Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Lausanne

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $3,837 in Lausanne, rent and utilities included – about $26,400 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
183

Cost of Living Index in Lausanne
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Lausanne Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Lausanne

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,837

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Lausanne

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $3,837 in Lausanne.

Medellin $1,639
Lausanne $3,837

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $5,789 in Lausanne.

Medellin $2,413
Lausanne $5,789

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $7,741 in Lausanne.

Medellin $3,186
Lausanne $7,741

Living in Medellin costs roughly 57% less than in Lausanne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Lausanne 182% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.4K

$30.81 CHF 25.56

-73.74%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.0K

$116 CHF 96.0

-59.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 29.9K

$17.81 CHF 14.77

-46.66%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,485

$6.13 CHF 5.08

-50.90%

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

$1.80 COP 5,660

$5.17 CHF 4.29

-65.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,443

$4.15 CHF 3.44

-66.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 9,990

$10.14 CHF 8.42

-68.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.1K

$9.59 CHF 7.95

-40.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,751

$2.22 CHF 1.84

-31.98%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,480

$3.81 CHF 3.16

-37.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,573

$3.28 CHF 2.72

-46.04%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,093

$7.24 CHF 6.00

-60.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.1K

$24.40 CHF 20.24

-58.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.1K

$27.51 CHF 22.82

-64.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.0K

$39.81 CHF 33.02

-64.86%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.5K

$3.54 CHF 2.93

12.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,883

$2.15 CHF 1.78

-27.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,867

$2.49 CHF 2.07

-12.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,870

$4.49 CHF 3.73

-51.45%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,174

$1.86 CHF 1.54

5.38%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,000

$1.94 CHF 1.61

-18.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,604

$1.99 CHF 1.65

-42.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,911

$1.69 CHF 1.40

-26.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$10.99 CHF 9.12

-63.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.0K

$14.96 CHF 12.41

-8.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,221

$2.64 CHF 2.19

-37.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,103

$3.13 CHF 2.60

-27.80%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,674

$4.68 CHF 3.88

-75.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

$96.1 CHF 79.7

-19.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 3,989

$7.94 CHF 6.58

-84.01%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,442

$4.45 CHF 3.69

-53.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 26.9K

$83.5 CHF 69.2

-89.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,237

$2.31 CHF 1.91

-41.56%

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

$34.1K COP 107.2M

$39.4K CHF 32.7K

-13.54%

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

$34.7K COP 109.1M

$39.6K CHF 32.8K

-12.36%

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

$170 COP 533.7K

$299 CHF 248

-43.24%

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

$13.55 COP 42.6K

$37.02 CHF 30.71

-63.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.3K

$52.2 CHF 43.26

-46.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 137.5K

$70.6 CHF 58.6

-38.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

$48.90 CHF 40.56

-64.85%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.7K

$24.49 CHF 20.32

-71.78%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$2,960 CHF 2,455

-73.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.7M

$36.8K CHF 30.5K

-75.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 266.5K

$143 CHF 119

-40.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 182.3K

$78.8 CHF 65.4

-26.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 424.6K

$139 CHF 116

-3.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 307.9K

$213 CHF 177

-54.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$2,369 CHF 1,966

-49.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$1,863 CHF 1,545

-65.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$4,244 CHF 3,520

-52.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$3,230 CHF 2,680

-68.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.1M

$18.4K CHF 15.3K

-77.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$13.6K CHF 11.2K

-85.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$6,587 CHF 5,465

-90.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

1.95

461.03%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Lausanne: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Lausanne

$1.9K 48.6% 190% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Lausanne

$583 15.2% 96.1% $286

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Lausanne

$388 10.1% 83.7% $177

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Lausanne

$481 12.5% 183% $311

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Lausanne

$259 6.7% 53% $90

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Lausanne

$145 3.8% 55% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Lausanne

$120 3.1% 108% $62

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $2,369 in Lausanne. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lausanne pays about 10 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $116 in Lausanne for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $583 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇭 Lausanne

🕒 Local time

14:59 2:59 PM

20:59 8:59 PM

6 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

133,521

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CHF, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,502 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.83 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.924 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Lausanne 8,910 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Lausanne

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 Lausanne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $3,837 in Lausanne, so Medellin is about 57% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 90% lower in Medellin. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,208 in Medellin versus $2,369 in Lausanne. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Medellin – a meal for two runs $47 versus $116 in Lausanne. 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 $3,837 in Lausanne – Medellin is about 57% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,639 in Medellin versus $3,837 in Lausanne, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Medellin but tight or insufficient in Lausanne. The gap between the two cities makes Medellin the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Medellin is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Lausanne, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Medellin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 57% less than in Lausanne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.