Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Kandy

For one person, living is cheaper in Kandy: $513 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $13,500 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
25

Cost of Living Index in Kandy
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Kandy Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Kandy

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$513

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Kandy

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $513 in Kandy.

Medellin $1,639
Kandy $513

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $728 in Kandy.

Medellin $2,413
Kandy $728

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $943 in Kandy.

Medellin $3,186
Kandy $943

Living in Medellin is roughly 219% more expensive than in Kandy, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Kandy is 62% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$2.66 LKR 885

204.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$13.01 LKR 4,324

261.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$6.00 LKR 1,996

58.33%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$1.90 LKR 632

58.42%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$0.52 LKR 174

246.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$0.26 LKR 87.1

442.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$1.86 LKR 620

70.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$2.80 LKR 931

105.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$1.15 LKR 382

31.30%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$0.52 LKR 174

357.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$0.77 LKR 255

129.87%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$1.71 LKR 568

69.01%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$5.14 LKR 1,708

98.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$4.25 LKR 1,412

132.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$6.87 LKR 2,285

103.64%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$3.14 LKR 1,043

26.43%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$0.84 LKR 280

84.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$1.73 LKR 574

26.01%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$1.29 LKR 429

68.99%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$1.02 LKR 339

92.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$0.83 LKR 277

91.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$0.43 LKR 144

167.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$0.42 LKR 140

195.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$8.02 LKR 2,668

-50.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$11.28 LKR 3,751

21.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,221

$1.93 LKR 643

-13.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,103

$2.08 LKR 691

8.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$0.16 LKR 53.3

631.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

$4.38 LKR 1,457

1666.44%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$0.41 LKR 136

209.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$0.35 LKR 116

485.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$0.47 LKR 156

1719.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$1.15 LKR 383

17.39%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$14.0K LKR 4.6M

143.76%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$36.7K LKR 12.2M

-5.65%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$59.0 LKR 19.6K

187.49%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$3.86 LKR 1,282

251.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$12.72 LKR 4,227

120.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$10.85 LKR 3,606

302.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

$6.80 LKR 2,262

152.79%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$2.74 LKR 909

152.19%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$21.65 LKR 7,199

3579.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$304 LKR 101.0K

2899.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$18.28 LKR 6,078

363.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$10.15 LKR 3,375

471.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$67.7 LKR 22.5K

99.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$26.56 LKR 8,831

268.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$172 LKR 57.2K

602.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$113 LKR 37.5K

468.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$172 LKR 57.2K

1078.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$93.6 LKR 31.1K

980.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

$397 LKR 131.9K

950.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$400 LKR 133.0K

377.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$262 LKR 86.9K

151.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

-8.83%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Kandy: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Kandy

$113 22% 82.4% $529

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Kandy

$166 32.3% 44.1% $131

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Kandy

$76 14.7% 64.2% $136

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Kandy

$80 15.6% 52.7% $89

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Kandy

$55 10.8% 67.3% $114

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Kandy

$7.2 1.4% 92.3% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Kandy

$16 3.2% 71.6% $41

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $172 in Kandy. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays about 2.5 times more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $13 in Kandy for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $166 per month, with Kandy cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇱🇰 Kandy

🕒 Local time

15:22 3:22 PM

01:52 1:52 AM

10 h 30 min ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

125,000

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.7 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, 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 = 3,502 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 332 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 370 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.7 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Kandy 16,980 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
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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 Kandy: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kandy is about 69% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Medellin is about 2.5 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,208 in Medellin versus $172 in Kandy. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,639 per month in Medellin versus $513 in Kandy – Kandy is about 69% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Kandy runs roughly 94% less than in Medellin. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $513 in Kandy versus $1,639 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Kandy but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Kandy the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Kandy is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Medellin, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Kandy gentler on the wallet – expenses run 69% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.