Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Masterton

For one person, living is cheaper in Masterton: $832 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $9,400 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
40

Cost of Living Index in Masterton
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Masterton Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Masterton

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$832

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Masterton

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,614 in Medellin versus $832 in Masterton.

Medellin $1,614
Masterton $832

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,402 in Medellin versus $1,432 in Masterton.

Medellin $2,402
Masterton $1,432

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,190 in Medellin versus $2,032 in Masterton.

Medellin $3,190
Masterton $2,032

Living in Medellin is roughly 94% more expensive than in Masterton, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Masterton is 38% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.93 COP 25.2K

$9.54 NZ$16.88

-16.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.13 COP 146.3K

$64.9 NZ$115

-28.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$8.56 NZ$15.14

10.98%

Cappuccino

$3.11 COP 9,866

$3.18 NZ$5.62

-2.20%

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

$1.83 COP 5,800

$2.02 NZ$3.57

-9.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,360

$1.09 NZ$1.93

26.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 COP 9,672

$3.89 NZ$6.88

-21.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.50 COP 17.4K

$3.28 NZ$5.79

67.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 COP 4,600

$1.42 NZ$2.51

2.11%

White Bread (500g)

$2.36 COP 7,496

$2.21 NZ$3.91

6.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,328

$1.03 NZ$1.82

63.11%

Eggs

$2.86 COP 9,077

$6.32 NZ$11.17

-54.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.3K

$8.29 NZ$14.65

22.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 COP 30.2K

$9.48 NZ$16.76

0.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.04 COP 44.5K

$15.18 NZ$26.85

-7.51%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 COP 12.9K

$2.18 NZ$3.85

86.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,742

$1.71 NZ$3.02

-12.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 COP 6,891

$2.98 NZ$5.27

-27.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 COP 7,310

$4.58 NZ$8.11

-49.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 COP 6,113

$1.53 NZ$2.71

26.14%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,196

$1.08 NZ$1.90

51.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,571

$1.70 NZ$3.00

-33.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 COP 3,954

$0.52 NZ$0.92

140.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 COP 12.6K

$19.51 NZ$34.50

-79.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 COP 42.3K

$11.21 NZ$19.83

19.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 COP 5,384

$0.85 NZ$1.50

100.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,525

$1.14 NZ$2.02

107.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 COP 3,827

$2.23 NZ$3.94

-45.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 COP 4,179

$1.81 NZ$3.20

-27.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,774

$1.75 NZ$3.09

22.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 COP 26.8K

$34.16 NZ$60.4

-75.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 COP 4,114

$1.77 NZ$3.12

-26.55%

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

$28.0K COP 88.7M

$22.0K NZ$39.0K

26.97%

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

$35.4K COP 112.3M

$24.8K NZ$43.9K

42.64%

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

$172 COP 545.6K

$55.0 NZ$97.3

212.72%

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

$13.37 COP 42.4K

$29.34 NZ$51.9

-54.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.73 COP 91.1K

$52.8 NZ$93.3

-45.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 COP 143.5K

$41.79 NZ$73.9

8.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

$8.51 NZ$15.06

100.24%

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 COP 19.9K

$9.68 NZ$17.12

-35.12%

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

$770 COP 2.4M

$1,056 NZ$1,868

-27.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.6M

$12.7K NZ$22.5K

-29.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.4 COP 274.0K

$55.6 NZ$98.3

55.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 COP 181.1K

$27.59 NZ$48.79

107.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 432.9K

$102 NZ$181

33.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 310.4K

$142 NZ$251

-31.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 COP 3.3M

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$616 COP 2.0M

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

$1,002 NZ$1,773

88.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.2M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

$2,327 NZ$4,115

-71.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.39

102.97%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Last update for Masterton: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$616 38.2%

Masterton

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$295 18.3%

Masterton

$288 34.7% 2.2% $6.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$214 13.3%

Masterton

$137 16.5% 36% $77

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$170 10.5%

Masterton

$147 17.7% 13.3% $23

Eating Out

Medellin

$168 10.4%

Masterton

$179 21.5% 6.1% $10

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.8%

Masterton

$19 * 2.3% 79.2% $74

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.6%

Masterton

$61 7.4% 5.8% $3.3

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

Cost Breakdown

Masterton pays 257% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $46.00 in Medellin vs $65.0 in Masterton. Groceries flip the comparison at $295 vs $288, with Masterton cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇳🇿 Masterton

🕒 Local time

12:35 12:35 PM

06:35 6:35 AM

18 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

26,800

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.77 NZD (1 NZD = 0.565 USD). 1 EUR = 1.99 NZD (1 NZD = 0.503 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Masterton 12,030 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Masterton

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 Masterton: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Masterton is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and transport. The 94% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 257% lower in Masterton. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Supermarket bills run roughly 2% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,614 per month in Medellin versus $832 in Masterton – a 94% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $832 in Masterton versus $1,614 in Medellin, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Masterton but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Masterton the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Safety-wise, Medellin and Masterton 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 Masterton gentler on the wallet – expenses run 94% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.