Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Windhoek

For one person, living is cheaper in Windhoek: $1,182 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 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
57

Cost of Living Index in Windhoek
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Windhoek Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Windhoek

🇳🇦 Namibia

$1,182

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Windhoek

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

A single person spends $1,639 per month in Medellin vs $1,182 in Windhoek, rent included.

Medellin $1,639
Windhoek $1,182

A couple spends around $2,413 per month in Medellin vs $2,028 in Windhoek, rent included.

Medellin $2,413
Windhoek $2,028

A family of three spends $3,186 per month in Medellin vs $2,875 in Windhoek, rent included.

Medellin $3,186
Windhoek $2,875

Medellin costs about 39% more than Windhoek, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Medellin sits 20% above the global median, while Windhoek is 13% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$11.47 NAD 192

-29.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$64.4 NAD 1,076

-26.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$6.05 NAD 101

57.02%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$2.28 NAD 38.09

32.02%

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

$1.80 COP 5,809

$0.86 NAD 14.42

109.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$0.92 NAD 15.42

53.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$1.92 NAD 32.14

65.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$2.09 NAD 34.88

175.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$1.57 NAD 26.30

-3.82%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$0.88 NAD 14.73

170.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$1.96 NAD 32.68

-9.69%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$3.14 NAD 52.4

-7.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$9.44 NAD 158

7.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$6.87 NAD 115

43.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$7.66 NAD 128

82.64%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$2.14 NAD 35.80

85.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$1.98 NAD 33.06

-21.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$1.79 NAD 29.88

21.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$1.99 NAD 33.19

9.55%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$1.94 NAD 32.39

1.03%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$1.80 NAD 30.01

-11.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$1.96 NAD 32.78

-41.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$1.07 NAD 17.81

15.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$3.35 NAD 56.0

18.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$6.48 NAD 108

111.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$1.43 NAD 23.91

16.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$1.38 NAD 23.13

63.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

$0.80 NAD 13.30

46.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$48.86 NAD 816

58.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$0.75 NAD 12.58

69.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$0.94 NAD 15.73

118.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$15.38 NAD 257

-44.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$1.40 NAD 23.37

-3.57%

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

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$24.6K NAD 410.2K

38.73%

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

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$31.7K NAD 529.2K

9.46%

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

$170 COP 547.8K

$138 NAD 2,313

22.52%

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

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$26.65 NAD 445

-49.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$49.49 NAD 827

-43.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$36.77 NAD 614

18.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

$10.40 NAD 174

65.29%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$5.29 NAD 88.3

30.62%

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

$797 COP 2.6M

$210 NAD 3,516

278.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$5,340 NAD 89.2K

70.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$54.2 NAD 905

56.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$34.80 NAD 581

66.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$88.4 NAD 1,476

52.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$94.4 NAD 1,578

3.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$502 NAD 8,384

140.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$358 NAD 5,986

79.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$1,456 NAD 24.3K

39.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$974 NAD 16.3K

3.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$1,617 NAD 27.0K

157.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$608 NAD 10.2K

214.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$997 NAD 16.7K

-34.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

11.42

-4.20%

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

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Windhoek: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Windhoek

$358 30.3% 44.1% $283

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Windhoek

$223 18.9% 24.8% $74

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Windhoek

$215 18.2% 1.6% $3.3

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Windhoek

$158 13.4% 6.7% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Windhoek

$122 10.4% 27.6% $47

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Windhoek

$58 4.9% 38.5% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Windhoek

$47 4% 17.7% $10

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,208 in Medellin versus $502 in Windhoek. 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 52% higher in Windhoek, 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 in Medellin versus $64 in Windhoek. Groceries tell a different story – $297 in Medellin vs $223 in Windhoek – so Windhoek wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇳🇦 Windhoek

🕒 Local time

06:09 6:09 AM

13:09 1:09 PM

7 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

322,500 Capital

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Namibian Dollar NAD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

100 NAD = 5.99 USD

100 NAD = 5.36 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NAD, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,603 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

Namibian Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 16.71 NAD (100 NAD = 5.99 USD). 1 EUR = 18.64 NAD (100 NAD = 5.36 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

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Medellin Windhoek 10,550 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

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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 Windhoek: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 39%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,459 per month in Medellin and $1,772 in Windhoek. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Windhoek, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $502 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Medellin and $64 in Windhoek. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,639 in Medellin and $1,182 in Windhoek. That makes Windhoek about 28% cheaper.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,639 in Medellin and $1,182 in Windhoek. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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