Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Sarande

For one person, living is cheaper in Sarande: $1,300 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $4,100 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
63

Cost of Living Index in Sarande
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Sarande Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Sarande

🇦🇱 Albania

$1,300

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Sarande

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $1,300 in Sarande, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Sarande $1,300

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $2,195 in Sarande, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Sarande $2,195

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $3,090 in Sarande, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Sarande $3,090

Medellin costs about 26% more than Sarande, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Sarande is 4% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$10.10 ALL 821

-19.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$55.1 ALL 4,477

-14.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$11.03 ALL 896

-13.87%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$2.24 ALL 182

34.37%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$2.36 ALL 191

-23.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$1.17 ALL 95.0

20.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$3.52 ALL 286

-9.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$3.97 ALL 323

44.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$2.24 ALL 182

-32.59%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$1.19 ALL 96.8

100.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$2.36 ALL 192

-25.00%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$3.65 ALL 297

-20.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$12.98 ALL 1,054

-21.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$9.34 ALL 759

5.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$17.37 ALL 1,410

-19.46%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$1.94 ALL 158

104.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$2.47 ALL 201

-37.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$2.09 ALL 170

4.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$1.90 ALL 154

14.74%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$1.02 ALL 82.7

92.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$1.26 ALL 102

26.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$1.47 ALL 119

-21.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$0.74 ALL 60.1

67.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$4.68 ALL 380

-15.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$7.56 ALL 614

80.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$1.55 ALL 126

7.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$2.07 ALL 168

9.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

$1.10 ALL 89.6

6.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$22.09 ALL 1,794

250.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$3.60 ALL 292

-64.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$3.62 ALL 294

-43.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$18.27 ALL 1,484

-53.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$2.19 ALL 178

-38.36%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$33.5K ALL 2.7M

1.62%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$28.1K ALL 2.3M

23.45%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$99.8 ALL 8,107

69.97%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$18.16 ALL 1,475

-25.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$19.69 ALL 1,599

42.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$89.8 ALL 7,296

-51.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

$40.07 ALL 3,255

-57.10%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$10.07 ALL 818

-31.38%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$302 ALL 24.5K

163.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$7,994 ALL 649.3K

13.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$72.5 ALL 5,885

16.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$48.39 ALL 3,930

19.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$118 ALL 9,562

14.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$113 ALL 9,138

-13.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$835 ALL 67.8K

44.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$380 ALL 30.9K

68.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$1,086 ALL 88.2K

86.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$917 ALL 74.5K

10.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$4,581 ALL 372.0K

-8.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$2,902 ALL 235.7K

-34.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$770 ALL 62.5K

-14.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.16

112.02%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Sarande: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Sarande

$380 29.2% 40.8% $262

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Sarande

$286 22% 3.7% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Sarande

$138 10.6% 34.8% $74

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Sarande

$180 13.9% 6.4% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Sarande

$158 12.2% 6.5% $11

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Sarande

$48 3.7% 48.5% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Sarande

$110 8.5% 91.2% $52

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $835 in Sarande. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 17% higher in Sarande, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $55 in Sarande. Groceries tell a different story – $297 in Medellin vs $286 in Sarande – so Sarande wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇦🇱 Sarande

🕒 Local time

02:04 2:04 AM

08:04 8:04 AM

6 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

17,233

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Albanian Lek ALL L

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

100 ALL = 1.23 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ALL, 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).

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 81.22 ALL (100 ALL = 1.23 USD). 1 EUR = 90.69 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Sarande 10,040 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Sarande

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 Sarande: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 26%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $1,950 in Sarande. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sarande, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $835 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $55 in Sarande. 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 $1,300 in Sarande. That makes Sarande about 21% cheaper.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,639 in Medellin and $1,300 in Sarande, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

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