Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Kempton Park

For one person, living is cheaper in Kempton Park: $1,209 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 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
59

Cost of Living Index in Kempton Park
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Kempton Park Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Kempton Park

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,209

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Kempton Park

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,614 in Medellin versus $1,209 in Kempton Park.

Medellin $1,614
Kempton Park $1,209

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,402 in Medellin versus $1,854 in Kempton Park.

Medellin $2,402
Kempton Park $1,854

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,190 in Medellin versus $2,498 in Kempton Park.

Medellin $3,190
Kempton Park $2,498

Living in Medellin is roughly 33% more expensive than in Kempton Park, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Kempton Park is 10% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.93 COP 25.2K

$8.85 R 146

-10.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.13 COP 146.3K

$36.72 R 605

25.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$5.84 R 96.1

62.67%

Cappuccino

$3.11 COP 9,866

$2.39 R 39.33

30.13%

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

$1.83 COP 5,800

$1.08 R 17.80

69.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,360

$0.83 R 13.70

66.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 COP 9,672

$2.38 R 39.19

28.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.50 COP 17.4K

$2.74 R 45.08

100.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 COP 4,600

$1.28 R 21.17

13.28%

White Bread (500g)

$2.36 COP 7,496

$1.08 R 17.78

118.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,328

$1.77 R 29.09

-5.08%

Eggs

$2.86 COP 9,077

$2.49 R 41.09

14.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.3K

$8.60 R 142

18.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 COP 30.2K

$5.21 R 85.8

82.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.04 COP 44.5K

$8.76 R 144

60.27%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 COP 12.9K

$1.85 R 30.44

120.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,742

$1.64 R 27.06

-8.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 COP 6,891

$1.78 R 29.39

21.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 COP 7,310

$2.04 R 33.58

13.24%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 COP 6,113

$1.64 R 27.01

17.68%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,196

$1.65 R 27.21

-0.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,571

$1.22 R 20.07

-7.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 COP 3,954

$1.26 R 20.80

-0.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 COP 12.6K

$3.22 R 53.1

23.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 COP 42.3K

$5.32 R 87.7

150.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 COP 5,384

$1.62 R 26.68

4.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,525

$2.38 R 39.24

-0.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 COP 3,827

$1.53 R 25.21

-20.92%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

$60.5 R 997

26.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 COP 4,179

$0.29 R 4.76

355.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,774

$0.82 R 13.43

160.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 COP 26.8K

$14.67 R 242

-42.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 COP 4,114

$1.48 R 24.41

-12.16%

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

$28.0K COP 88.7M

$34.7K R 571.6K

-19.33%

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

$35.4K COP 112.3M

$31.6K R 521.1K

11.97%

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

$172 COP 545.6K

$180 R 2,959

-4.18%

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

$13.37 COP 42.4K

$38.44 R 633

-65.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.73 COP 91.1K

$36.30 R 598

-20.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 COP 143.5K

$37.47 R 617

20.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

$10.58 R 174

61.06%

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 COP 19.9K

$8.02 R 132

-21.70%

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

$770 COP 2.4M

$256 R 4,218

200.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.6M

$5,474 R 90.2K

64.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.4 COP 274.0K

$52.8 R 870

63.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 COP 181.1K

$31.58 R 520

80.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 432.9K

$91.2 R 1,502

49.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 310.4K

$84.2 R 1,388

16.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 COP 3.3M

$301 R 4,960

250.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$616 COP 2.0M

$365 R 6,010

68.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

$734 R 12.1K

157.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.2M

$734 R 12.1K

39.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

$862 R 14.2K

371.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

$666 R 11.0K

152.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

$625 R 10.3K

4.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

11.25

-2.76%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Last update for Kempton Park: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$616 38.2%

Kempton Park

$365 30.2% 40.8% $251

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$295 18.3%

Kempton Park

$207 17.1% 29.8% $88

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$214 13.3%

Kempton Park

$254 21% 18.8% $40

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$170 10.5%

Kempton Park

$117 9.7% 31.3% $53

Eating Out

Medellin

$168 10.4%

Kempton Park

$142 11.7% 15.7% $26

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.8%

Kempton Park

$71 5.9% 23.9% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.6%

Kempton Park

$54 4.4% 7.4% $4.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,055 in Medellin and $301 in Kempton Park. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays 4% 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: $46.00 in Medellin vs $37.00 in Kempton Park for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $295 vs $207 per month, with Kempton Park cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇿🇦 Kempton Park

🕒 Local time

06:50 6:50 AM

13:50 1:50 PM

7 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Medellin Kempton Park 11,690 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Kempton Park

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 Kempton Park: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kempton Park wins on cost – living expenses run 33% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Kempton Park the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 4% higher in Medellin, 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: $1,055 in Medellin versus $301 in Kempton Park. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 42% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Kempton Park – a meal for two runs $37.00 versus $46.00 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,209 in Kempton Park versus $1,614 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Kempton Park but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Kempton Park the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Kempton Park delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,209 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Kempton Park hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Medellin and Kempton Park are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Kempton Park gentler on the wallet – expenses run 33% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.