Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nijmegen and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,589 a month against $2,499 in Nijmegen, rent and utilities included – about $10,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

121

Cost of Living Index in Nijmegen
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Nijmegen Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Nijmegen

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,499

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,589

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,499 per month in Nijmegen vs $1,589 in Medellin, rent included.

Nijmegen $2,499
Medellin $1,589

A couple spends around $3,718 per month in Nijmegen vs $2,364 in Medellin, rent included.

Nijmegen $3,718
Medellin $2,364

A family of three spends $4,937 per month in Nijmegen vs $3,139 in Medellin, rent included.

Nijmegen $4,937
Medellin $3,139

Nijmegen costs about 57% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Nijmegen and Medellin sit above the global median – Nijmegen by 87%, Medellin by 19%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.34 €22.61

$8.01 COP 25.5K

216.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$93.7 €83.6

$46.55 COP 148.3K

101.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.41 €11.97

$9.43 COP 30.1K

42.21%

Cappuccino

$4.17 €3.72

$2.91 COP 9,277

43.30%

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

$3.95 €3.53

$1.75 COP 5,585

125.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$1.32 COP 4,218

99.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.68 €5.07

$3.13 COP 9,969

81.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.69 €5.07

$5.55 COP 17.7K

2.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.43 €1.27

$1.41 COP 4,495

1.42%

White Bread (500g)

$1.98 €1.77

$2.44 COP 7,777

-18.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.35 €2.10

$1.63 COP 5,191

44.17%

Eggs

$5.39 €4.81

$2.82 COP 8,990

91.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.98 €11.59

$9.69 COP 30.9K

33.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.59 €13.02

$9.32 COP 29.7K

56.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.50 €13.84

$13.46 COP 42.9K

15.16%

Apples (1kg)

$2.76 €2.47

$4.00 COP 12.8K

-31.00%

Banana (1kg)

$2.44 €2.18

$1.48 COP 4,719

64.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.96 €1.75

$2.12 COP 6,768

-7.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.42 €4.84

$2.25 COP 7,178

140.89%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.91 COP 6,092

5.76%

Onion (1kg)

$2.36 €2.11

$1.62 COP 5,160

45.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 €1.14

$1.15 COP 3,658

11.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 €0.68

$1.26 COP 4,021

-39.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.30 €12.76

$3.82 COP 12.2K

274.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.26 €6.48

$13.11 COP 41.8K

-44.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 €1.34

$1.60 COP 5,083

-6.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.51 €2.24

$2.26 COP 7,188

11.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.47 €3.10

$1.17 COP 3,731

196.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$142 €127

$75.0 COP 239.0K

89.82%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.12 €3.68

$1.27 COP 4,056

224.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.10 €2.76

$2.05 COP 6,531

51.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$44.09 €39.35

$8.20 COP 26.1K

437.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.35 €2.09

$1.27 COP 4,046

85.04%

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

$40.7K €36.4K

$26.8K COP 85.3M

52.13%

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

$38.5K €34.3K

$34.4K COP 109.6M

11.87%

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

$282 €252

$162 COP 516.9K

73.99%

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

$23.08 €20.60

$13.12 COP 41.8K

75.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.32 €36.87

$28.09 COP 89.5K

47.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.36 €27.09

$44.33 COP 141.2K

-31.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.10 €22.40

$16.33 COP 52.0K

53.70%

Cinema Ticket

$15.52 €13.85

$6.09 COP 19.4K

154.84%

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

$2,788 €2,488

$764 COP 2.4M

264.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K €15.3K

$8,904 COP 28.4M

92.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$98.5 €87.9

$85.0 COP 270.8K

15.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.80 €39.09

$57.5 COP 183.2K

-23.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €94.1

$132 COP 419.8K

-19.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$172 €153

$95.8 COP 305.1K

79.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,499 €1,338

$1,028 COP 3.3M

45.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,034 €923

$604 COP 1.9M

71.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,367 €2,113

$1,802 COP 5.7M

31.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,662 €1,483

$993 COP 3.2M

67.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,492 €4,901

$3,921 COP 12.5M

40.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,242 €3,785

$1,639 COP 5.2M

158.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,457 €3,085

$626 COP 2.0M

452.19%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

-63.44%

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

Last update for Nijmegen: October 4, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nijmegen

$1K 41.3%

Medellin

$604 38.3% 41.5% $429

Eating Out

Nijmegen

$359 14.3%

Medellin

$166 10.6% 53.7% $193

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nijmegen

$347 13.8%

Medellin

$203 12.9% 41.3% $143

Groceries & Markets

Nijmegen

$339 13.5%

Medellin

$288 18.3% 14.9% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Nijmegen

$189 7.5%

Medellin

$166 10.6% 11.8% $22

Getting Around

Nijmegen

$176 7%

Medellin

$91 5.8% 48.1% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Nijmegen

$61 2.5%

Medellin

$57 3.6% 8% $4.9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,499 in Nijmegen versus $1,028 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 run about 452% higher in Nijmegen, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $94.0 in Nijmegen versus $47.00 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $339 vs $288 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Nijmegen

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

09:35 9:35 AM

02:35 2:35 AM

7 h behind Nijmegen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

177,359

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

10,000 COP = 3.14 USD

10,000 COP = 2.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3,187 COP (10,000 COP = 3.14 USD). 1 EUR = 3,574 COP (10,000 COP = 2.8 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Nijmegen Medellin 8,870 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

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Nijmegen
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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

Nijmegen vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Nijmegen is pricier by about 57%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,749 per month in Nijmegen and $2,384 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $94.0 in Nijmegen and $47.00 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 $2,499 in Nijmegen and $1,589 in Medellin. That's a gap of about 57%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Medellin, where all-in costs run around $1,589, than in Nijmegen at $2,499. In Medellin it covers expenses comfortably, while in Nijmegen 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.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Medellin. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Nijmegen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.