Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Quebec City and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $1,935 in Quebec City, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

93

Cost of Living Index in Quebec City
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Quebec City Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

Jump to prices

Quebec City

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,935

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,935 per month in Quebec City vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

Quebec City $1,935
Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $2,912 per month in Quebec City vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

Quebec City $2,912
Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $3,889 per month in Quebec City vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

Quebec City $3,889
Medellin $3,186

Quebec City costs about 18% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Quebec City and Medellin sit above the global median – Quebec City by 42%, Medellin by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.22 CA$29.66

$8.09 COP 26.1K

162.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$63.9 CA$89.3

$47.05 COP 151.9K

35.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.75 CA$15.03

$9.50 COP 30.7K

13.16%

Cappuccino

$3.83 CA$5.35

$3.01 COP 9,734

27.24%

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

$2.13 CA$2.97

$1.80 COP 5,809

18.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.50 CA$2.09

$1.41 COP 4,560

6.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.68 CA$7.94

$3.18 COP 10.3K

78.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.88 CA$8.21

$5.75 COP 18.6K

2.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.06 CA$2.88

$1.51 COP 4,875

36.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.89 CA$4.04

$2.38 COP 7,677

21.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.14 CA$5.79

$1.77 COP 5,719

133.90%

Eggs

$3.15 CA$4.40

$2.89 COP 9,332

9.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.13 CA$12.76

$10.19 COP 32.9K

-10.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.99 CA$15.35

$9.87 COP 31.9K

11.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.62 CA$14.85

$13.99 COP 45.2K

-24.09%

Apples (1kg)

$4.17 CA$5.82

$3.97 COP 12.8K

5.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 CA$2.17

$1.55 COP 5,011

Oranges (1kg)

$3.71 CA$5.19

$2.18 COP 7,047

70.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.04 CA$5.64

$2.18 COP 7,050

85.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.93 CA$4.10

$1.96 COP 6,336

49.49%

Onion (1kg)

$2.86 CA$3.99

$1.59 COP 5,131

79.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.73 CA$3.81

$1.15 COP 3,698

137.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.52 CA$2.12

$1.24 COP 4,014

22.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.78 CA$20.66

$3.96 COP 12.8K

273.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.35 CA$15.87

$13.68 COP 44.2K

-17.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.24 CA$4.53

$1.66 COP 5,359

95.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.44 CA$4.81

$2.26 COP 7,290

52.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 CA$4.06

$1.17 COP 3,770

148.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$70.6 CA$98.7

$77.4 COP 249.8K

-8.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.89 CA$4.04

$1.27 COP 4,094

127.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.07

$2.05 COP 6,611

-27.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.46 CA$49.56

$8.55 COP 27.6K

314.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 CA$1.81

$1.35 COP 4,348

-3.70%

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

$28.7K CA$40.1K

$34.1K COP 110.0M

-15.72%

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

$22.2K CA$31.0K

$34.7K COP 111.9M

-36.06%

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

$100 CA$140

$170 COP 547.7K

-40.94%

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

$32.19 CA$44.99

$13.55 COP 43.7K

137.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.61 CA$63.7

$28.07 COP 90.6K

62.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.12 CA$46.29

$43.70 COP 141.1K

-24.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.66 CA$17.69

$17.19 COP 55.5K

-26.35%

Cinema Ticket

$10.56 CA$14.76

$6.91 COP 22.3K

52.82%

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

$676 CA$945

$797 COP 2.6M

-15.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,492 CA$13.3K

$9,112 COP 29.4M

4.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.3 CA$82.9

$84.7 COP 273.5K

-29.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.9 CA$71.2

$58.0 COP 187.1K

-12.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.8 CA$126

$135 COP 435.7K

-33.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$109 CA$152

$97.9 COP 316.0K

11.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,029 CA$1,438

$1,208 COP 3.9M

-14.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$821 CA$1,147

$642 COP 2.1M

27.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,633 CA$2,282

$2,028 COP 6.5M

-19.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,333 CA$1,863

$1,012 COP 3.3M

31.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,733 CA$6,615

$4,170 COP 13.5M

13.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,728 CA$3,813

$1,910 COP 6.2M

42.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,906 CA$4,062

$657 COP 2.1M

342.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.44

10.94

-59.41%

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

Last update for Quebec City: October 25, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Quebec City

$821 42.4%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 21.8% $179

Groceries & Markets

Quebec City

$347 18%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 14.5% $50

Eating Out

Quebec City

$303 15.6%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 44% $133

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Quebec City

$178 9.2%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 18.7% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Quebec City

$139 7.2%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 21.6% $30

Getting Around

Quebec City

$93 4.8%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 1.1% $1

Sport & Entertainment

Quebec City

$54 2.8%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 6.1% $3.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,029 in Quebec City 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 Quebec City are about 4.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $64 in Quebec City versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $347 vs $297 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Quebec City

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

08:37 8:37 AM

Same time as Quebec City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

530,168

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.715 USD

1 CAD = 0.641 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.715 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.641 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 CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Quebec City Medellin 4,530 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Quebec City
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

Quebec City vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Quebec City is pricier by about 18%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,902 per month in Quebec City 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 Quebec City, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,029 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $64 in Quebec City 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 $1,935 in Quebec City and $1,639 in Medellin. That makes Medellin about 15% cheaper.

$2,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,935 in Quebec City 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 $1,935 in Quebec City. 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, Quebec City makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.