Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Lisburn

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,692 a month against $2,290 in Lisburn, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Medellin, Colombia
Lisburn, United Kingdom
Medellin
🇨🇴 Colombia
$1,692
/mo nomad
Lisburn
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
$2,290
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Lisburn

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,692 in Medellin versus $2,290 in Lisburn.

  • Medellin $1,692
  • Lisburn $2,290

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,471 in Medellin versus $3,494 in Lisburn.

  • Medellin $2,471
  • Lisburn $3,494

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,249 in Medellin versus $4,698 in Lisburn.

  • Medellin $3,249
  • Lisburn $4,698

Living in Medellin costs roughly 26% less than in Lisburn, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 25% above, Lisburn 69% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Medellin
Lisburn
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$8.34 COP 26.9K
$28.85 £21.44
-71.09%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$46.53 COP 150.3K
$74.3 £55.3
-37.41%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.47 COP 30.6K
$14.28 £10.61
-33.68%
Cappuccino
$3.13 COP 10.1K
$4.97 £3.69
-37.02%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.77 COP 5,705
$1.97 £1.46
-10.15%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.42 COP 4,601
$1.87 £1.39
-24.06%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.15 COP 10.2K
$7.14 £5.31
-55.88%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.70 COP 18.4K
$6.11 £4.54
-6.71%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Medellin
Lisburn
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.53 COP 4,950
$1.90 £1.41
-19.47%
White Bread (500g)
$2.29 COP 7,401
$2.43 £1.80
-5.76%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.94 COP 6,282
$2.22 £1.65
-12.61%
Eggs
$3.07 COP 9,905
$4.01 £2.98
-23.44%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$9.99 COP 32.3K
$9.25 £6.87
8.00%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$10.45 COP 33.7K
$8.41 £6.25
24.26%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$13.96 COP 45.1K
$14.70 £10.92
-5.03%
Apples (1kg)
$4.05 COP 13.1K
$2.95 £2.20
37.29%
Banana (1kg)
$1.53 COP 4,937
$1.56 £1.16
-1.92%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.10 COP 6,797
$2.87 £2.13
-26.83%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.29 COP 7,409
$3.20 £2.38
-28.44%
Potato (1kg)
$2.11 COP 6,813
$1.73 £1.28
21.97%
Onion (1kg)
$1.71 COP 5,521
$1.62 £1.20
5.56%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.17 COP 3,780
$1.22 £0.91
-4.10%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.58 COP 5,104
$1.53 £1.14
3.27%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.91 COP 12.6K
$23.39 £17.39
-83.28%
Wine (Bottle)
$14.04 COP 45.4K
$10.88 £8.08
29.04%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.76 COP 5,690
$2.92 £2.17
-39.73%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.71 COP 8,760
$3.29 £2.44
-17.63%
🚌 Getting Around
Medellin
Lisburn
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.18 COP 3,811
$4.04 £3.00
-70.79%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$76.3 COP 246.4K
$98.1 £72.9
-22.21%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.81 COP 5,836
$5.05 £3.75
-64.16%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.13 COP 6,878
$2.26 £1.68
-5.75%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$8.13 COP 26.3K
$25.84 £19.20
-68.54%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.28 COP 4,119
$2.04 £1.52
-37.25%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$34.4K COP 111.2M
$39.1K £29.0K
-11.85%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$34.1K COP 110.3M
$39.8K £29.6K
-14.21%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Medellin
Lisburn
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$178 COP 574.1K
$304 £226
-41.63%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$13.89 COP 44.9K
$17.33 £12.88
-19.85%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.74 COP 99.3K
$41.92 £31.15
-26.67%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Medellin
Lisburn
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$41.94 COP 135.5K
$44.49 £33.07
-5.73%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$16.80 COP 54.3K
$10.70 £7.95
57.01%
Cinema Ticket
$7.47 COP 24.1K
$13.67 £10.16
-45.35%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Medellin
Lisburn
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$790 COP 2.6M
$1,830 £1,360
-56.82%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$12.3K COP 39.7M
$23.0K £17.1K
-46.60%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Medellin
Lisburn
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$86.3 COP 278.9K
$85.5 £63.5
0.98%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$59.3 COP 191.4K
$45.81 £34.05
29.36%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$138 COP 446.9K
$99.1 £73.6
39.64%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$98.8 COP 319.2K
$97.0 £72.1
1.91%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Medellin
Lisburn
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,341 COP 4.3M
$1,271 £944
5.54%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$667 COP 2.2M
$872 £648
-23.48%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,976 COP 6.4M
$2,039 £1,516
-3.13%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,033 COP 3.3M
$1,672 £1,243
-38.23%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,098 COP 13.2M
$5,267 £3,914
-22.20%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,940 COP 6.3M
$3,962 £2,945
-51.04%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Medellin
Lisburn
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$646 COP 2.1M
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
10.94
5.11
114.09%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Lisburn: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Medellin
$667
Lisburn
$872 30.7% $205
Groceries & Markets
Medellin
$307
Lisburn
$308 0.3% $0.9
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Medellin
$222
Lisburn
$364 63.6% $141
Eating Out
Medellin
$173
Lisburn
$397 130% $224
Clothing & Footwear
Medellin
$172
Lisburn
$147 14.5% $25
Getting Around
Medellin
$93
Lisburn
$131 39.7% $37
Sport & Entertainment
Medellin
$57
Lisburn
$72 26.2% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,341 in Medellin and $1,271 in Lisburn. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $74 in Lisburn for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $307 vs $308 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇨🇴 Medellin
🇬🇧 Lisburn
🕒 Local time
05:07 5:07 AM
10:07 10:07 AM
5 h ahead of Medellin
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
2,486,723
71,403
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3,230 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,628 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.743 GBP (1 GBP = 1.35 USD). 1 EUR = 0.835 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Medellin Lisburn 8,130 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Medellin
  • Lisburn

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 Lisburn: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Medellin or Lisburn?
Medellin wins on cost – living expenses run 26% lower than in Lisburn. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Medellin the obvious pick if budget is a priority.
How much do you need to earn to live comfortably in Medellin and in Lisburn?
You’d need roughly $2,538 in Medellin and $3,435 in Lisburn to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.
How much does a 1-bedroom apartment cost in Medellin compared to Lisburn?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,341 in Medellin versus $1,271 in Lisburn. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How expensive is transport in Medellin compared to Lisburn?
A monthly transit pass in Medellin runs roughly 22% less than in Lisburn. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.
How much does it cost to live in Medellin compared to Lisburn?
All in, you’ll spend $1,692 per month in Medellin versus $2,290 in Lisburn – Medellin is about 26% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.
Which city offers a better quality of life: Medellin or Lisburn?
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.

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