Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Portmore and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Portmore: $1,250 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Medellin outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

60

Cost of Living Index in Portmore
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Portmore Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Portmore

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$1,250

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,250 per month in Portmore vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

Portmore $1,250
Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $2,081 per month in Portmore vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

Portmore $2,081
Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $2,912 per month in Portmore vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

Portmore $2,912
Medellin $3,186

Portmore is about 24% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Portmore sits 8% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.11 JMD 1,598

$8.09 COP 26.1K

24.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$63.1 JMD 9,975

$47.05 COP 151.9K

34.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.99 JMD 1,262

$9.50 COP 30.7K

-15.89%

Cappuccino

$5.27 JMD 833

$3.01 COP 9,734

75.08%

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

$0.93 JMD 147

$1.80 COP 5,809

-48.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.61 JMD 96.6

$1.41 COP 4,560

-56.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.18 JMD 345

$3.18 COP 10.3K

-31.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 JMD 345

$5.75 COP 18.6K

-62.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.18 JMD 502

$1.51 COP 4,875

110.60%

White Bread (500g)

$3.64 JMD 575

$2.38 COP 7,677

52.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.03 JMD 163

$1.77 COP 5,719

-41.81%

Eggs

$3.44 JMD 544

$2.89 COP 9,332

19.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.29 JMD 1,784

$10.19 COP 32.9K

10.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.22 JMD 982

$9.87 COP 31.9K

-36.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.49 JMD 1,499

$13.99 COP 45.2K

-32.17%

Apples (1kg)

$5.88 JMD 929

$3.97 COP 12.8K

48.11%

Banana (1kg)

$3.94 JMD 622

$1.55 COP 5,011

154.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.01 JMD 476

$2.18 COP 7,047

38.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.02 JMD 477

$2.18 COP 7,050

38.53%

Potato (1kg)

$3.22 JMD 509

$1.96 COP 6,336

64.29%

Onion (1kg)

$2.57 JMD 406

$1.59 COP 5,131

61.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.55 JMD 245

$1.15 COP 3,698

34.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 JMD 197

$1.24 COP 4,014

0.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.49 JMD 1,499

$3.96 COP 12.8K

139.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.46 JMD 1,811

$13.68 COP 44.2K

-16.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.87 JMD 454

$1.66 COP 5,359

72.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.16 JMD 342

$2.26 COP 7,290

-4.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.25 JMD 355

$1.17 COP 3,770

92.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.1 JMD 7,917

$77.4 COP 249.8K

-35.23%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.92 JMD 145

$1.27 COP 4,094

-27.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.13 JMD 494

$2.05 COP 6,611

52.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.44 JMD 1,017

$8.55 COP 27.6K

-24.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.26 JMD 200

$1.35 COP 4,348

-6.67%

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

$44.3K JMD 7.0M

$34.1K COP 110.0M

30.14%

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

$32.7K JMD 5.2M

$34.7K COP 111.9M

-5.78%

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

$160 JMD 25.2K

$170 COP 547.7K

-5.87%

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

$28.89 JMD 4,564

$13.55 COP 43.7K

113.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.8 JMD 8,346

$28.07 COP 90.6K

88.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.7 JMD 9,273

$43.70 COP 141.1K

34.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

Cinema Ticket

$13.47 JMD 2,129

$6.91 COP 22.3K

94.93%

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

$281 JMD 44.4K

$797 COP 2.6M

-64.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,157 JMD 498.8K

$9,112 COP 29.4M

-65.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.28 JMD 3,677

$84.7 COP 273.5K

-72.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.19 JMD 4,928

$58.0 COP 187.1K

-46.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 JMD 12.2K

$135 COP 435.7K

-42.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.9 JMD 15.2K

$97.9 COP 316.0K

-1.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$315 JMD 49.7K

$1,208 COP 3.9M

-73.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$218 JMD 34.4K

$642 COP 2.1M

-66.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$667 JMD 105.3K

$2,028 COP 6.5M

-67.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$605 JMD 95.5K

$1,012 COP 3.3M

-40.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,655 JMD 1.2M

$4,170 COP 13.5M

83.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,857 JMD 925.3K

$1,910 COP 6.2M

206.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,280 JMD 202.3K

$657 COP 2.1M

94.85%

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 Portmore: 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

Portmore

$337 27%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 12% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Portmore

$241 19.3%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 12.5% $30

Accommodation & Living

Portmore

$218 17.4%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 194% $423

Eating Out

Portmore

$190 15.2%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 10.5% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Portmore

$102 8.2%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 65.1% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Portmore

$86 6.9%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 32.8% $28

Getting Around

Portmore

$76 6.1%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 23.6% $18

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $315 in Portmore 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 run about 95% higher in Portmore, 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 $63 in Portmore versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $337 vs $297 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇯🇲 Portmore

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

09:27 9:27 AM

Same time as Portmore

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

170,000

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.67 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to JMD – Jamaican Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇲 Jamaican Dollar ($)

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).

USD to JMD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Portmore Medellin 1,310 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Portmore
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

Portmore vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 31%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,875 per month in Portmore 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 Portmore, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $315 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $63 in Portmore 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 $1,250 in Portmore and $1,639 in Medellin. That makes Portmore about 24% cheaper.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,250 in Portmore and $1,639 in Medellin. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Portmore – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.