Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Vinh Yen

For one person, living is cheaper in Vinh Yen: $785 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $10,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
37

Cost of Living Index in Vinh Yen
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Vinh Yen Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Vinh Yen

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$785

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Vinh Yen

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

A single person spends $1,692 per month in Medellin vs $785 in Vinh Yen, rent included.

Medellin $1,692
Vinh Yen $785

A couple spends around $2,471 per month in Medellin vs $1,201 in Vinh Yen, rent included.

Medellin $2,471
Vinh Yen $1,201

A family of three spends $3,249 per month in Medellin vs $1,618 in Vinh Yen, rent included.

Medellin $3,249
Vinh Yen $1,618

Medellin costs about 116% more than Vinh Yen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 25% above the global median, while Vinh Yen is 42% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.34 COP 27.0K

$1.97 ₫50.7K

323.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.53 COP 150.9K

$21.01 ₫541.1K

121.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.47 COP 30.7K

$4.31 ₫110.9K

119.72%

Cappuccino

$3.13 COP 10.2K

$1.69 ₫43.5K

85.21%

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

$1.77 COP 5,727

$0.55 ₫14.2K

221.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 COP 4,619

$0.31 ₫7,868

358.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 COP 10.2K

$0.84 ₫21.7K

275.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 COP 18.5K

$1.40 ₫36.0K

307.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 COP 4,969

$1.46 ₫37.5K

4.79%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 COP 7,429

$1.11 ₫28.7K

106.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,306

$0.72 ₫18.5K

169.44%

Eggs

$3.07 COP 9,942

$1.54 ₫39.6K

99.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.99 COP 32.4K

$12.80 ₫329.7K

-21.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 COP 33.9K

$3.30 ₫84.9K

216.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.96 COP 45.3K

$10.16 ₫261.8K

37.40%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 COP 13.1K

$2.53 ₫65.1K

60.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 COP 4,956

$1.00 ₫25.8K

53.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 COP 6,823

$1.26 ₫32.4K

66.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 COP 7,437

$1.15 ₫29.5K

99.13%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 COP 6,839

$1.00 ₫25.7K

111.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 COP 5,542

$1.32 ₫34.1K

29.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 COP 3,794

$0.63 ₫16.2K

85.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 COP 5,123

$0.55 ₫14.2K

187.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 COP 12.7K

$1.22 ₫31.4K

220.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 COP 45.5K

$6.76 ₫174.2K

107.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 COP 5,712

$0.79 ₫20.4K

122.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 COP 8,793

$1.58 ₫40.6K

71.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 COP 3,825

$0.33 ₫8,583

257.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 COP 247.4K

$7.13 ₫183.6K

969.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 COP 5,859

$0.86 ₫22.2K

110.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.13 COP 6,904

$0.60 ₫15.5K

255.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 COP 26.4K

$2.20 ₫56.7K

269.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,135

$1.00 ₫25.8K

28.00%

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

$34.4K COP 111.7M

$32.0K ₫823.6M

7.72%

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

$34.1K COP 110.7M

$26.0K ₫670.7M

31.11%

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

$178 COP 576.3K

$86.6 ₫2.2M

105.16%

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

$13.89 COP 45.0K

$5.40 ₫139.1K

157.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 COP 99.7K

$9.44 ₫243.3K

225.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.94 COP 136.0K

$22.96 ₫591.4K

82.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 COP 54.5K

$7.74 ₫199.5K

117.05%

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 COP 24.2K

$2.65 ₫68.1K

181.89%

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

$790 COP 2.6M

$364 ₫9.4M

117.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K COP 39.9M

$15.5K ₫399.2M

-20.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 COP 279.9K

$37.27 ₫960.1K

131.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.3 COP 192.2K

$24.38 ₫628.0K

143.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 COP 448.6K

$91.3 ₫2.4M

51.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 COP 320.4K

$65.1 ₫1.7M

51.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,341 COP 4.3M

$389 ₫10.0M

245.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 COP 2.2M

$300 ₫7.7M

122.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,976 COP 6.4M

$740 ₫19.1M

166.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 COP 3.3M

$549 ₫14.2M

88.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 COP 13.3M

$2,290 ₫59.0M

78.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 COP 6.3M

$1,390 ₫35.8M

39.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$646 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

8.17

33.90%

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

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Last update for Vinh Yen: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$667 39.4%

Vinh Yen

$300 38.3% 55% $367

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$307 18.2%

Vinh Yen

$185 23.6% 39.8% $122

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$222 13.1%

Vinh Yen

$101 12.9% 54.4% $121

Eating Out

Medellin

$173 10.2%

Vinh Yen

$59 7.6% 65.6% $113

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$172 10.2%

Vinh Yen

$98 12.5% 43% $74

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.5%

Vinh Yen

$12 1.6% 86.8% $81

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$57 3.4%

Vinh Yen

$28 3.6% 50.3% $29

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,341 in Medellin versus $389 in Vinh Yen. 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 $21 in Vinh Yen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $307 vs $185 – making Vinh Yen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇻🇳 Vinh Yen

🕒 Local time

18:13 6:13 PM

06:13 6:13 AM

12 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

125,858

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.08 USD

10,000 COP = 2.74 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.88 USD

100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, 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).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 25,761 VND (100,000 VND = 3.88 USD). 1 EUR = 29,000 VND (100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Vinh Yen 16,950 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Vinh Yen

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 Vinh Yen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 116%, 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 $1,177 in Vinh Yen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Vinh Yen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $389 there versus $1,341 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $21 in Vinh Yen. 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 $785 in Vinh Yen. That makes Vinh Yen about 54% cheaper.

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

For expats, Vinh Yen is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 54% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.