Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between New York, NY and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $4,941 in New York, NY, rent and utilities included – about $39,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

239

Cost of Living Index in New York, NY
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New York, NY Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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New York, NY

🇺🇸 United States

$4,941

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $4,941 per month in New York, NY vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

New York, NY $4,941
Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $7,225 per month in New York, NY vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

New York, NY $7,225
Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $9,509 per month in New York, NY vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

New York, NY $9,509
Medellin $3,186

New York, NY costs about 201% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both New York, NY and Medellin sit above the global median – New York, NY by 263%, Medellin by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$28.55 $28.55

$8.09 COP 25.4K

252.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$118 $118

$47.05 COP 148.0K

151.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.04 $15.04

$9.50 COP 29.9K

58.32%

Cappuccino

$6.53 $6.53

$3.01 COP 9,485

116.94%

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

$3.96 $3.96

$1.80 COP 5,660

120.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.01 $3.01

$1.41 COP 4,443

113.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.16 $8.16

$3.18 COP 9,990

156.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.84 $9.84

$5.75 COP 18.1K

71.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.37 $1.37

$1.51 COP 4,751

-9.27%

White Bread (500g)

$4.97 $4.97

$2.38 COP 7,480

108.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$7.81 $7.81

$1.77 COP 5,573

341.24%

Eggs

$5.97 $5.97

$2.89 COP 9,093

106.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.91 $18.91

$10.19 COP 32.1K

85.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$18.04 $18.04

$9.87 COP 31.1K

82.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.05 $19.05

$13.99 COP 44.0K

36.17%

Apples (1kg)

$6.76 $6.76

$3.97 COP 12.5K

70.28%

Banana (1kg)

$2.27 $2.27

$1.55 COP 4,883

46.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.83 $6.83

$2.18 COP 6,867

213.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$7.09 $7.09

$2.18 COP 6,870

225.23%

Potato (1kg)

$4.22 $4.22

$1.96 COP 6,174

115.31%

Onion (1kg)

$4.65 $4.65

$1.59 COP 5,000

192.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.87 $2.87

$1.15 COP 3,604

149.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.60 $2.60

$1.24 COP 3,911

109.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$18.77 $18.77

$3.96 COP 12.5K

373.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.13 $20.13

$13.68 COP 43.0K

47.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.45 $3.45

$1.66 COP 5,222

107.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.02 $4.02

$2.26 COP 7,104

77.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 $2.91

$1.17 COP 3,674

148.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$139 $139

$77.4 COP 243.4K

79.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 $3.08

$1.27 COP 3,989

142.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.12 $2.12

$2.05 COP 6,442

3.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.96 $41.96

$8.55 COP 26.9K

390.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.17 $1.17

$1.35 COP 4,237

-13.33%

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

$34.5K $34.5K

$34.1K COP 107.2M

1.21%

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

$25.9K $25.9K

$34.7K COP 109.1M

-25.43%

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

$219 $219

$170 COP 533.7K

29.33%

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

$74.2 $74.2

$13.55 COP 42.6K

447.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$70.2 $70.2

$28.07 COP 88.3K

150.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$112 $112

$43.70 COP 137.5K

156.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$74.9 $74.9

$17.19 COP 54.1K

335.49%

Cinema Ticket

$22.14 $22.14

$6.91 COP 21.7K

220.41%

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

$3,558 $3,558

$797 COP 2.5M

346.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$62.2K $62.2K

$9,112 COP 28.7M

582.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$75.6 $75.6

$84.7 COP 266.5K

-10.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.2 $51.2

$58.0 COP 182.3K

-11.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$123 $123

$135 COP 424.6K

-8.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$140 $140

$97.9 COP 307.9K

42.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,499 $4,499

$1,208 COP 3.8M

272.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,078 $3,078

$642 COP 2.0M

379.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$9,447 $9,447

$2,028 COP 6.4M

365.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$5,190 $5,190

$1,012 COP 3.2M

412.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.1K $18.1K

$4,170 COP 13.1M

334.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,693 $6,693

$1,910 COP 6.0M

250.35%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,220 $5,220

$657 COP 2.1M

694.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.86

10.94

-37.29%

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

Last update for New York, NY: October 26, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

New York, NY

$3.1K 62.3%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 79.2% $2.4K

Groceries & Markets

New York, NY

$563 11.4%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 47.3% $266

Eating Out

New York, NY

$440 8.9%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 61.5% $271

Monthly Utilities & Internet

New York, NY

$364 7.4%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 41.9% $153

Clothing & Footwear

New York, NY

$175 3.6%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 3.6% $6.4

Getting Around

New York, NY

$164 3.3%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 43% $71

Sport & Entertainment

New York, NY

$156 3.2%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 63.2% $99

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $4,499 in New York, NY 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 York, NY are about 7.9 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $118 in New York, NY versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $563 vs $297 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 New York, NY

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

07:07 7:07 AM

06:07 6:07 AM

1 h behind New York, NY

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,804,190

2,486,723

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.899 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.899 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,501 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

COP to USD in detail →

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New York, NY Medellin 3,820 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

New York, NY
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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

New York, NY vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – New York, NY is pricier by about 201%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $7,412 per month in New York, NY 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 $4,499 in New York, NY.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $118 in New York, NY 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 $4,941 in New York, NY and $1,639 in Medellin. That’s a gap of about 201%.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Medellin, where all-in costs run around $1,639, than in New York, NY at $4,941. In Medellin it covers expenses comfortably, while in New York, NY 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, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, New York, NY makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.