Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Preston and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $2,114 in Preston, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

101

Cost of Living Index in Preston
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Preston Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Preston

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,114

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,114 per month in Preston vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

Preston $2,114
Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $3,021 per month in Preston vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

Preston $3,021
Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $3,928 per month in Preston vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

Preston $3,928
Medellin $3,186

Preston costs about 29% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Preston and Medellin sit above the global median – Preston by 55%, Medellin by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.89 £11.85

$8.09 COP 26.1K

96.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$74.3 £55.4

$47.05 COP 151.9K

57.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.20 £6.86

$9.50 COP 30.7K

-3.16%

Cappuccino

$4.24 £3.16

$3.01 COP 9,734

40.86%

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

$2.31 £1.72

$1.80 COP 5,809

28.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 £1.36

$1.41 COP 4,560

29.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.39 £4.02

$3.18 COP 10.3K

69.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.20 £3.88

$5.75 COP 18.6K

-9.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 £1.11

$1.51 COP 4,875

-1.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 £1.07

$2.38 COP 7,677

-39.92%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.60 £1.19

$1.77 COP 5,719

-9.60%

Eggs

$3.59 £2.68

$2.89 COP 9,332

24.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.30 £3.95

$10.19 COP 32.9K

-47.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 £7.10

$9.87 COP 31.9K

-3.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.68 £9.46

$13.99 COP 45.2K

-9.36%

Apples (1kg)

$2.59 £1.93

$3.97 COP 12.8K

-34.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.72 £1.28

$1.55 COP 5,011

10.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 £1.92

$2.18 COP 7,047

17.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.96 £2.95

$2.18 COP 7,050

81.65%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 £1.53

$1.96 COP 6,336

5.10%

Onion (1kg)

$2.25 £1.68

$1.59 COP 5,131

41.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 £0.87

$1.15 COP 3,698

1.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.65 £1.23

$1.24 COP 4,014

33.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$21.56 £16.08

$3.96 COP 12.8K

444.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.14 £6.81

$13.68 COP 44.2K

-33.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.37

$1.66 COP 5,359

91.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 £2.42

$2.26 COP 7,290

43.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.92 £2.92

$1.17 COP 3,770

235.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$98.5 £73.4

$77.4 COP 249.8K

27.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.60 £1.94

$1.27 COP 4,094

104.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.10 £1.57

$2.05 COP 6,611

2.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.99 £1.48

$1.35 COP 4,348

47.41%

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

$37.9K £28.3K

$34.1K COP 110.0M

11.25%

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

$41.1K £30.7K

$34.7K COP 111.9M

18.65%

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

$439 £327

$170 COP 547.7K

158.79%

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

$14.86 £11.08

$13.55 COP 43.7K

9.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.51 £32.44

$28.07 COP 90.6K

55.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.40 £30.87

$43.70 COP 141.1K

-5.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 £12.52

$17.19 COP 55.5K

-2.27%

Cinema Ticket

$17.83 £13.30

$6.91 COP 22.3K

158.03%

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

$1,512 £1,127

$797 COP 2.6M

89.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,738 £6,515

$9,112 COP 29.4M

-4.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$75.7 £56.5

$84.7 COP 273.5K

-10.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$26.16 £19.50

$58.0 COP 187.1K

-54.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$65.4 £48.75

$135 COP 435.7K

-51.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$66.4 £49.50

$97.9 COP 316.0K

-32.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$969 £723

$1,208 COP 3.9M

-19.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$767 £572

$642 COP 2.1M

19.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 £1,199

$2,028 COP 6.5M

-20.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,211 £903

$1,012 COP 3.3M

19.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,634 £2,709

$4,170 COP 13.5M

-12.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,379 £1,774

$1,910 COP 6.2M

24.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,994 £2,232

$657 COP 2.1M

355.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.93

10.94

-54.94%

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

Last update for Preston: 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

Preston

$767 36.3%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 16.4% $126

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Preston

$497 23.5%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 57.5% $286

Groceries & Markets

Preston

$281 13.3%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 5.8% $16

Eating Out

Preston

$260 12.3%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 34.6% $90

Getting Around

Preston

$127 6%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 26.5% $34

Clothing & Footwear

Preston

$105 5%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 60.7% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Preston

$77 3.6%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 25.4% $20

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $969 in Preston 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 Preston are about 4.6 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $74 in Preston versus $47 in Medellin. Groceries tell a different story – $281 in Preston vs $297 in Medellin – so Preston wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Preston

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

18:21 6:21 PM

13:21 1:21 PM

5 h behind Preston

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

114,300

2,486,723

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.746 GBP (1 GBP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.832 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 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 GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Preston Medellin 8,330 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Preston
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

Preston vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Preston is pricier by about 29%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,172 per month in Preston 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 Preston, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $969 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $74 in Preston 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 $2,114 in Preston and $1,639 in Medellin. That makes Medellin about 22% cheaper.

$2,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $2,114 in Preston and $1,639 in Medellin, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Medellin has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,639 in Medellin to $2,114 in Preston. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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