Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Kocaeli

For one person, living is cheaper in Kocaeli: $1,250 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $4,400 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
60

Cost of Living Index in Kocaeli
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Kocaeli Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Kocaeli

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,250

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Kocaeli

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

A single person spends $1,614 per month in Medellin vs $1,250 in Kocaeli, rent included.

Medellin $1,614
Kocaeli $1,250

A couple spends around $2,402 per month in Medellin vs $1,771 in Kocaeli, rent included.

Medellin $2,402
Kocaeli $1,771

A family of three spends $3,190 per month in Medellin vs $2,291 in Kocaeli, rent included.

Medellin $3,190
Kocaeli $2,291

Medellin costs about 29% more than Kocaeli, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Kocaeli is 7% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.93 COP 25.2K

$8.14 ₺403

-2.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.13 COP 146.3K

$30.28 ₺1,499

52.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$8.02 ₺397

18.45%

Cappuccino

$3.11 COP 9,866

$3.46 ₺172

-10.12%

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

$1.83 COP 5,800

$1.13 ₺56.0

61.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,360

$0.31 ₺15.55

345.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 COP 9,672

$2.54 ₺126

20.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.50 COP 17.4K

$2.83 ₺140

94.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 COP 4,600

$0.92 ₺45.54

57.61%

White Bread (500g)

$2.36 COP 7,496

$0.83 ₺41.33

184.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,328

$2.63 ₺130

-36.12%

Eggs

$2.86 COP 9,077

$2.61 ₺129

9.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.3K

$9.94 ₺492

2.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 COP 30.2K

$3.98 ₺197

139.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.04 COP 44.5K

$20.73 ₺1,026

-32.27%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 COP 12.9K

$1.73 ₺85.9

135.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,742

$2.07 ₺102

-27.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 COP 6,891

$1.03 ₺51.2

110.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 COP 7,310

$1.16 ₺57.4

99.14%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 COP 6,113

$0.53 ₺26.39

264.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,196

$0.40 ₺20.04

310.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,571

$0.74 ₺36.52

52.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 COP 3,954

$0.62 ₺30.73

101.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 COP 12.6K

$2.29 ₺114

74.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 COP 42.3K

$8.01 ₺397

66.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 COP 5,384

$2.28 ₺113

-25.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,525

$2.27 ₺112

4.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 COP 3,827

$0.74 ₺36.67

63.51%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

$74.6 ₺3,692

2.57%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 COP 4,179

$1.00 ₺49.51

32.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,774

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 COP 26.8K

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 COP 4,114

$1.28 ₺63.2

1.56%

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

$28.0K COP 88.7M

$41.7K ₺2.1M

-32.83%

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

$35.4K COP 112.3M

$39.7K ₺2.0M

-10.70%

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

$172 COP 545.6K

$78.3 ₺3,877

119.73%

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

$13.37 COP 42.4K

$11.85 ₺587

12.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.73 COP 91.1K

$13.10 ₺649

119.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 COP 143.5K

$54.3 ₺2,687

-16.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

$4.01 ₺199

324.94%

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 COP 19.9K

$5.04 ₺250

24.60%

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

$770 COP 2.4M

$447 ₺22.1K

72.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.6M

$5,990 ₺296.6K

50.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.4 COP 274.0K

$47.75 ₺2,364

80.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 COP 181.1K

$54.3 ₺2,687

5.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 432.9K

$121 ₺6,014

12.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 310.4K

$100 ₺4,962

-2.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 COP 3.3M

$786 ₺38.9K

34.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$616 COP 2.0M

$477 ₺23.6K

29.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

$1,234 ₺61.1K

53.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.2M

$573 ₺28.4K

78.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

$1,005 ₺49.8K

303.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

$825 ₺40.9K

103.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

$1,222 ₺60.5K

-46.60%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

-73.32%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Last update for Kocaeli: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$616 38.2%

Kocaeli

$477 38.2% 22.5% $139

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$295 18.3%

Kocaeli

$226 18.1% 23.2% $68

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$214 13.3%

Kocaeli

$103 8.3% 51.8% $111

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$170 10.5%

Kocaeli

$146 11.7% 14.4% $24

Eating Out

Medellin

$168 10.4%

Kocaeli

$155 12.4% 8% $14

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.8%

Kocaeli

$79 * 6.3% 15.8% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.6%

Kocaeli

$64 5.2% 11.3% $6.5

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,055 in Medellin versus $786 in Kocaeli. 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 87% higher in Kocaeli, 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 $46.00 in Medellin versus $30.00 in Kocaeli. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $295 vs $226 – making Kocaeli the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇹🇷 Kocaeli

🕒 Local time

22:28 10:28 PM

06:28 6:28 AM

8 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

2,079,072

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 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 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).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 49.51 TRY (100 TRY = 2.02 USD). 1 EUR = 55.66 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medellin Kocaeli 10,840 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Kocaeli

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 Kocaeli: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin costs about 29% more than Kocaeli, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,421 per month in Medellin and $1,875 in Kocaeli. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kocaeli, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,614 in Medellin and $1,250 in Kocaeli. That's a gap of about 29%.

Public transport costs about 3% less in Kocaeli. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Kocaeli, where all-in costs run around $1,250, than in Medellin at $1,614. In Kocaeli it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Kocaeli costs $1,250 versus $1,614 in Medellin. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Kocaeli. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Medellin makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.