Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Meilen and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $3,386 in Meilen, rent and utilities included – about $21,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

164

Cost of Living Index in Meilen
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Meilen Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Meilen

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,386

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Meilen and in Medellin

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Meilen and in Medellin actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $3,386 per month in Meilen vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

Meilen $3,386
Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $5,977 per month in Meilen vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

Meilen $5,977
Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $8,568 per month in Meilen vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

Meilen $8,568
Medellin $3,186

Meilen costs about 107% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Meilen and Medellin sit above the global median – Meilen by 149%, Medellin by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$32.96 CHF 27.19

$8.09 COP 26.1K

307.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$120 CHF 98.8

$47.05 COP 151.7K

154.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$16.48 CHF 13.60

$9.50 COP 30.6K

73.47%

Cappuccino

$6.36 CHF 5.24

$3.01 COP 9,722

111.30%

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

$5.76 CHF 4.75

$1.80 COP 5,801

220.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.25 CHF 4.33

$1.41 COP 4,554

272.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.63 CHF 7.12

$3.18 COP 10.2K

171.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.56 CHF 7.06

$5.75 COP 18.5K

48.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.18 CHF 1.80

$1.51 COP 4,869

44.37%

White Bread (500g)

$3.42 CHF 2.82

$2.38 COP 7,667

43.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.74 CHF 3.08

$1.77 COP 5,712

111.30%

Eggs

$7.85 CHF 6.48

$2.89 COP 9,320

171.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$26.09 CHF 21.52

$10.19 COP 32.9K

156.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$25.84 CHF 21.32

$9.87 COP 31.8K

161.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$39.94 CHF 32.94

$13.99 COP 45.1K

185.49%

Apples (1kg)

$3.49 CHF 2.88

$3.97 COP 12.8K

-12.09%

Banana (1kg)

$2.11 CHF 1.74

$1.55 COP 5,005

36.13%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.71 CHF 2.24

$2.18 COP 7,039

24.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.50 CHF 3.71

$2.18 COP 7,041

106.42%

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 CHF 1.71

$1.96 COP 6,328

5.61%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 CHF 1.80

$1.59 COP 5,125

37.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.36 CHF 1.94

$1.15 COP 3,694

105.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 CHF 1.04

$1.24 COP 4,009

1.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.05 CHF 9.12

$3.96 COP 12.8K

179.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.29 CHF 10.96

$13.68 COP 44.1K

-2.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.25 CHF 1.85

$1.66 COP 5,352

35.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.15 CHF 2.60

$2.26 COP 7,281

39.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.43 CHF 3.65

$1.17 COP 3,766

278.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$102 CHF 84.2

$77.4 COP 249.5K

31.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.64 CHF 6.30

$1.27 COP 4,089

501.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.50 CHF 3.71

$2.05 COP 6,603

119.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$87.5 CHF 72.2

$8.55 COP 27.6K

923.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.19 CHF 1.81

$1.35 COP 4,343

62.22%

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

$38.6K CHF 31.9K

$34.1K COP 109.8M

13.44%

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

$39.0K CHF 32.1K

$34.7K COP 111.8M

12.38%

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

$234 CHF 193

$170 COP 547.0K

37.83%

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

$38.39 CHF 31.67

$13.55 COP 43.7K

183.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$64.6 CHF 53.3

$28.07 COP 90.5K

130.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$90.9 CHF 75.0

$43.70 COP 140.9K

107.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$45.64 CHF 37.65

$17.19 COP 55.4K

165.50%

Cinema Ticket

$23.65 CHF 19.51

$6.91 COP 22.3K

242.26%

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

$2,822 CHF 2,328

$797 COP 2.6M

254.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$42.6K CHF 35.2K

$9,112 COP 29.4M

367.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$138 CHF 114

$84.7 COP 273.2K

62.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.1 CHF 47.96

$58.0 COP 186.9K

0.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$145 CHF 120

$135 COP 435.2K

7.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$175 CHF 144

$97.9 COP 315.6K

78.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,778 CHF 1,466

$1,208 COP 3.9M

47.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,463 CHF 1,207

$642 COP 2.1M

127.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,894 CHF 2,388

$2,028 COP 6.5M

42.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$4,088 CHF 3,372

$1,012 COP 3.3M

304.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$16.4K CHF 13.5K

$4,170 COP 13.4M

292.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$12.6K CHF 10.4K

$1,910 COP 6.2M

560.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$8,262 CHF 6,815

$657 COP 2.1M

1157.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.72

10.94

-84.28%

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

Last update for Meilen: October 25, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Meilen

$1.5K 43.2%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 56.1% $821

Groceries & Markets

Meilen

$572 16.9%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 48.1% $275

Eating Out

Meilen

$494 14.6%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 65.6% $324

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Meilen

$337 10%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 37.3% $126

Clothing & Footwear

Meilen

$232 6.9%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 27.2% $63

Getting Around

Meilen

$150 4.4%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 37.6% $56

Sport & Entertainment

Meilen

$138 4.1%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 58.4% $81

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,778 in Meilen versus $1,208 in Medellin. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Meilen are about 13 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $120 in Meilen versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $572 vs $297 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Meilen

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

03:28 3:28 AM

21:28 9:28 PM

6 h behind Meilen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

13,515

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.825 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.921 CHF (1 CHF = 1.09 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 3,224 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,600 COP (10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Meilen Medellin 9,060 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Meilen
Medellin

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

Meilen vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Meilen is pricier by about 107%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,079 per month in Meilen and $2,459 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Medellin, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,208 there versus $1,778 in Meilen.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $120 in Meilen and $47 in Medellin. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,386 in Meilen and $1,639 in Medellin. That makes Medellin about 52% cheaper.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Medellin, where all-in costs run around $1,639, than in Meilen at $3,386. In Medellin it covers expenses comfortably, while in Meilen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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