Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Karlskrona

For one person, living costs are similar in Medellin and in Karlskrona: $1,639 and $1,636 a month, rent and utilities included.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Karlskrona
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Karlskrona Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Karlskrona

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,636

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Karlskrona

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $1,636 in Karlskrona, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Karlskrona $1,636

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $2,545 in Karlskrona, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Karlskrona $2,545

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $3,453 in Karlskrona, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Karlskrona $3,453

Medellin and Karlskrona have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Medellin and Karlskrona sit above the global median – Medellin by 20%, Karlskrona by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$12.82 SEK 126

-36.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$66.2 SEK 650

-28.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$8.81 SEK 86.5

7.83%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$4.09 SEK 40.19

-26.41%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$1.33 SEK 13.08

35.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$2.25 SEK 22.08

-37.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$6.93 SEK 68.0

-54.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$5.00 SEK 49.14

15.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$1.46 SEK 14.31

3.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$2.67 SEK 26.23

-10.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$3.66 SEK 35.98

-51.64%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$4.41 SEK 43.26

-34.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$11.01 SEK 108

-7.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$13.05 SEK 128

-24.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$17.37 SEK 171

-19.46%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$3.07 SEK 30.12

29.32%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$2.32 SEK 22.75

-33.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$3.03 SEK 29.80

-28.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$4.40 SEK 43.23

-50.45%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$1.49 SEK 14.68

31.54%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$1.49 SEK 14.68

6.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$2.18 SEK 21.38

-47.25%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$1.42 SEK 13.98

-12.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$6.99 SEK 68.6

-43.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$12.80 SEK 126

6.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$2.04 SEK 20.02

-18.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$1.63 SEK 16.01

38.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

$2.94 SEK 28.86

-60.20%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$70.8 SEK 695

9.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$13.17 SEK 129

-90.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$2.06 SEK 20.27

-0.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$80.5 SEK 790

-89.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$1.77 SEK 17.37

-23.73%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$32.7K SEK 321.2K

4.14%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$33.2K SEK 326.4K

4.32%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$51.1 SEK 502

232.00%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$28.03 SEK 275

-51.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$36.39 SEK 357

-22.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$41.03 SEK 403

6.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$16.13 SEK 158

-57.16%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$160 SEK 1,574

397.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$97.6 SEK 958

-13.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$20.06 SEK 197

188.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$79.6 SEK 782

69.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$179 SEK 1,759

-45.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$681 SEK 6,684

77.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$576 SEK 5,652

11.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$1,097 SEK 10.8K

84.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$937 SEK 9,202

7.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$2,929 SEK 28.8K

42.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$2,526 SEK 24.8K

-24.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$2,463 SEK 24.2K

-73.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

4.22

159.24%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Karlskrona: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Karlskrona

$576 35.2% 10.3% $66

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Karlskrona

$360 22% 21.1% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Karlskrona

$116 7.1% 45.3% $96

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Karlskrona

$237 14.5% 39.8% $67

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Karlskrona

$169 10.4% 0.2% $0.4

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Karlskrona

$106 6.5% 13.3% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Karlskrona

$73 4.5% 27.4% $16

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $681 in Karlskrona. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Karlskrona are about 3.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $66 in Karlskrona. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $360 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇸🇪 Karlskrona

🕒 Local time

20:07 8:07 PM

02:07 2:07 AM

6 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

35,212

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

100 SEK = 10.18 USD

100 SEK = 9.12 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,605 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 9.82 SEK (1 SEK = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 SEK (100 SEK = 9.12 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Karlskrona 9,500 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Karlskrona

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 Karlskrona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $2,455 in Karlskrona. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Karlskrona, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $681 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

Interestingly, groceries are about 17% cheaper in Medellin – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

Kindergarten costs $797 per month in Medellin and $160 in Karlskrona. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$2,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,639 in Medellin and $1,636 in Karlskrona, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

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