Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Urmia

For one person, living is cheaper in Urmia: $420 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $15,300 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
20

Cost of Living Index in Urmia
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Urmia Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Urmia

🇮🇷 Iran

$420

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Urmia

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

A single person spends $1,692 per month in Medellin vs $420 in Urmia, rent included.

Medellin $1,692
Urmia $420

A couple spends around $2,471 per month in Medellin vs $725 in Urmia, rent included.

Medellin $2,471
Urmia $725

A family of three spends $3,249 per month in Medellin vs $1,031 in Urmia, rent included.

Medellin $3,249
Urmia $1,031

Medellin costs about 303% more than Urmia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 25% above the global median, while Urmia is 69% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 26.9K

$4.90 $4.90

70.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.3K

$23.79 $23.79

95.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.6K

$3.04 $3.04

211.51%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.26 $1.26

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 $1.63

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.1K

$1.06 $1.06

195.28%

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

$1.77 COP 5,705

$0.74 $0.74

139.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,601

$0.45 $0.45

215.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.4K

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,950

$0.63 $0.63

142.86%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,401

$0.44 $0.44

420.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,282

$2.34 $2.34

-17.09%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,905

$1.25 $1.25

145.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.3K

$4.53 $4.53

120.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.7K

$2.52 $2.52

314.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.1K

$6.60 $6.60

111.52%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$0.92 $0.92

340.22%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,937

$1.44 $1.44

6.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,797

$0.76 $0.76

176.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,409

$0.62 $0.62

269.35%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,813

$0.49 $0.49

330.61%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,521

$0.51 $0.51

235.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,780

$0.54 $0.54

116.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,104

$0.26 $0.26

507.69%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$0.77 $0.77

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 $0.52

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.33 $1.33

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.6K

$1.13 $1.13

246.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.4K

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,690

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,760

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,811

$0.14 $0.14

742.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 246.4K

$9.82 $9.82

676.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,836

$0.41 $0.41

341.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,878

$0.29 $0.29

634.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.3K

$2.66 $2.66

205.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,119

$0.09 $0.09

1322.22%

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

$34.4K COP 111.2M

$50.2K $50.2K

-31.33%

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

$34.1K COP 110.3M

$46.3K $46.3K

-26.28%

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

$178 COP 574.1K

$13.20 $13.20

1246.44%

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

$13.89 COP 44.9K

$1.52 $1.52

813.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.3K

$3.87 $3.87

694.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 135.5K

$9.35 $9.35

348.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.3K

$13.37 $13.37

25.65%

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.1K

$2.03 $2.03

267.98%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$108 $108

632.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.7M

$2,410 $2,410

410.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 278.9K

$22.33 $22.33

286.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 191.4K

$28.74 $28.74

106.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 446.9K

$98.0 $98.0

41.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 319.2K

$31.95 $31.95

209.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$176 $176

660.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$130 $130

413.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$327 $327

503.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$272 $272

279.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.2M

$694 $694

490.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$602 $602

222.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

$279 $279

131.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

24.3

-54.98%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Urmia: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Urmia

$130 31% 80.5% $537

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Urmia

$98 23.4% 68% $209

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Urmia

$19 4.4% 91.6% $204

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Urmia

$66 15.7% 61.9% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Urmia

$81 19.4% 52.7% $91

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Urmia

$12 2.9% 86.9% $81

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Urmia

$13 3.2% 76.4% $43

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,341 in Medellin versus $176 in Urmia. 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 $24 in Urmia. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $307 vs $98 – making Urmia the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇮🇷 Urmia

🕒 Local time

21:11 9:11 PM

05:41 5:41 AM

8 h 30 min ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

736,224

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

USD USD

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

1 USD = 0.891 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3,230 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,626 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

USD exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.891 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Between locations

Medellin Urmia 12,190 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Urmia

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 Urmia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 303%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,538 per month in Medellin and $630 in Urmia. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Urmia, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $176 there versus $1,341 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $24 in Urmia. 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 $420 in Urmia. That makes Urmia about 75% cheaper.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Urmia, where all-in costs run around $420, than in Medellin at $1,692. In Urmia it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Urmia – 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 Urmia. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Medellin makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.