Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and New Plymouth

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $1,820 in New Plymouth, rent and utilities included – about $2,200 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
88

Cost of Living Index in New Plymouth
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New Plymouth Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

New Plymouth

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,820

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in New Plymouth

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $1,820 in New Plymouth, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
New Plymouth $1,820

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $2,828 in New Plymouth, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
New Plymouth $2,828

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $3,836 in New Plymouth, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
New Plymouth $3,836

Medellin is about 10% cheaper than New Plymouth, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Medellin and New Plymouth sit above the global median – Medellin by 20%, New Plymouth by 34%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$12.43 NZ$22.09

-34.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$67.9 NZ$121

-30.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$8.44 NZ$14.99

12.56%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$3.34 NZ$5.94

-9.88%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$2.12 NZ$3.77

-15.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$1.85 NZ$3.28

-23.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$5.32 NZ$9.46

-40.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$5.65 NZ$10.04

1.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$1.44 NZ$2.56

4.86%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$1.25 NZ$2.22

90.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$1.65 NZ$2.92

7.27%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$5.53 NZ$9.83

-47.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$5.52 NZ$9.80

84.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$7.19 NZ$12.78

37.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$11.42 NZ$20.31

22.50%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$2.63 NZ$4.67

50.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$1.86 NZ$3.30

-16.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$2.93 NZ$5.21

-25.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$6.12 NZ$10.87

-64.38%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$1.99 NZ$3.53

-1.51%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$1.41 NZ$2.51

12.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$1.88 NZ$3.34

-38.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$1.32 NZ$2.35

-6.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$23.12 NZ$41.09

-82.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$8.73 NZ$15.53

56.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$3.03 NZ$5.38

-45.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$3.78 NZ$6.73

-40.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

$1.68 NZ$2.99

-30.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$74.6 NZ$133

3.66%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$3.68 NZ$6.54

-65.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$1.67 NZ$2.97

-19.16%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$28.7K NZ$51.0K

18.81%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$22.8K NZ$40.5K

52.13%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$130 NZ$231

30.65%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$27.85 NZ$49.50

-51.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$48.35 NZ$86.0

-41.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$43.29 NZ$77.0

0.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$8.20 NZ$14.57

-15.73%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$680 NZ$1,208

17.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$23.1K NZ$41.0K

-60.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$61.3 NZ$109

38.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$38.74 NZ$68.9

49.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$90.6 NZ$161

48.98%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$106 NZ$188

-7.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$907 NZ$1,613

33.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$836 NZ$1,487

-23.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$1,740 NZ$3,093

16.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$1,589 NZ$2,824

-36.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$3,209 NZ$5,704

29.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$2,622 NZ$4,661

-27.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$2,787 NZ$4,954

-76.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.93

84.49%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for New Plymouth: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

New Plymouth

$836 45.9% 30.4% $195

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

New Plymouth

$281 15.5% 5.3% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

New Plymouth

$206 11.3% 2.5% $5.2

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

New Plymouth

$219 12% 28.9% $49

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

New Plymouth

$133 7.3% 21% $36

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

New Plymouth

$85 * 4.7% 9.1% $8.5

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

New Plymouth

$60 3.3% 3.7% $2.1

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $907 in New Plymouth. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in New Plymouth are about 4.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $68 in New Plymouth. Groceries tell a different story – $297 in Medellin vs $281 in New Plymouth – so New Plymouth wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇳🇿 New Plymouth

🕒 Local time

21:09 9:09 PM

15:09 3:09 PM

18 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

58,400

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.504 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 November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,605 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.563 USD). 1 EUR = 1.98 NZD (1 NZD = 0.504 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin New Plymouth 12,200 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
New Plymouth

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 New Plymouth: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – New Plymouth is pricier by about 11%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $2,731 in New Plymouth. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in New Plymouth, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $907 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $68 in New Plymouth. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $1,820 in New Plymouth. That makes Medellin about 10% cheaper.

$2,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,639 in Medellin and $1,820 in New Plymouth, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Medellin has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,639 in Medellin to $1,820 in New Plymouth. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Medellin. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, New Plymouth makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.