Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Taraz

For one person, living is cheaper in Taraz: $626 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $12,200 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
30

Cost of Living Index in Taraz
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Taraz Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Taraz

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$626

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Taraz

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $626 in Taraz, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Taraz $626

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $1,001 in Taraz, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Taraz $1,001

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $1,375 in Taraz, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Taraz $1,375

Medellin costs about 162% more than Taraz, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Taraz is 54% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 25.6K

$8.83 ₸4,023

-8.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 148.9K

$22.00 ₸10.0K

113.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$6.68 ₸3,043

42.22%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,540

$1.56 ₸713

92.95%

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

$1.80 COP 5,693

$0.92 ₸420

95.65%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,469

$0.42 ₸192

235.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.0K

$1.13 ₸516

181.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.2K

$1.80 ₸820

219.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,778

$1.08 ₸493

39.81%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,524

$0.44 ₸199

440.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,606

$1.35 ₸615

31.11%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,146

$1.69 ₸772

71.01%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.2K

$10.17 ₸4,634

0.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.2K

$5.16 ₸2,350

91.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 44.3K

$8.26 ₸3,761

69.37%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.6K

$1.21 ₸549

228.10%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 4,911

$2.17 ₸989

-28.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,907

$2.59 ₸1,179

-15.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 6,910

$1.37 ₸624

59.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,210

$0.51 ₸233

284.31%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,029

$0.44 ₸199

261.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,625

$0.88 ₸403

30.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,934

$0.80 ₸365

55.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.5K

$2.39 ₸1,090

65.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 43.3K

$4.38 ₸1,993

212.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,252

$1.08 ₸490

53.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,145

$1.53 ₸696

47.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,696

$0.21 ₸96.4

457.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 244.8K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,013

$0.88 ₸399

44.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,480

$0.37 ₸170

454.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.1K

$4.07 ₸1,852

110.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,262

$0.65 ₸298

107.69%

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

$34.1K COP 107.8M

$27.6K ₸12.6M

23.30%

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

$34.7K COP 109.7M

$27.5K ₸12.5M

26.03%

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

$170 COP 536.8K

$47.53 ₸21.7K

256.93%

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

$13.55 COP 42.9K

$8.64 ₸3,936

56.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 88.8K

$8.98 ₸4,089

212.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 138.3K

$36.00 ₸16.4K

21.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.4K

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 21.9K

$4.54 ₸2,069

52.20%

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

$797 COP 2.5M

$58.8 ₸26.8K

1255.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 28.8M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 268.1K

$26.93 ₸12.3K

214.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 183.4K

$34.47 ₸15.7K

68.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 427.1K

$111 ₸50.4K

22.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 309.7K

$53.0 ₸24.2K

84.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.8M

$263 ₸120.0K

358.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.0M

$109 ₸49.8K

487.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.4M

$435 ₸198.0K

366.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.2M

$200 ₸91.1K

406.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.2M

$858 ₸391.0K

385.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.0M

$600 ₸273.3K

218.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$282 ₸128.2K

133.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

17.83

-38.64%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Taraz: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Taraz

$109 17.5% 83% $532

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Taraz

$177 28.4% 40.2% $120

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Taraz

$65 10.4% 69.2% $146

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Taraz

$124 19.8% 26.8% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Taraz

$101 16.2% 40.1% $68

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Taraz

$3.6 * 0.6% 96.2% $90

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Taraz

$45 7.2% 21.6% $12

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 $263 in Taraz. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Medellin are about 2.3 times higher, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $22 in Taraz. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $177 – making Taraz the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇰🇿 Taraz

🕒 Local time

23:02 11:02 PM

09:02 9:02 AM

10 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

431,160

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Kazakhstani Tenge KZT ₸

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.16 USD

10,000 COP = 2.84 EUR

1,000 KZT = 2.2 USD

1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KZT, 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).

Kazakhstani Tenge exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 456 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.2 USD). 1 EUR = 507 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Between locations

Medellin Taraz 13,610 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Taraz

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 Taraz: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 162%, 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 $939 in Taraz. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Taraz, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $263 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $22 in Taraz. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 67% more in Medellin, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Taraz, where all-in costs run around $626, than in Medellin at $1,639. In Taraz it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

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