Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Phan Thiet

For one person, living is cheaper in Phan Thiet: $658 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
32

Cost of Living Index in Phan Thiet
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Phan Thiet Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Phan Thiet

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$658

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Phan Thiet

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $658 in Phan Thiet, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Phan Thiet $658

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,085 in Phan Thiet, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Phan Thiet $1,085

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $1,512 in Phan Thiet, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Phan Thiet $1,512

Medellin costs about 149% more than Phan Thiet, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Phan Thiet is 52% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.6K

$2.63 ₫68.0K

207.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.9K

$23.07 ₫596.4K

103.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$4.60 ₫118.8K

106.52%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,540

$0.61 ₫15.7K

393.44%

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

$1.80 COP 5,693

$0.40 ₫10.3K

350.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,469

$0.21 ₫5,419

571.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.0K

$0.61 ₫15.7K

421.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.2K

$1.22 ₫31.6K

371.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,778

$1.34 ₫34.6K

12.69%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,524

$0.37 ₫9,630

543.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,606

$0.96 ₫24.8K

84.38%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,146

$1.13 ₫29.2K

155.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.2K

$12.32 ₫318.4K

-17.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.2K

$3.14 ₫81.2K

214.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.3K

$8.35 ₫215.9K

67.54%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.6K

$1.95 ₫50.4K

103.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,911

$0.80 ₫20.7K

93.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,907

$1.08 ₫27.9K

101.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,910

$1.24 ₫32.1K

75.81%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,210

$0.81 ₫21.0K

141.98%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,029

$0.72 ₫18.7K

120.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,625

$0.60 ₫15.4K

91.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,934

$0.55 ₫14.2K

125.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$1.57 ₫40.7K

152.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.3K

$9.75 ₫252.1K

40.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,252

$0.41 ₫10.5K

304.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,145

$1.53 ₫39.6K

47.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,696

$0.29 ₫7,368

303.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 244.8K

$6.35 ₫164.3K

1118.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,013

$0.59 ₫15.3K

115.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,480

$0.60 ₫15.4K

241.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.1K

$2.17 ₫56.2K

294.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,262

$0.92 ₫23.7K

46.74%

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

$34.1K COP 107.8M

$31.1K ₫803.4M

9.62%

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

$34.7K COP 109.7M

$28.2K ₫728.1M

23.10%

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

$170 COP 536.8K

$43.05 ₫1.1M

294.08%

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

$13.55 COP 42.9K

$6.41 ₫165.8K

111.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.8K

$9.43 ₫243.8K

197.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 138.3K

$20.55 ₫531.2K

112.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.4K

$7.78 ₫201.1K

120.95%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.9K

$1.88 ₫48.6K

267.55%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$213 ₫5.5M

274.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.8M

$3,840 ₫99.3M

137.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 268.1K

$22.83 ₫590.1K

271.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 183.4K

$23.47 ₫606.6K

146.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 427.1K

$38.53 ₫996.2K

250.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 309.7K

$59.1 ₫1.5M

65.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$479 ₫12.4M

151.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$284 ₫7.3M

126.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$810 ₫20.9M

150.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$629 ₫16.3M

60.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.2M

$2,217 ₫57.3M

88.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$1,316 ₫34.0M

45.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

8.28

32.13%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Phan Thiet: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Phan Thiet

$284 43.1% 55.8% $358

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Phan Thiet

$166 25.2% 44.2% $131

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Phan Thiet

$59 9% 72.1% $152

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Phan Thiet

$50 7.6% 70.5% $120

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Phan Thiet

$65 9.8% 61.7% $104

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Phan Thiet

$11 1.7% 88.2% $82

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Phan Thiet

$24 3.7% 57.7% $33

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $479 in Phan Thiet. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $23 in Phan Thiet. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $166 – making Phan Thiet the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇻🇳 Phan Thiet

🕒 Local time

23:02 11:02 PM

11:02 11:02 AM

12 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

255,000

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.16 USD

10,000 COP = 2.84 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.87 USD

100,000 VND = 3.47 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 3,164 COP (10,000 COP = 3.16 USD). 1 EUR = 3,523 COP (10,000 COP = 2.84 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 25,852 VND (100,000 VND = 3.87 USD). 1 EUR = 28,779 VND (100,000 VND = 3.47 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Phan Thiet 18,060 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Phan Thiet

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 Phan Thiet: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 149%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $987 in Phan Thiet. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Phan Thiet, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $479 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $23 in Phan Thiet. 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 $658 in Phan Thiet. That makes Phan Thiet about 60% cheaper.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Phan Thiet, where all-in costs run around $658, than in Medellin at $1,639. In Phan Thiet it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Phan Thiet – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

For expats, Phan Thiet is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 60% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.