Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Iskenderun

For one person, living is cheaper in Iskenderun: $965 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 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
47

Cost of Living Index in Iskenderun
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Iskenderun Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Iskenderun

🇹🇷 Turkey

$965

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Iskenderun

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

A single person spends $1,692 per month in Medellin vs $965 in Iskenderun, rent included.

Medellin $1,692
Iskenderun $965

A couple spends around $2,471 per month in Medellin vs $1,450 in Iskenderun, rent included.

Medellin $2,471
Iskenderun $1,450

A family of three spends $3,249 per month in Medellin vs $1,935 in Iskenderun, rent included.

Medellin $3,249
Iskenderun $1,935

Medellin costs about 75% more than Iskenderun, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 25% above the global median, while Iskenderun is 29% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 27.0K

$6.01 ₺301

38.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.9K

$29.58 ₺1,479

57.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.7K

$6.11 ₺306

54.99%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.2K

$3.08 ₺154

1.62%

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

$1.77 COP 5,727

$1.11 ₺55.7

59.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,619

$0.27 ₺13.51

425.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$2.39 ₺119

31.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.5K

$2.63 ₺132

116.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,969

$1.03 ₺51.5

48.54%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,429

$0.78 ₺39.25

193.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,306

$1.67 ₺83.5

16.17%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,942

$1.85 ₺92.7

65.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.4K

$7.36 ₺368

35.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.9K

$3.92 ₺196

166.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.3K

$17.71 ₺886

-21.17%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$1.62 ₺80.8

150.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,956

$1.84 ₺92.1

-16.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,823

$0.85 ₺42.55

147.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,437

$1.07 ₺53.5

114.02%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,839

$0.49 ₺24.53

330.61%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,542

$0.37 ₺18.64

362.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,794

$0.84 ₺42.06

39.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,123

$0.61 ₺30.41

159.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.7K

$2.11 ₺106

85.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.5K

$9.93 ₺497

41.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,712

$2.32 ₺116

-24.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,793

$3.20 ₺160

-15.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,825

$0.66 ₺32.77

78.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 247.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,859

$0.98 ₺49.27

84.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,904

$0.92 ₺46.09

131.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.4K

$10.06 ₺503

-19.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,135

$1.25 ₺62.3

2.40%

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

$34.4K COP 111.7M

$40.5K ₺2.0M

-14.94%

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

$34.1K COP 110.7M

$41.4K ₺2.1M

-17.61%

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

$178 COP 576.3K

$88.3 ₺4,417

101.26%

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

$13.89 COP 45.0K

$9.59 ₺479

44.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.7K

$10.35 ₺518

197.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 136.0K

$47.34 ₺2,368

-11.41%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.5K

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.2K

$6.10 ₺305

22.46%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$443 ₺22.2K

78.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.9M

$7,098 ₺355.0K

73.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 279.9K

$53.4 ₺2,672

61.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 192.2K

$28.94 ₺1,447

104.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 448.6K

$113 ₺5,641

22.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 320.4K

$108 ₺5,410

-8.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$428 ₺21.4K

213.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$321 ₺16.1K

107.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$704 ₺35.2K

180.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$508 ₺25.4K

103.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.3M

$1,128 ₺56.4K

263.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$950 ₺47.5K

104.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

$1,122 ₺56.1K

-42.40%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

-68.74%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Iskenderun: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Iskenderun

$321 33.3% 51.9% $346

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Iskenderun

$206 21.3% 33.1% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Iskenderun

$108 11.2% 51.3% $114

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Iskenderun

$126 13.1% 26.9% $46

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Iskenderun

$136 14.1% 20.8% $36

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Iskenderun

$8.2 * 0.9% 91.2% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Iskenderun

$60 6.2% 4.6% $2.6

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,341 in Medellin versus $428 in Iskenderun. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 74% higher in Iskenderun, 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 $30 in Iskenderun. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $307 vs $206 – making Iskenderun the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇹🇷 Iskenderun

🕒 Local time

05:11 5:11 AM

13:11 1:11 PM

8 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

246,639

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.08 USD

10,000 COP = 2.74 EUR

100 TRY = 2 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 3,242 COP (10,000 COP = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 3,644 COP (10,000 COP = 2.74 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 50.02 TRY (100 TRY = 2 USD). 1 EUR = 56.21 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Iskenderun 11,490 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Iskenderun

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 Iskenderun: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 75%, 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 $1,448 in Iskenderun. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Iskenderun, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $428 there versus $1,341 in Medellin.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,692 in Medellin and $965 in Iskenderun. That makes Iskenderun about 43% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $790 per month in Medellin and $443 in Iskenderun. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

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