Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Qena and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Qena: $468 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $13,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

22

Cost of Living Index in Qena
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Qena Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Qena

🇪🇬 Egypt

$468

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $468 per month in Qena vs $1,614 in Medellin, rent included.

Qena $468
Medellin $1,614

A couple spends around $746 per month in Qena vs $2,402 in Medellin, rent included.

Qena $746
Medellin $2,402

A family of three spends $1,023 per month in Qena vs $3,190 in Medellin, rent included.

Qena $1,023
Medellin $3,190

Qena is about 71% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Qena sits 65% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.84 E£205

$7.93 COP 25.3K

-51.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$14.99 E£801

$46.13 COP 147.3K

-67.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.78 E£309

$9.50 COP 30.3K

-39.16%

Cappuccino

$2.00 E£107

$3.11 COP 9,933

-35.69%

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

$0.50 E£26.78

$1.83 COP 5,839

-72.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.18 E£9.56

$1.38 COP 4,389

-86.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.92 E£103

$3.05 COP 9,737

-37.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.04 E£162

$5.50 COP 17.5K

-44.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.97 E£51.7

$1.45 COP 4,631

-33.10%

White Bread (500g)

$0.76 E£40.69

$2.36 COP 7,547

-67.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.66 E£35.14

$1.68 COP 5,365

-60.71%

Eggs

$1.93 E£103

$2.86 COP 9,139

-32.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.15 E£169

$10.19 COP 32.5K

-69.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.61 E£300

$9.53 COP 30.4K

-41.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.89 E£528

$14.04 COP 44.8K

-29.56%

Apples (1kg)

$1.48 E£79.2

$4.07 COP 13.0K

-63.64%

Banana (1kg)

$0.52 E£27.67

$1.50 COP 4,774

-65.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.41 E£21.67

$2.17 COP 6,938

-81.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.41 E£21.99

$2.31 COP 7,359

-82.25%

Potato (1kg)

$0.34 E£18.28

$1.93 COP 6,155

-82.38%

Onion (1kg)

$0.39 E£20.87

$1.64 COP 5,231

-76.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.27 E£14.25

$1.13 COP 3,595

-76.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.18 E£9.69

$1.25 COP 3,981

-85.60%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.14 E£114

$3.99 COP 12.7K

-46.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.22 E£386

$13.35 COP 42.6K

-45.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 E£67.1

$1.70 COP 5,420

-25.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.71 E£91.6

$2.37 COP 7,576

-27.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.17 E£9.02

$1.21 COP 3,853

-85.95%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 244.2K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.37 E£20.03

$1.32 COP 4,208

-71.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.21 E£11.18

$2.14 COP 6,820

-90.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.26 E£67.1

$8.47 COP 27.0K

-85.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.43 E£22.75

$1.30 COP 4,142

-66.92%

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

$31.9K E£1.7M

$28.0K COP 89.3M

13.91%

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

$21.8K E£1.2M

$35.4K COP 113.0M

-38.58%

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

$25.42 E£1,359

$172 COP 549.3K

-85.23%

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

$7.95 E£425

$13.37 COP 42.7K

-40.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.28 E£496

$28.73 COP 91.7K

-67.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$15.61 E£834

$45.24 COP 144.4K

-65.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.4K

Cinema Ticket

$3.39 E£181

$6.28 COP 20.1K

-46.02%

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

$101 E£5,375

$770 COP 2.5M

-86.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$598 E£32.0K

$9,011 COP 28.8M

-93.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$19.95 E£1,066

$86.4 COP 275.8K

-76.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.52 E£1,791

$57.1 COP 182.4K

-41.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$123 E£6,579

$137 COP 435.8K

-9.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$28.92 E£1,545

$97.9 COP 312.5K

-70.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$133 E£7,086

$1,055 COP 3.4M

-87.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$79.8 E£4,265

$616 COP 2.0M

-87.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$280 E£14.9K

$1,892 COP 6.0M

-85.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$145 E£7,723

$1,023 COP 3.3M

-85.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$709 E£37.9K

$4,059 COP 13.0M

-82.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$300 E£16.0K

$1,678 COP 5.4M

-82.12%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.21

10.94

48.17%

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

Last update for Qena: October 12, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Qena

$138 29.5%

Medellin

$295 18.3% 113% $156

Clothing & Footwear

Qena

$92 19.8%

Medellin

$170 10.5% 83.9% $78

Eating Out

Qena

$90 19.3%

Medellin

$168 10.4% 86.2% $78

Accommodation & Living

Qena

$80 17.1%

Medellin

$616 38.2% 672% $536

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Qena

$43 9.1%

Medellin

$214 13.3% 402% $172

Sport & Entertainment

Qena

$22 4.8%

Medellin

$58 3.6% 158% $35

Getting Around

Qena

$2.1 * 0.5%

Medellin

$93 5.8% 4344% $91

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $133 in Qena versus $1,055 in Medellin. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $15.00 in Qena versus $46.00 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $138 vs $295 – making Qena the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇬 Qena

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

19:17 7:17 PM

11:17 11:17 AM

8 h behind Qena

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

235,362

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Egyptian Pound EGP £

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.13 USD

10,000 COP = 2.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to EGP – Egyptian Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇬 Egyptian Pound (£)

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 53.44 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 59.84 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 3,192 COP (10,000 COP = 3.13 USD). 1 EUR = 3,575 COP (10,000 COP = 2.8 EUR).

USD to EGP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Qena Medellin 11,500 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Qena
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

Qena vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 245%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $702 per month in Qena and $2,421 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Qena, 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 $15.00 in Qena and $46.00 in Medellin. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 113% more in Medellin, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Qena, where all-in costs run around $468, than in Medellin at $1,614. In Qena it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Qena – 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 Qena. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Medellin makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.