Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Kota Kinabalu

For one person, living is cheaper in Kota Kinabalu: $917 a month against $1,589 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Kota Kinabalu
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Kota Kinabalu Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,589

/mo nomad

Kota Kinabalu

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$917

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Kota Kinabalu

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,589 in Medellin versus $917 in Kota Kinabalu.

Medellin $1,589
Kota Kinabalu $917

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,364 in Medellin versus $1,429 in Kota Kinabalu.

Medellin $2,364
Kota Kinabalu $1,429

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,139 in Medellin versus $1,941 in Kota Kinabalu.

Medellin $3,139
Kota Kinabalu $1,941

Living in Medellin is roughly 73% more expensive than in Kota Kinabalu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 19% above, Kota Kinabalu is 32% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.01 COP 25.5K

$3.57 MYR 14.59

124.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 COP 148.3K

$19.54 MYR 79.8

138.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.43 COP 30.1K

$4.92 MYR 20.09

91.67%

Cappuccino

$2.91 COP 9,277

$2.63 MYR 10.74

10.65%

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

$1.75 COP 5,585

$0.60 MYR 2.44

191.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.32 COP 4,218

$0.30 MYR 1.22

340.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.13 COP 9,969

$2.39 MYR 9.75

30.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.55 COP 17.7K

$3.74 MYR 15.27

48.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 COP 4,495

$1.74 MYR 7.11

-18.97%

White Bread (500g)

$2.44 COP 7,777

$1.28 MYR 5.23

90.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.63 COP 5,191

$2.26 MYR 9.23

-27.88%

Eggs

$2.82 COP 8,990

$3.46 MYR 14.13

-18.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.69 COP 30.9K

$28.33 MYR 116

-65.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.32 COP 29.7K

$3.69 MYR 15.05

152.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.46 COP 42.9K

$6.68 MYR 27.27

101.50%

Apples (1kg)

$4.00 COP 12.8K

$2.24 MYR 9.15

78.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.48 COP 4,719

$1.43 MYR 5.84

3.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.12 COP 6,768

$1.94 MYR 7.91

9.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.25 COP 7,178

$1.99 MYR 8.13

13.07%

Potato (1kg)

$1.91 COP 6,092

$1.67 MYR 6.81

14.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.62 COP 5,160

$2.13 MYR 8.71

-23.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,658

$0.94 MYR 3.84

22.34%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 COP 4,021

$0.47 MYR 1.93

168.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.82 COP 12.2K

$4.92 MYR 20.10

-22.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.11 COP 41.8K

$15.84 MYR 64.7

-17.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.60 COP 5,083

$3.63 MYR 14.81

-55.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,188

$2.47 MYR 10.07

-8.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,731

$1.91 MYR 7.80

-38.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$75.0 COP 239.0K

$41.92 MYR 171

78.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,056

$1.91 MYR 7.82

-33.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,531

$0.23 MYR 0.94

791.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.20 COP 26.1K

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 COP 4,046

$0.76 MYR 3.11

67.11%

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

$26.8K COP 85.3M

$42.1K MYR 172.1K

-36.46%

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

$34.4K COP 109.6M

$35.6K MYR 145.5K

-3.45%

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

$162 COP 516.9K

$70.5 MYR 288

130.15%

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

$13.12 COP 41.8K

$9.69 MYR 39.56

35.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.09 COP 89.5K

$32.36 MYR 132

-13.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.33 COP 141.2K

$52.3 MYR 214

-15.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.33 COP 52.0K

$3.09 MYR 12.64

428.48%

Cinema Ticket

$6.09 COP 19.4K

$5.22 MYR 21.31

16.67%

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

$764 COP 2.4M

$141 MYR 575

442.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,904 COP 28.4M

$6,995 MYR 28.6K

27.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$85.0 COP 270.8K

$81.5 MYR 333

4.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.5 COP 183.2K

$36.64 MYR 150

56.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$132 COP 419.8K

$93.7 MYR 382

40.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.8 COP 305.1K

$48.75 MYR 199

96.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 COP 3.3M

$425 MYR 1,735

142.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$604 COP 1.9M

$193 MYR 788

213.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,802 COP 5.7M

$679 MYR 2,771

165.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$993 COP 3.2M

$368 MYR 1,501

170.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,921 COP 12.5M

$1,848 MYR 7,546

112.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,639 COP 5.2M

$1,099 MYR 4,489

49.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$626 COP 2.0M

$592 MYR 2,419

5.69%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

3.9

180.51%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 6, 2026

Last update for Kota Kinabalu: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$604 38.3%

Kota Kinabalu

$193 20.9% 68.1% $412

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$288 18.3%

Kota Kinabalu

$288 31.1% 0.3% $0.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$203 12.9%

Kota Kinabalu

$113 12.2% 44.7% $91

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$166 10.6%

Kota Kinabalu

$117 12.7% 29.6% $49

Eating Out

Medellin

$166 10.6%

Kota Kinabalu

$98 10.6% 41.1% $68

Getting Around

Medellin

$91 5.8%

Kota Kinabalu

$53 5.7% 42.3% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.6%

Kota Kinabalu

$63 6.8% 11.1% $6.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,028 in Medellin and $425 in Kota Kinabalu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medellin pays 6% 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: $47.00 in Medellin vs $20.00 in Kota Kinabalu. Groceries flip the comparison at $288 vs $288, with Medellin cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇲🇾 Kota Kinabalu

🕒 Local time

05:54 5:54 AM

18:54 6:54 PM

13 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

500,425

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.14 USD

10,000 COP = 2.8 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.219 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3,187 COP (10,000 COP = 3.14 USD). 1 EUR = 3,571 COP (10,000 COP = 2.8 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.58 MYR (1 MYR = 0.219 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Kota Kinabalu 18,140 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Kota Kinabalu

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 Kota Kinabalu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kota Kinabalu wins on cost – living expenses run 73% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Kota Kinabalu the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 6% 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: $1,028 in Medellin versus $425 in Kota Kinabalu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Kota Kinabalu runs roughly 79% less than in Medellin. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $764 in Medellin versus $141 in Kota Kinabalu. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $917 in Kota Kinabalu versus $1,589 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Kota Kinabalu but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Kota Kinabalu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Kota Kinabalu delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $917 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Kota Kinabalu hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Medellin and Kota Kinabalu 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 Kota Kinabalu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 73% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.