Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Saint John, New Brunswick and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,625 a month against $1,954 in Saint John, New Brunswick, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

95

Cost of Living Index in Saint John, New Brunswick
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Saint John, New Brunswick Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Saint John, New Brunswick

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,954

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,625

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,954 per month in Saint John, New Brunswick vs $1,625 in Medellin, rent included.

Saint John, New Brunswick $1,954
Medellin $1,625

A couple spends around $2,938 per month in Saint John, New Brunswick vs $2,412 in Medellin, rent included.

Saint John, New Brunswick $2,938
Medellin $2,412

A family of three spends $3,922 per month in Saint John, New Brunswick vs $3,199 in Medellin, rent included.

Saint John, New Brunswick $3,922
Medellin $3,199

Saint John, New Brunswick costs about 20% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Saint John, New Brunswick and Medellin sit above the global median – Saint John, New Brunswick by 44%, Medellin by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.44 CA$26.08

$8.30 COP 26.3K

122.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.0 CA$86.2

$46.91 COP 148.7K

29.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.83 CA$15.31

$9.24 COP 29.3K

17.21%

Cappuccino

$2.96 CA$4.18

$3.05 COP 9,676

-2.95%

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

$1.77 CA$2.50

$1.80 COP 5,707

-1.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.07 CA$1.52

$1.38 COP 4,382

-22.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.49 CA$6.35

$3.24 COP 10.3K

38.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.00 CA$7.06

$5.56 COP 17.6K

-10.07%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.23 CA$3.16

$1.50 COP 4,760

48.67%

White Bread (500g)

$2.81 CA$3.97

$2.37 COP 7,508

18.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.99 CA$4.23

$1.70 COP 5,377

75.88%

Eggs

$3.56 CA$5.03

$2.96 COP 9,379

20.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.47 CA$19.05

$10.22 COP 32.4K

31.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.04 CA$17.02

$9.74 COP 30.9K

23.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.83 CA$18.14

$13.90 COP 44.1K

-7.70%

Apples (1kg)

$5.00 CA$7.07

$4.13 COP 13.1K

21.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.48 CA$2.10

$1.53 COP 4,839

-3.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.16 CA$5.88

$2.22 COP 7,052

87.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.03 CA$5.70

$2.27 COP 7,194

77.53%

Potato (1kg)

$2.03 CA$2.86

$1.99 COP 6,311

2.01%

Onion (1kg)

$2.21 CA$3.12

$1.67 COP 5,285

32.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.48 CA$3.50

$1.18 COP 3,742

110.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 CA$1.95

$1.24 COP 3,919

11.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.23 CA$20.12

$3.87 COP 12.3K

267.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.67 CA$13.67

$13.78 COP 43.7K

-29.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 CA$2.52

$1.66 COP 5,256

7.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 CA$2.93

$2.40 COP 7,615

-13.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.09 CA$2.95

$1.24 COP 3,944

68.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.4 CA$79.8

$78.2 COP 248.0K

-27.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.81 CA$3.97

$1.28 COP 4,044

119.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.05 CA$1.48

$2.15 COP 6,803

-51.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.60 CA$24.89

$8.37 COP 26.5K

110.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 CA$1.80

$1.35 COP 4,288

-5.19%

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

$26.4K CA$37.3K

$34.8K COP 110.2M

-24.14%

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

$21.4K CA$30.3K

$34.7K COP 110.0M

-38.22%

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

$122 CA$173

$167 COP 528.4K

-26.74%

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

$42.20 CA$59.7

$13.62 COP 43.2K

209.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$64.5 CA$91.2

$29.12 COP 92.3K

121.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.3 CA$75.4

$45.09 COP 143.0K

18.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.52 CA$50.2

$17.18 COP 54.5K

106.75%

Cinema Ticket

$12.61 CA$17.83

$6.97 COP 22.1K

80.92%

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

$372 CA$526

$790 COP 2.5M

-52.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K CA$16.0K

$9,041 COP 28.7M

25.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.5 CA$71.4

$87.8 COP 278.4K

-42.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.95 CA$50.8

$58.2 COP 184.4K

-38.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 CA$143

$139 COP 440.7K

-27.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 CA$151

$98.9 COP 313.5K

7.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$966 CA$1,366

$1,028 COP 3.3M

-6.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$826 CA$1,168

$620 COP 2.0M

33.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,609 CA$2,275

$1,881 COP 6.0M

-14.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,353 CA$1,913

$1,008 COP 3.2M

34.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,035 CA$2,876

$3,988 COP 12.6M

-48.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,131 CA$3,013

$1,702 COP 5.4M

25.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,596 CA$3,670

$663 COP 2.1M

291.38%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.69

10.94

-57.13%

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

Last update for Saint John, New Brunswick: October 17, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Saint John, New Brunswick

$826 42.3%

Medellin

$619 38.1% 25% $207

Groceries & Markets

Saint John, New Brunswick

$356 18.2%

Medellin

$298 18.3% 16.3% $58

Eating Out

Saint John, New Brunswick

$259 13.3%

Medellin

$171 10.5% 34.1% $89

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Saint John, New Brunswick

$229 11.7%

Medellin

$209 12.9% 8.5% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Saint John, New Brunswick

$132 6.8%

Medellin

$173 10.6% 30.6% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Saint John, New Brunswick

$79 4%

Medellin

$59 3.6% 24.8% $20

Getting Around

Saint John, New Brunswick

$73 3.7%

Medellin

$95 5.9% 30.7% $22

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $966 in Saint John, New Brunswick versus $1,028 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 291% higher in Saint John, New Brunswick, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61.0 in Saint John, New Brunswick versus $47.00 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $356 vs $298 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Saint John, New Brunswick

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

09:36 9:36 AM

07:36 7:36 AM

2 h behind Saint John, New Brunswick

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

70,063

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 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 October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

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Saint John, New Brunswick Medellin 4,430 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Saint John, New Brunswick
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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

Saint John, New Brunswick vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Saint John, New Brunswick is pricier by about 20%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,930 per month in Saint John, New Brunswick and $2,437 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Medellin, 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 $61.0 in Saint John, New Brunswick and $47.00 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 $1,954 in Saint John, New Brunswick and $1,625 in Medellin. That's a gap of about 20%.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Medellin, where all-in costs run around $1,625, than in Saint John, New Brunswick at $1,954. In Medellin it covers expenses comfortably, while in Saint John, New Brunswick it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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