Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Venlo

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $2,433 in Venlo, rent and utilities included – about $9,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Medellin, Colombia
Venlo, Netherlands
Medellin
🇨🇴 Colombia
$1,639
/mo nomad
Venlo
🇳🇱 Netherlands
$2,433
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Venlo

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $2,433 in Venlo, rent included.

  • Medellin $1,639
  • Venlo $2,433

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $3,469 in Venlo, rent included.

  • Medellin $2,413
  • Venlo $3,469

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $4,506 in Venlo, rent included.

  • Medellin $3,186
  • Venlo $4,506

Medellin is about 33% cheaper than Venlo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Medellin and Venlo sit above the global median – Medellin by 20%, Venlo by 79%.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Medellin
Venlo
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$8.09 COP 26.1K
$22.60 €20.16
-64.20%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$47.05 COP 151.9K
$88.3 €78.8
-46.72%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.50 COP 30.7K
$13.04 €11.63
-27.15%
Cappuccino
$3.01 COP 9,734
$3.46 €3.08
-13.01%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.80 COP 5,809
$3.33 €2.97
-45.95%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.41 COP 4,560
$2.72 €2.43
-48.16%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.18 COP 10.3K
$6.80 €6.07
-53.24%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.75 COP 18.6K
$5.72 €5.10
0.52%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Medellin
Venlo
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.51 COP 4,875
$1.33 €1.18
13.53%
White Bread (500g)
$2.38 COP 7,677
$1.73 €1.55
37.57%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.77 COP 5,719
$2.53 €2.25
-30.04%
Eggs
$2.89 COP 9,332
$5.12 €4.57
-43.55%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.19 COP 32.9K
$13.50 €12.05
-24.52%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.87 COP 31.9K
$15.17 €13.53
-34.94%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$13.99 COP 45.2K
$15.43 €13.77
-9.33%
Apples (1kg)
$3.97 COP 12.8K
$2.08 €1.85
90.87%
Banana (1kg)
$1.55 COP 5,011
$2.18 €1.94
-28.90%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.18 COP 7,047
$1.87 €1.67
16.58%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.18 COP 7,050
$4.48 €4.00
-51.34%
Potato (1kg)
$1.96 COP 6,336
$1.68 €1.50
16.67%
Onion (1kg)
$1.59 COP 5,131
$1.84 €1.64
-13.59%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.15 COP 3,698
$1.27 €1.13
-9.45%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.24 COP 4,014
$0.75 €0.67
65.33%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.96 COP 12.8K
$13.83 €12.34
-71.37%
Wine (Bottle)
$13.68 COP 44.2K
$6.89 €6.15
98.55%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.66 COP 5,359
$1.44 €1.28
15.28%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.26 COP 7,290
$2.61 €2.33
-13.41%
🚌 Getting Around
Medellin
Venlo
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.17 COP 3,770
$1.54 €1.37
-24.03%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$77.4 COP 249.8K
$136 €122
-43.19%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.27 COP 4,094
$4.08 €3.64
-68.87%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.05 COP 6,611
$2.36 €2.10
-13.14%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$8.55 COP 27.6K
$32.73 €29.20
-73.88%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.35 COP 4,348
$2.34 €2.09
-42.31%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$34.1K COP 110.0M
$40.8K €36.4K
-16.51%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$34.7K COP 111.9M
$39.4K €35.1K
-11.91%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Medellin
Venlo
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$170 COP 547.7K
$181 €161
-6.25%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$13.55 COP 43.7K
$14.86 €13.26
-8.82%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$28.07 COP 90.6K
$55.6 €49.63
-49.54%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Medellin
Venlo
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$43.70 COP 141.1K
$21.84 €19.49
100.09%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$17.19 COP 55.5K
$31.45 €28.06
-45.34%
Cinema Ticket
$6.91 COP 22.3K
$11.10 €9.90
-37.75%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Medellin
Venlo
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$797 COP 2.6M
$2,254 €2,011
-64.66%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$9,112 COP 29.4M
$12.1K €10.8K
-24.78%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Medellin
Venlo
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$84.7 COP 273.5K
$88.1 €78.6
-3.79%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$58.0 COP 187.1K
$28.50 €25.42
103.37%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$135 COP 435.7K
$113 €101
19.66%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$97.9 COP 316.0K
$157 €140
-37.71%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Medellin
Venlo
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,208 COP 3.9M
$1,118 €997
8.07%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$642 COP 2.1M
$1,148 €1,024
-44.12%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,028 COP 6.5M
$1,324 €1,181
53.15%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,012 COP 3.3M
$1,530 €1,365
-33.87%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,170 COP 13.5M
$3,163 €2,822
31.86%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,910 COP 6.2M
$2,837 €2,531
-32.67%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Medellin
Venlo
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$657 COP 2.1M
$3,661 €3,266
-82.05%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
10.94
3.83
185.64%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Venlo: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Medellin
$642
Venlo
$1.1K 79% $507
Groceries & Markets
Medellin
$297
Venlo
$326 9.8% $29
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Medellin
$211
Venlo
$251 19% $40
Eating Out
Medellin
$170
Venlo
$331 95.2% $161
Clothing & Footwear
Medellin
$169
Venlo
$174 2.9% $4.9
Getting Around
Medellin
$94
Venlo
$158 69.1% $65
Sport & Entertainment
Medellin
$58
Venlo
$44 23.5% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $1,118 in Venlo. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Venlo are about 5.6 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin versus $88 in Venlo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $326 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇨🇴 Medellin
🇳🇱 Venlo
🕒 Local time
17:00 5:00 PM
23:00 11:00 PM
6 h ahead of Medellin
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
2,486,723
103,328
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

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).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

On the map
Between locations
  • Medellin Venlo 8,890 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Medellin
  • Venlo

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 Venlo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Medellin cheaper than Venlo?
Yes – Venlo is pricier by about 48%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $3,649 in Venlo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
What is the rent difference between Medellin and Venlo?
A central 1-bedroom goes for about $1,208 in Medellin and $1,118 in Venlo. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.
Is eating out cheaper in Medellin or in Venlo?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $88 in Venlo. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
What are total monthly expenses in Medellin and in Venlo?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $2,433 in Venlo. That makes Medellin about 33% cheaper.
Which city suits remote workers better?
For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Medellin costs $1,639 versus $2,433 in Venlo. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Medellin. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Venlo makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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