Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Skudai

For one person, living is cheaper in Skudai: $900 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $8,900 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
43

Cost of Living Index in Skudai
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Skudai Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Skudai

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$900

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Skudai

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $900 in Skudai, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Skudai $900

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,370 in Skudai, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Skudai $1,370

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $1,840 in Skudai, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Skudai $1,840

Medellin costs about 82% more than Skudai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Skudai is 34% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$3.63 MYR 14.77

122.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$18.25 MYR 74.3

157.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$4.90 MYR 19.96

93.88%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,734

$2.87 MYR 11.68

4.88%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$0.83 MYR 3.38

116.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,560

$0.45 MYR 1.82

213.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$3.33 MYR 13.56

-4.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$5.62 MYR 22.87

2.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,875

$1.74 MYR 7.08

-13.22%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,677

$1.02 MYR 4.17

133.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,719

$1.48 MYR 6.04

19.59%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,332

$1.66 MYR 6.75

74.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$9.64 MYR 39.26

5.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$3.20 MYR 13.03

208.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$9.61 MYR 39.11

45.58%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$3.42 MYR 13.91

16.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,011

$1.70 MYR 6.91

-8.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,047

$2.61 MYR 10.64

-16.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,050

$1.64 MYR 6.66

32.93%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,336

$1.41 MYR 5.72

39.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,131

$1.73 MYR 7.05

-8.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,698

$1.37 MYR 5.57

-16.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$0.51 MYR 2.09

143.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$4.28 MYR 17.42

-7.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$13.83 MYR 56.3

-1.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$2.74 MYR 11.14

-39.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,290

$2.99 MYR 12.16

-24.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,770

$0.83 MYR 3.39

40.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$10.95 MYR 44.58

606.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$1.01 MYR 4.11

25.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,611

$0.36 MYR 1.45

469.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$9.03 MYR 36.76

-5.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,348

$0.86 MYR 3.49

56.98%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$44.3K MYR 180.2K

-23.05%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$36.0K MYR 146.6K

-3.71%

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

$170 COP 547.7K

$48.79 MYR 199

247.71%

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

$13.55 COP 43.7K

$8.16 MYR 33.23

66.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$26.88 MYR 109

4.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$36.95 MYR 150

18.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

$7.55 MYR 30.73

127.68%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$4.93 MYR 20.09

40.16%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$235 MYR 958

238.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$4,393 MYR 17.9K

107.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$50.5 MYR 206

67.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.1K

$16.62 MYR 67.7

248.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.7K

$77.2 MYR 314

74.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$85.4 MYR 348

14.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$357 MYR 1,455

237.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$311 MYR 1,265

106.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$650 MYR 2,647

211.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$565 MYR 2,300

79.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$1,956 MYR 7,962

113.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$1,161 MYR 4,725

64.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

4.06

169.46%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Skudai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Skudai

$311 34.5% 51.6% $331

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Skudai

$226 25.2% 23.7% $70

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Skudai

$84 9.3% 60.3% $127

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Skudai

$111 12.4% 34.4% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Skudai

$103 11.5% 38.8% $66

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Skudai

$17 1.9% 81.8% $76

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Skudai

$47 5.2% 18.6% $11

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $357 in Skudai. 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 $18 in Skudai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $226 – making Skudai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇲🇾 Skudai

🕒 Local time

16:04 4:04 PM

05:04 5:04 AM

13 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

159,733

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.219 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, 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 = 3,619 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 4.07 MYR (1 MYR = 0.246 USD). 1 EUR = 4.56 MYR (1 MYR = 0.219 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Skudai 19,140 km ≈ 24 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Skudai

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 Skudai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 82%, 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 $1,349 in Skudai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Skudai, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $357 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $18 in Skudai. 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 $900 in Skudai. That makes Skudai about 45% cheaper.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Skudai, where all-in costs run around $900, than in Medellin at $1,639. In Skudai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

For expats, Skudai is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 45% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.