Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Old Harbour and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Old Harbour: $1,005 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $7,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Medellin outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

Old Harbour, Jamaica
Medellin, Colombia
Old Harbour
🇯🇲 Jamaica
$1,005
/mo nomad
Medellin
🇨🇴 Colombia
$1,639
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,005 per month in Old Harbour vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

  • Old Harbour $1,005
  • Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $1,664 per month in Old Harbour vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

  • Old Harbour $1,664
  • Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $2,322 per month in Old Harbour vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

  • Old Harbour $2,322
  • Medellin $3,186

Old Harbour is about 39% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Old Harbour sits 26% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Old Harbour
Medellin
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$13.35 JMD 2,109
$8.09 COP 26.1K
65.02%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$75.0 JMD 11.9K
$47.05 COP 151.9K
59.43%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.40 JMD 1,326
$9.50 COP 30.7K
-11.58%
Cappuccino
$5.23 JMD 826
$3.01 COP 9,735
73.75%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.14 JMD 180
$1.80 COP 5,809
-36.67%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.73 JMD 115
$1.41 COP 4,561
-48.23%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.19 JMD 345
$3.18 COP 10.3K
-31.13%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.22 JMD 509
$5.75 COP 18.6K
-44.00%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Old Harbour
Medellin
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$4.24 JMD 670
$1.51 COP 4,876
180.79%
White Bread (500g)
$3.83 JMD 605
$2.38 COP 7,678
60.92%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.56 JMD 246
$1.77 COP 5,720
-11.86%
Eggs
$3.47 JMD 549
$2.89 COP 9,333
20.07%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.44 JMD 1,807
$10.19 COP 32.9K
12.27%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.34 JMD 1,002
$9.87 COP 31.9K
-35.76%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.13 JMD 1,601
$13.99 COP 45.2K
-27.59%
Apples (1kg)
$6.06 JMD 958
$3.97 COP 12.8K
52.64%
Banana (1kg)
$4.00 JMD 632
$1.55 COP 5,012
158.06%
Oranges (1kg)
$7.38 JMD 1,165
$2.18 COP 7,048
238.53%
Tomato (1kg)
$3.01 JMD 475
$2.18 COP 7,051
38.07%
Potato (1kg)
$3.23 JMD 510
$1.96 COP 6,337
64.80%
Onion (1kg)
$2.60 JMD 411
$1.59 COP 5,132
63.52%
Lettuce (1 head)
$3.02 JMD 478
$1.15 COP 3,699
162.61%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.50 JMD 236
$1.24 COP 4,014
20.97%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$9.31 JMD 1,470
$3.96 COP 12.8K
135.10%
Wine (Bottle)
$11.26 JMD 1,779
$13.68 COP 44.2K
-17.69%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.85 JMD 450
$1.66 COP 5,359
71.69%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.93 JMD 621
$2.26 COP 7,291
73.89%
🚌 Getting Around
Old Harbour
Medellin
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
-
$1.17 COP 3,771
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$77.4 COP 249.8K
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.28 JMD 202
$1.27 COP 4,094
0.79%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.23 JMD 510
$2.05 COP 6,612
57.56%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$6.45 JMD 1,020
$8.55 COP 27.6K
-24.56%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.46 JMD 231
$1.35 COP 4,349
8.15%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$43.9K JMD 6.9M
$34.1K COP 110.0M
28.90%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$32.4K JMD 5.1M
$34.7K COP 111.9M
-6.66%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Old Harbour
Medellin
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$165 JMD 26.1K
$170 COP 547.8K
-2.66%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$29.91 JMD 4,725
$13.55 COP 43.8K
120.74%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$53.8 JMD 8,501
$28.07 COP 90.6K
91.70%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Old Harbour
Medellin
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
-
$43.70 COP 141.1K
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$17.19 COP 55.5K
-
Cinema Ticket
$13.48 JMD 2,130
$6.91 COP 22.3K
95.08%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Old Harbour
Medellin
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$358 JMD 56.6K
$797 COP 2.6M
-55.04%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$8,285 JMD 1.3M
$9,112 COP 29.4M
-9.08%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Old Harbour
Medellin
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$23.81 JMD 3,762
$84.7 COP 273.5K
-71.90%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$31.92 JMD 5,044
$58.0 COP 187.2K
-44.93%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$78.5 JMD 12.4K
$135 COP 435.8K
-41.80%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$102 JMD 16.1K
$97.9 COP 316.0K
4.22%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Old Harbour
Medellin
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
-
$1,208 COP 3.9M
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
-
$642 COP 2.1M
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
-
$2,028 COP 6.5M
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
-
$1,012 COP 3.3M
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$4,170 COP 13.5M
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$1,910 COP 6.2M
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Old Harbour
Medellin
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
-
$657 COP 2.1M
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
9.45
10.94
-13.62%

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

Last update for Old Harbour: October 24, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Groceries & Markets
Old Harbour
$386
Medellin
$297 23% $89
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Old Harbour
$249
Medellin
$211 15.1% $38
Eating Out
Old Harbour
$220
Medellin
$170 22.8% $50
Clothing & Footwear
Old Harbour
$106
Medellin
$169 58.9% $63
Sport & Entertainment
Old Harbour
$27 *
Medellin
$58 113% $31
Getting Around
Old Harbour
$17 *
Medellin
$94 437% $76
Accommodation & Living
Old Harbour
- *
Medellin
$642

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $75 in Old Harbour versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $386 vs $297 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇯🇲 Old Harbour
🇨🇴 Medellin
🕒 Local time
08:51 8:51 AM
08:51 8:51 AM
Same time as Old Harbour
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
26,024
2,486,723
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to JMD – Jamaican Dollar Converter

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.67 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
  • Old Harbour Medellin 1,310 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Old Harbour
  • 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
Old Harbour vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Old Harbour cheaper than Medellin?
Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 63%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,507 per month in Old Harbour and $2,459 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Is eating out cheaper in Old Harbour or in Medellin?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $75 in Old Harbour and $47 in Medellin. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
How do food prices compare in Old Harbour and in Medellin?
Interestingly, groceries are about 23% cheaper in Medellin – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.
Is $2,000 enough for either Old Harbour or Medellin?
$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,005 in Old Harbour and $1,639 in Medellin, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.
Is it better to live in Old Harbour or in Medellin?
It depends on your priorities. Medellin has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,005 in Old Harbour to $1,639 in Medellin. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Old Harbour vs other spots: cost of living compared

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