Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Side

For one person, living is cheaper in Side: $1,153 a month against $1,625 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 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
55

Cost of Living Index in Side
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Side Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,625

/mo nomad

Side

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,153

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Side

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

A single person spends $1,625 per month in Medellin vs $1,153 in Side, rent included.

Medellin $1,625
Side $1,153

A couple spends around $2,412 per month in Medellin vs $1,793 in Side, rent included.

Medellin $2,412
Side $1,793

A family of three spends $3,199 per month in Medellin vs $2,432 in Side, rent included.

Medellin $3,199
Side $2,432

Medellin costs about 41% more than Side, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Side is 15% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.30 COP 26.3K

$10.25 ₺507

-19.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.91 COP 148.7K

$30.35 ₺1,502

54.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.24 COP 29.3K

$9.86 ₺488

-6.29%

Cappuccino

$3.05 COP 9,676

$3.63 ₺179

-15.98%

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

$1.80 COP 5,707

$2.20 ₺109

-18.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,382

$0.39 ₺19.35

253.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 COP 10.3K

$4.10 ₺203

-20.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.56 COP 17.6K

$5.92 ₺293

-6.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 COP 4,760

$1.05 ₺52.2

42.86%

White Bread (500g)

$2.37 COP 7,508

$0.96 ₺47.29

146.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 COP 5,377

$2.62 ₺130

-35.11%

Eggs

$2.96 COP 9,379

$2.22 ₺110

33.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.22 COP 32.4K

$13.36 ₺661

-23.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.74 COP 30.9K

$6.05 ₺299

60.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.90 COP 44.1K

$26.37 ₺1,305

-47.29%

Apples (1kg)

$4.13 COP 13.1K

$1.54 ₺76.1

168.18%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,839

$2.39 ₺118

-35.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 COP 7,052

$1.44 ₺71.4

54.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.27 COP 7,194

$1.23 ₺60.8

84.55%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 COP 6,311

$0.78 ₺38.78

155.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 COP 5,285

$0.75 ₺36.99

122.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 COP 3,742

$1.81 ₺89.7

-34.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,919

$0.76 ₺37.73

63.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.87 COP 12.3K

$2.80 ₺138

38.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.78 COP 43.7K

$13.96 ₺691

-1.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,256

$1.76 ₺87.1

-5.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 COP 7,615

$3.13 ₺155

-23.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.24 COP 3,944

$0.63 ₺31.41

96.83%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.2 COP 248.0K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 COP 4,044

$1.23 ₺61.0

4.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.15 COP 6,803

$1.03 ₺51.1

108.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.37 COP 26.5K

$6.88 ₺341

21.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,288

$1.53 ₺75.9

-11.76%

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

$34.8K COP 110.2M

$42.0K ₺2.1M

-17.19%

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

$34.7K COP 110.0M

$38.0K ₺1.9M

-8.69%

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

$167 COP 528.4K

$76.1 ₺3,765

119.13%

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

$13.62 COP 43.2K

$10.50 ₺520

29.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.12 COP 92.3K

$23.39 ₺1,158

24.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.09 COP 143.0K

$57.1 ₺2,826

-21.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.18 COP 54.5K

Cinema Ticket

$6.97 COP 22.1K

$7.93 ₺393

-12.11%

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

$790 COP 2.5M

$499 ₺24.7K

58.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,041 COP 28.7M

$9,527 ₺471.7K

-5.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.8 COP 278.4K

$44.49 ₺2,203

97.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.2 COP 184.4K

$59.1 ₺2,926

-1.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$139 COP 440.7K

$154 ₺7,612

-9.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.9 COP 313.5K

$121 ₺5,967

-17.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 COP 3.3M

$478 ₺23.6K

115.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$620 COP 2.0M

$308 ₺15.2K

101.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,881 COP 6.0M

$763 ₺37.8K

146.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 COP 3.2M

$562 ₺27.8K

79.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,988 COP 12.6M

$1,548 ₺76.7K

157.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,702 COP 5.4M

$913 ₺45.2K

86.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$663 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

38.25

-71.40%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 19, 2026

Last update for Side: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$619 38.1%

Side

$308 26.7% 50.3% $312

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$298 18.3%

Side

$286 24.8% 4% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$209 12.9%

Side

$110 9.5% 47.5% $99

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$173 10.6%

Side

$170 14.7% 1.6% $2.7

Eating Out

Medellin

$171 10.5%

Side

$198 17.2% 15.8% $27

Getting Around

Medellin

$95 5.9%

Side

$8.9 * 0.8% 90.6% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$59 3.6%

Side

$73 6.3% 23.6% $14

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,028 in Medellin versus $478 in Side. 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 $47.00 in Medellin versus $30.00 in Side. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $298 vs $286 – making Side the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇹🇷 Side

🕒 Local time

15:03 3:03 PM

23:03 11:03 PM

8 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

12,500

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 49.51 TRY (100 TRY = 2.02 USD). 1 EUR = 55.66 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Side 11,080 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Side

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 Side: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 41%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,437 per month in Medellin and $1,730 in Side. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Side, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47.00 in Medellin and $30.00 in Side. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 4% more in Medellin, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Side, where all-in costs run around $1,153, than in Medellin at $1,625. In Side it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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