Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between New Taipei City and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in New Taipei City: $1,185 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

New Taipei City, Taiwan
Medellin, Colombia
New Taipei City
🇹🇼 Taiwan
$1,185
/mo nomad
Medellin
🇨🇴 Colombia
$1,639
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in New Taipei City 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 New Taipei City and in Medellin actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,185 per month in New Taipei City vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

  • New Taipei City $1,185
  • Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $1,998 per month in New Taipei City vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

  • New Taipei City $1,998
  • Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $2,810 per month in New Taipei City vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

  • New Taipei City $2,810
  • Medellin $3,186

New Taipei City is about 28% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

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

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
New Taipei City
Medellin
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.67 NT$152
$8.09 COP 26.1K
-42.27%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$30.83 NT$1,005
$47.05 COP 151.9K
-34.47%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.18 NT$169
$9.50 COP 30.7K
-45.47%
Cappuccino
$2.31 NT$75.4
$3.01 COP 9,735
-23.26%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.82 NT$26.80
$1.80 COP 5,809
-54.44%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.53 NT$17.19
$1.41 COP 4,561
-62.41%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.58 NT$51.7
$3.18 COP 10.3K
-50.31%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.43 NT$79.3
$5.75 COP 18.6K
-57.74%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
New Taipei City
Medellin
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$3.13 NT$102
$1.51 COP 4,876
107.28%
White Bread (500g)
$1.85 NT$60.4
$2.38 COP 7,678
-22.27%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.13 NT$69.6
$1.77 COP 5,720
20.34%
Eggs
$2.15 NT$70.1
$2.89 COP 9,333
-25.61%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$24.36 NT$794
$10.19 COP 32.9K
139.06%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$10.65 NT$347
$9.87 COP 31.9K
7.90%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$18.90 NT$616
$13.99 COP 45.2K
35.10%
Apples (1kg)
$4.01 NT$131
$3.97 COP 12.8K
1.01%
Banana (1kg)
$2.49 NT$81.2
$1.55 COP 5,012
60.65%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.76 NT$89.9
$2.18 COP 7,048
26.61%
Tomato (1kg)
$4.01 NT$131
$2.18 COP 7,051
83.94%
Potato (1kg)
$3.96 NT$129
$1.96 COP 6,337
102.04%
Onion (1kg)
$2.08 NT$67.8
$1.59 COP 5,132
30.82%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.59 NT$51.9
$1.15 COP 3,699
38.26%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.01 NT$32.93
$1.24 COP 4,014
-18.55%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.30 NT$140
$3.96 COP 12.8K
8.59%
Wine (Bottle)
$9.16 NT$299
$13.68 COP 44.2K
-33.04%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.36 NT$44.40
$1.66 COP 5,359
-18.07%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.28 NT$74.3
$2.26 COP 7,291
0.88%
🚌 Getting Around
New Taipei City
Medellin
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.63 NT$20.66
$1.17 COP 3,771
-46.15%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$37.16 NT$1,212
$77.4 COP 249.8K
-51.97%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.66 NT$86.7
$1.27 COP 4,094
109.45%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.94 NT$30.71
$2.05 COP 6,612
-54.15%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$9.35 NT$305
$8.55 COP 27.6K
9.36%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.99 NT$32.28
$1.35 COP 4,349
-26.67%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$33.2K NT$1.1M
$34.1K COP 110.0M
-2.65%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.6K NT$768.0K
$34.7K COP 111.9M
-32.07%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
New Taipei City
Medellin
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$112 NT$3,650
$170 COP 547.8K
-34.02%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$16.63 NT$542
$13.55 COP 43.8K
22.73%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$23.01 NT$750
$28.07 COP 90.6K
-18.03%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
New Taipei City
Medellin
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$37.65 NT$1,227
$43.70 COP 141.1K
-13.84%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$7.72 NT$252
$17.19 COP 55.5K
-55.09%
Cinema Ticket
$10.65 NT$347
$6.91 COP 22.3K
54.12%
🧸 Childcare & Education
New Taipei City
Medellin
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$634 NT$20.7K
$797 COP 2.6M
-20.46%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$21.0K NT$683.8K
$9,112 COP 29.4M
130.15%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
New Taipei City
Medellin
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.02 NT$1,142
$84.7 COP 273.5K
-58.66%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$31.03 NT$1,012
$58.0 COP 187.2K
-46.46%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$89.3 NT$2,910
$135 COP 435.8K
-33.87%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$98.2 NT$3,202
$97.9 COP 316.0K
0.36%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
New Taipei City
Medellin
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$613 NT$20.0K
$1,208 COP 3.9M
-49.29%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$335 NT$10.9K
$642 COP 2.1M
-47.84%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,377 NT$44.9K
$2,028 COP 6.5M
-32.11%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$920 NT$30.0K
$1,012 COP 3.3M
-9.04%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$10.2K NT$331.8K
$4,170 COP 13.5M
143.99%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$5,980 NT$195.0K
$1,910 COP 6.2M
213.04%
💵 Salaries & Financials
New Taipei City
Medellin
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,359 NT$44.3K
$657 COP 2.1M
106.84%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
2.81
10.94
-74.31%

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

Last update for New Taipei City: October 27, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Groceries & Markets
New Taipei City
$380
Medellin
$297 21.9% $83
Accommodation & Living
New Taipei City
$335
Medellin
$642 91.7% $307
Monthly Utilities & Internet
New Taipei City
$152
Medellin
$211 39.4% $60
Clothing & Footwear
New Taipei City
$114
Medellin
$169 48.1% $55
Eating Out
New Taipei City
$99
Medellin
$170 71.6% $71
Sport & Entertainment
New Taipei City
$59
Medellin
$58 2.4% $1.4
Getting Around
New Taipei City
$47
Medellin
$94 98.8% $46

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $613 in New Taipei City 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 New Taipei City are about 2.1 times higher, 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 $31 in New Taipei City versus $47 in Medellin. Groceries tell a different story – $380 in New Taipei City vs $297 in Medellin – so Medellin wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know
🇹🇼 New Taipei City
🇨🇴 Medellin
🕒 Local time
18:16 6:16 PM
05:16 5:16 AM
13 h behind New Taipei City
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
4,004,367
2,486,723
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to TWD – New Taiwan Dollar Converter

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 32.61 TWD (100 TWD = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 36.39 TWD (100 TWD = 2.75 EUR).

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).

On the map
Between locations
  • New Taipei City Medellin 16,090 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight
From you
  • New Taipei City
  • 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
New Taipei City vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is New Taipei City cheaper than Medellin?
Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 38%, 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 $1,778 per month in New Taipei City and $2,459 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in New Taipei City, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $613 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.
Is eating out cheaper in New Taipei City or in Medellin?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $31 in New Taipei City and $47 in Medellin. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
What are total monthly expenses in New Taipei City and in Medellin?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,185 in New Taipei City and $1,639 in Medellin. That makes New Taipei City about 28% cheaper.
Is $2,000 enough for either New Taipei City or Medellin?
$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,185 in New Taipei City and $1,639 in Medellin, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.
Is New Taipei City or Medellin more family-friendly?
Families tend to lean toward New Taipei City – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

New Taipei City vs other spots: cost of living compared

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