Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Kohima

For one person, living is cheaper in Kohima: $355 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $15,400 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
18

Cost of Living Index in Kohima
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Kohima Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Kohima

🇮🇳 India

$355

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Kohima

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $355 in Kohima.

Medellin $1,639
Kohima $355

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $567 in Kohima.

Medellin $2,413
Kohima $567

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $780 in Kohima.

Medellin $3,186
Kohima $780

Living in Medellin is roughly 362% more expensive than in Kohima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Kohima is 74% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$2.28 ₹217

254.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.7K

$9.15 ₹869

414.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.6K

$3.70 ₹351

156.76%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,722

$1.61 ₹152

86.96%

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

$1.80 COP 5,801

$0.40 ₹38.22

350.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,554

$0.11 ₹10.87

1181.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.2K

$1.29 ₹122

146.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.5K

$3.50 ₹332

64.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,869

$0.65 ₹61.8

132.31%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,667

$0.40 ₹38.14

495.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,712

$0.55 ₹52.6

221.82%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,320

$0.81 ₹76.7

256.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$2.76 ₹262

269.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.8K

$3.42 ₹325

188.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.1K

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$2.20 ₹209

80.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,005

$0.71 ₹67.1

118.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,039

$0.90 ₹85.1

142.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,041

$0.62 ₹58.8

251.61%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,328

$0.33 ₹31.45

493.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,125

$0.37 ₹35.39

329.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,694

$0.31 ₹29.35

270.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,009

$0.27 ₹25.63

359.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$2.15 ₹204

84.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.1K

$7.01 ₹666

95.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,352

$1.65 ₹157

0.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,281

$2.49 ₹236

-9.24%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$3.09 ₹294

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,766

$0.23 ₹21.95

408.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.5K

$7.05 ₹670

997.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,089

$0.68 ₹64.9

86.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,603

$0.28 ₹26.27

632.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$1.33 ₹126

542.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,343

$1.04 ₹99.0

29.81%

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

$34.1K COP 109.8M

$11.3K ₹1.1M

201.02%

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

$34.7K COP 111.8M

$16.2K ₹1.5M

113.68%

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

$170 COP 547.0K

$35.38 ₹3,359

379.51%

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

$13.55 COP 43.7K

$3.30 ₹314

310.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.5K

$6.27 ₹595

347.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 140.9K

$14.06 ₹1,335

210.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.4K

$7.22 ₹686

138.09%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$3.22 ₹306

114.60%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$28.01 ₹2,659

2744.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$2,253 ₹213.9K

304.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.2K

$17.12 ₹1,626

394.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 186.9K

$30.61 ₹2,907

89.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.2K

$38.02 ₹3,610

254.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 315.6K

$27.14 ₹2,577

260.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$119 ₹11.3K

914.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$68.0 ₹6,457

843.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$284 ₹26.9K

614.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$169 ₹16.1K

497.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.4M

$916 ₹87.0K

355.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$491 ₹46.6K

289.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$204 ₹19.4K

221.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

7.38

48.24%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Kohima: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Kohima

$68 19.2% 89.4% $574

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Kohima

$97 27.2% 67.4% $200

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Kohima

$45 12.7% 78.7% $166

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Kohima

$64 18.1% 62.2% $106

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Kohima

$51 14.3% 69.9% $118

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Kohima

$10 2.8% 89.3% $84

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Kohima

$21 5.8% 64.3% $37

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $119 in Kohima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays about 3.2 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 $9 in Kohima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $97 per month, with Kohima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇮🇳 Kohima

🕒 Local time

15:33 3:33 PM

02:03 2:03 AM

10 h 30 min ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

115,283

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 3,224 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,600 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 94.95 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Kohima 16,290 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Kohima

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 Kohima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kohima is about 78% 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 3.2 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 $119 in Kohima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Kohima – a meal for two runs $9 versus $47 in Medellin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,639 per month in Medellin versus $355 in Kohima – Kohima is about 78% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $355 in Kohima versus $1,639 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Kohima but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Kohima 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.

Expats usually find Kohima gentler on the wallet – expenses run 78% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.