259

252.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$590 ¥3,926

235.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$359 ¥2,388

188.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.2M

$3,016 ¥20.1K

35.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$1,993 ¥13.3K

-2.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 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: November 2, 2026

Last update for Huainan: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Huainan

$189 26.7% 71.7% $478

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Huainan

$198 28% 35.6% $110

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Huainan

$66 9.3% 70.4% $157

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Huainan

$84 11.9% 51.4% $89

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Huainan

$97 13.6% 43.9% $76

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Huainan

$21 3% 77.6% $73

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Huainan

$54 7.6% 5.5% $3.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,341 in Medellin versus $274 in Huainan. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $22 in Huainan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $307 vs $198 – making Huainan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇳 Huainan

🕒 Local time

07:26 7:26 AM

20:26 8:26 PM

13 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

3,033,528

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 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 November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3,230 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,628 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 6.66 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.48 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Medellin Huainan 15,490 km ≈ 20 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 Huainan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 139%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,538 per month in Medellin and $1,062 in Huainan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Huainan, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $274 there versus $1,341 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $22 in Huainan. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,692 in Medellin and $708 in Huainan. That makes Huainan about 58% cheaper.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Huainan, where all-in costs run around $708, than in Medellin at $1,692. In Huainan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

For expats, Huainan is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 58% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.