Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Taupo

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,692 a month against $2,117 in Taupo, rent and utilities included – about $5,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in Taupo
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Taupo Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Taupo

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,117

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Taupo

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

A single person spends $1,692 per month in Medellin vs $2,117 in Taupo, rent included.

Medellin $1,692
Taupo $2,117

A couple spends around $2,471 per month in Medellin vs $3,116 in Taupo, rent included.

Medellin $2,471
Taupo $3,116

A family of three spends $3,249 per month in Medellin vs $4,115 in Taupo, rent included.

Medellin $3,249
Taupo $4,115

Medellin is about 20% cheaper than Taupo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Medellin and Taupo sit above the global median – Medellin by 25%, Taupo by 57%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 27.0K

$14.09 NZ$25.04

-40.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.9K

$69.4 NZ$123

-32.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.7K

$9.01 NZ$16.00

5.11%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.2K

$3.48 NZ$6.17

-10.06%

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

$1.77 COP 5,727

$1.98 NZ$3.52

-10.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,619

$1.83 NZ$3.24

-22.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$6.97 NZ$12.37

-54.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.5K

$6.98 NZ$12.41

-18.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,969

$1.93 NZ$3.43

-20.73%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,429

$2.25 NZ$3.99

1.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,306

$1.84 NZ$3.26

5.43%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,942

$6.30 NZ$11.20

-51.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.4K

$8.49 NZ$15.08

17.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.9K

$9.99 NZ$17.75

4.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.3K

$17.15 NZ$30.47

-18.60%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$2.84 NZ$5.04

42.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,956

$2.07 NZ$3.68

-26.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,823

$3.03 NZ$5.39

-30.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,437

$5.89 NZ$10.46

-61.12%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,839

$2.19 NZ$3.89

-3.65%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,542

$1.53 NZ$2.73

11.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,794

$2.04 NZ$3.63

-42.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,123

$1.06 NZ$1.88

49.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.7K

$27.30 NZ$48.50

-85.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.5K

$10.45 NZ$18.56

34.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,712

$2.74 NZ$4.87

-35.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,793

$3.38 NZ$6.01

-19.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,825

$1.98 NZ$3.51

-40.40%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 247.4K

$105 NZ$186

-27.09%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,859

$2.32 NZ$4.12

-21.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,904

$2.02 NZ$3.58

5.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.4K

$32.59 NZ$57.9

-75.05%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,135

$1.84 NZ$3.26

-30.43%

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

$34.4K COP 111.7M

$27.8K NZ$49.3K

24.10%

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

$34.1K COP 110.7M

$22.3K NZ$39.5K

53.35%

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

$178 COP 576.3K

$185 NZ$329

-4.09%

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

$13.89 COP 45.0K

$26.72 NZ$47.47

-48.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.7K

$39.15 NZ$69.6

-21.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 136.0K

$39.41 NZ$70.0

6.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.5K

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.2K

$12.17 NZ$21.62

-38.62%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$1,045 NZ$1,857

-24.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.9M

$19.3K NZ$34.3K

-36.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 279.9K

$80.0 NZ$142

7.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 192.2K

$41.48 NZ$73.7

42.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 448.6K

$94.1 NZ$167

47.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 320.4K

$112 NZ$199

-11.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$1,029 NZ$1,828

30.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$943 NZ$1,675

-29.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$1,612 NZ$2,864

22.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$1,494 NZ$2,654

-30.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.3M

$4,774 NZ$8,481

-14.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$3,373 NZ$5,992

-42.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

5.37

103.72%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Taupo: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Taupo

$943 44.5% 41.3% $276

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Taupo

$341 16.1% 11% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Taupo

$251 11.9% 13% $29

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Taupo

$245 11.6% 42.2% $73

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Taupo

$147 7% 14.4% $25

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Taupo

$125 5.9% 33.7% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Taupo

$64 3% 12.1% $6.9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,341 in Medellin versus $1,029 in Taupo. 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 $69 in Taupo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $307 vs $341 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇳🇿 Taupo

🕒 Local time

18:29 6:29 PM

12:29 12:29 PM

18 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

26,000

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.08 USD

10,000 COP = 2.74 EUR

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.5 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 3,242 COP (10,000 COP = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 3,650 COP (10,000 COP = 2.74 EUR).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.563 USD). 1 EUR = 2 NZD (1 NZD = 0.5 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Taupo 12,030 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Taupo

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 Taupo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Taupo is pricier by about 25%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,538 per month in Medellin and $3,175 in Taupo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Taupo, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,029 there versus $1,341 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $69 in Taupo. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,692 in Medellin and $2,117 in Taupo. That makes Medellin about 20% cheaper.

$2,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,692 in Medellin and $2,117 in Taupo, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Medellin has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,692 in Medellin to $2,117 in Taupo. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.