Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Islip, NY

For one person, living is cheaper in Islip, NY: $1,259 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Medellin outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Islip, NY
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Islip, NY Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Islip, NY

🇺🇸 United States

$1,259

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Islip, NY

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $1,259 in Islip, NY.

Medellin $1,639
Islip, NY $1,259

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $2,207 in Islip, NY.

Medellin $2,413
Islip, NY $2,207

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $3,154 in Islip, NY.

Medellin $3,186
Islip, NY $3,154

Living in Medellin is roughly 30% more expensive than in Islip, NY, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Islip, NY is 7% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$26.10 $26.10

-69.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$122 $122

-61.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$14.05 $14.05

-32.38%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$5.14 $5.14

-41.44%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$2.85 $2.85

-36.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$2.28 $2.28

-38.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$7.77 $7.77

-59.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$10.17 $10.17

-43.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$1.39 $1.39

8.63%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$4.54 $4.54

-47.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$4.05 $4.05

-56.30%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$5.02 $5.02

-42.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$18.69 $18.69

-45.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$17.41 $17.41

-43.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$16.45 $16.45

-14.95%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$4.47 $4.47

-11.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$1.29 $1.29

20.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$2.17 $2.17

0.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$2.91 $2.91

-25.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$1.78 $1.78

10.11%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$2.17 $2.17

-26.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$1.53 $1.53

-24.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$1.10 $1.10

12.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$14.94 $14.94

-73.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$12.96 $12.96

5.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,221

$2.35 $2.35

-29.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,103

$3.76 $3.76

-39.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$4.37 $4.37

-73.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$2.98 $2.98

-57.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$2.20 $2.20

-6.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$41.26 $41.26

-79.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$1.17 $1.17

15.38%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$27.9K $27.9K

21.91%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$26.7K $26.7K

30.02%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$80.2 $80.2

111.64%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$71.2 $71.2

-80.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$69.8 $69.8

-59.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$59.6 $59.6

-26.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$15.83 $15.83

-56.35%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$3,537 $3,537

-77.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$61.6K $61.6K

-85.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$44.55 $44.55

90.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$27.92 $27.92

107.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$75.0 $75.0

80.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$91.4 $91.4

7.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$1,989 $1,989

-39.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$3,382 $3,382

-40.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$3,975 $3,975

-83.47%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

6.63

65.01%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Islip, NY: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Islip, NY

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Islip, NY

$416 33% 39.9% $119

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Islip, NY

$221 17.6% 4.7% $9.8

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Islip, NY

$392 31.2% 131% $223

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Islip, NY

$107 8.5% 36.4% $61

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Islip, NY

$31 * 2.5% 66.4% $62

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Islip, NY

$91 7.3% 58.6% $34

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $1,989 in Islip, NY. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Islip, NY pays about 6 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $122 in Islip, NY for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $416 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇺🇸 Islip, NY

🕒 Local time

09:24 9:24 AM

10:24 10:24 AM

1 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

339,938

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

1 USD = 0.899 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,501 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.899 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Islip, NY 3,840 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Islip, NY

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 Islip, NY: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Islip, NY is cheaper overall, especially in transport and clothing. The 30% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 83% lower in Medellin. 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: $1,208 in Medellin versus $1,989 in Islip, NY. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $797 in Medellin versus $3,537 in Islip, NY. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Medellin – a meal for two runs $47 versus $122 in Islip, NY. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,259 in Islip, NY versus $1,639 in Medellin, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Islip, NY but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Islip, NY the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.