Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Urumqi

For one person, living is cheaper in Urumqi: $605 a month against $1,625 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
29

Cost of Living Index in Urumqi
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Urumqi Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,625

/mo nomad

Urumqi

🇨🇳 China

$605

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Urumqi

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

A single person spends $1,625 per month in Medellin vs $605 in Urumqi, rent included.

Medellin $1,625
Urumqi $605

A couple spends around $2,412 per month in Medellin vs $960 in Urumqi, rent included.

Medellin $2,412
Urumqi $960

A family of three spends $3,199 per month in Medellin vs $1,316 in Urumqi, rent included.

Medellin $3,199
Urumqi $1,316

Medellin costs about 169% more than Urumqi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Urumqi is 55% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.30 COP 26.3K

$3.29 ¥21.98

152.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.91 COP 148.7K

$18.16 ¥121

158.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.24 COP 29.3K

$5.28 ¥35.30

75.00%

Cappuccino

$3.05 COP 9,676

$2.87 ¥19.19

6.27%

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

$1.80 COP 5,707

$0.46 ¥3.08

291.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,382

$0.24 ¥1.59

475.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 COP 10.3K

$1.14 ¥7.63

184.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.56 COP 17.6K

$1.77 ¥11.83

214.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 COP 4,760

$1.24 ¥8.26

20.97%

White Bread (500g)

$2.37 COP 7,508

$0.93 ¥6.22

154.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 COP 5,377

$0.62 ¥4.12

174.19%

Eggs

$2.96 COP 9,379

$1.54 ¥10.28

92.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.22 COP 32.4K

$6.13 ¥40.96

66.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.74 COP 30.9K

$2.49 ¥16.63

291.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.90 COP 44.1K

$9.61 ¥64.3

44.64%

Apples (1kg)

$4.13 COP 13.1K

$2.04 ¥13.62

102.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,839

$1.23 ¥8.22

24.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 COP 7,052

$1.86 ¥12.43

19.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.27 COP 7,194

$0.76 ¥5.11

198.68%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 COP 6,311

$0.54 ¥3.61

268.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 COP 5,285

$0.62 ¥4.17

169.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 COP 3,742

$0.50 ¥3.33

136.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 3,919

$0.45 ¥3.00

175.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.87 COP 12.3K

$2.93 ¥19.57

32.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.78 COP 43.7K

$10.51 ¥70.3

31.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,256

$1.09 ¥7.30

52.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 COP 7,615

$1.47 ¥9.84

63.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.24 COP 3,944

$0.29 ¥1.93

327.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.2 COP 248.0K

$18.08 ¥121

332.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 COP 4,044

$1.47 ¥9.81

-12.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.15 COP 6,803

$0.29 ¥1.94

641.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.37 COP 26.5K

$7.30 ¥48.80

14.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,288

$1.23 ¥8.23

9.76%

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

$34.8K COP 110.2M

$17.9K ¥119.5K

94.58%

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

$34.7K COP 110.0M

$13.9K ¥93.2K

148.91%

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

$167 COP 528.4K

$66.5 ¥444

150.79%

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

$13.62 COP 43.2K

$5.43 ¥36.33

150.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.12 COP 92.3K

$11.29 ¥75.5

157.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.09 COP 143.0K

$22.12 ¥148

103.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.18 COP 54.5K

$9.40 ¥62.8

82.77%

Cinema Ticket

$6.97 COP 22.1K

$5.82 ¥38.90

19.76%

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

$790 COP 2.5M

$161 ¥1,078

390.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,041 COP 28.7M

$9,005 ¥60.2K

0.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.8 COP 278.4K

$52.6 ¥351

67.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.2 COP 184.4K

$22.05 ¥147

163.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$139 COP 440.7K

$106 ¥712

30.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.9 COP 313.5K

$44.33 ¥296

123.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 COP 3.3M

$261 ¥1,748

293.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$620 COP 2.0M

$117 ¥784

428.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,881 COP 6.0M

$405 ¥2,708

364.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 COP 3.2M

$251 ¥1,678

301.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,988 COP 12.6M

$1,834 ¥12.3K

117.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,702 COP 5.4M

$1,159 ¥7,748

46.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$663 COP 2.1M

$1,114 ¥7,449

-40.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

3.39

222.71%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 19, 2026

Last update for Urumqi: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$619 38.1%

Urumqi

$117 19.4% 81.1% $502

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$298 18.3%

Urumqi

$158 26.2% 46.8% $139

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$209 12.9%

Urumqi

$83 13.8% 60.3% $126

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$173 10.6%

Urumqi

$101 16.8% 41.3% $71

Eating Out

Medellin

$171 10.5%

Urumqi

$89 14.7% 48.1% $82

Getting Around

Medellin

$95 5.9%

Urumqi

$22 3.7% 76.7% $73

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$59 3.6%

Urumqi

$34 5.6% 42.8% $25

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,028 in Medellin versus $261 in Urumqi. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 68% higher in Urumqi, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47.00 in Medellin versus $18.00 in Urumqi. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $298 vs $158 – making Urumqi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇨🇳 Urumqi

🕒 Local time

13:01 1:01 PM

00:01 12:01 AM

11 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

4,054,369

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, 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).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Medellin Urumqi 14,200 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

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Medellin
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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 Urumqi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 169%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,437 per month in Medellin and $907 in Urumqi. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Urumqi, 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 $18.00 in Urumqi. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,625 in Medellin and $605 in Urumqi. That's a gap of about 169%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Urumqi, where all-in costs run around $605, than in Medellin at $1,625. In Urumqi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Urumqi – 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 Urumqi. 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.