Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Saint-Louis and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Saint-Louis: $837 a month against $1,625 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $9,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Saint-Louis
Learn more

Saint-Louis Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index

Jump to prices

Saint-Louis

🇸🇳 Senegal

$837

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,625

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $837 per month in Saint-Louis vs $1,625 in Medellin, rent included.

Saint-Louis $837
Medellin $1,625

A couple spends around $1,315 per month in Saint-Louis vs $2,412 in Medellin, rent included.

Saint-Louis $1,315
Medellin $2,412

A family of three spends $1,792 per month in Saint-Louis vs $3,199 in Medellin, rent included.

Saint-Louis $1,792
Medellin $3,199

Saint-Louis is about 48% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Saint-Louis sits 38% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.45 F CFA 2,009

$8.30 COP 26.3K

-58.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$53.3 F CFA 31.1K

$46.91 COP 148.7K

13.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.12 F CFA 6,484

$9.24 COP 29.3K

20.35%

Cappuccino

$3.34 F CFA 1,950

$3.05 COP 9,676

9.51%

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

$1.24 F CFA 725

$1.80 COP 5,707

-31.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.91 F CFA 529

$1.38 COP 4,382

-34.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.68 F CFA 982

$3.24 COP 10.3K

-48.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.37 F CFA 2,545

$5.56 COP 17.6K

-21.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.59 F CFA 1,509

$1.50 COP 4,760

72.67%

White Bread (500g)

$0.27 F CFA 158

$2.37 COP 7,508

-88.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.65 F CFA 963

$1.70 COP 5,377

-2.94%

Eggs

$2.40 F CFA 1,399

$2.96 COP 9,379

-18.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.50 F CFA 10.2K

$10.22 COP 32.4K

71.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 F CFA 5,315

$9.74 COP 30.9K

-6.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.94 F CFA 6,378

$13.90 COP 44.1K

-21.29%

Apples (1kg)

$3.24 F CFA 1,888

$4.13 COP 13.1K

-21.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 F CFA 1,079

$1.53 COP 4,839

20.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.97 F CFA 1,729

$2.22 COP 7,052

33.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.79 F CFA 1,042

$2.27 COP 7,194

-21.15%

Potato (1kg)

$1.36 F CFA 791

$1.99 COP 6,311

-31.66%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 F CFA 535

$1.67 COP 5,285

-44.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 F CFA 636

$1.18 COP 3,742

-7.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 F CFA 397

$1.24 COP 3,919

-45.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.18 F CFA 1,272

$3.87 COP 12.3K

-43.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.00 F CFA 9,911

$13.78 COP 43.7K

23.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.53 F CFA 891

$1.66 COP 5,256

-7.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.33 F CFA 1,942

$2.40 COP 7,615

38.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.24 COP 3,944

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.2 COP 248.0K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.86 F CFA 502

$1.28 COP 4,044

-32.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.19 F CFA 1,279

$2.15 COP 6,803

1.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.98 F CFA 9,899

$8.37 COP 26.5K

102.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.61 F CFA 939

$1.35 COP 4,288

19.26%

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

$50.3K F CFA 29.3M

$34.8K COP 110.2M

44.72%

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

$47.3K F CFA 27.6M

$34.7K COP 110.0M

36.49%

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

$204 F CFA 118.8K

$167 COP 528.4K

22.27%

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

$11.80 F CFA 6,883

$13.62 COP 43.2K

-13.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.79 F CFA 26.7K

$29.12 COP 92.3K

57.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.09 COP 143.0K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.18 COP 54.5K

Cinema Ticket

$8.37 F CFA 4,882

$6.97 COP 22.1K

20.09%

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

$326 F CFA 189.9K

$790 COP 2.5M

-58.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.2K F CFA 6.0M

$9,041 COP 28.7M

12.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.2 F CFA 34.5K

$87.8 COP 278.4K

-32.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.50 F CFA 27.1K

$58.2 COP 184.4K

-20.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.5 F CFA 49.3K

$139 COP 440.7K

-39.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.7 F CFA 57.6K

$98.9 COP 313.5K

-0.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$433 F CFA 252.2K

$1,028 COP 3.3M

-57.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$620 COP 2.0M

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,881 COP 6.0M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 COP 3.2M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,988 COP 12.6M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,702 COP 5.4M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$663 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.75

10.94

-20.02%

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

Last update for Saint-Louis: October 18, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Saint-Louis

$290 34.7%

Medellin

$298 18.3% 2.6% $7.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Saint-Louis

$261 31.2%

Medellin

$209 12.9% 19.9% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Saint-Louis

$130 15.5%

Medellin

$173 10.6% 32.8% $43

Eating Out

Saint-Louis

$127 15.1%

Medellin

$171 10.5% 34.7% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Saint-Louis

$17 * 2%

Medellin

$59 3.6% 253% $42

Getting Around

Saint-Louis

$12 * 1.4%

Medellin

$95 5.9% 705% $83

Accommodation & Living

Saint-Louis

- * 0%

Medellin

$619 38.1%

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $433 in Saint-Louis 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $53.0 in Saint-Louis versus $47.00 in Medellin. Groceries tell a different story – $290 in Saint-Louis vs $298 in Medellin – so Saint-Louis wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇸🇳 Saint-Louis

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

10:38 10:38 AM

05:38 5:38 AM

5 h behind Saint-Louis

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

176,000

2,486,723

💱 Currency

West African CFA Franc XOF Fr

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 XOF = 1.71 USD

1,000 XOF = 1.53 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to XOF – West African CFA Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🌐 West African CFA Franc (Fr)

West African CFA Franc exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 583 XOF (1,000 XOF = 1.71 USD). 1 EUR = 656 XOF (1,000 XOF = 1.53 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 XOF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Saint-Louis Medellin 6,520 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Saint-Louis
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

Saint-Louis vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 94%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,256 per month in Saint-Louis 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 Saint-Louis, 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 $53.0 in Saint-Louis and $47.00 in Medellin. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 3% 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 $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Saint-Louis, where all-in costs run around $837, than in Medellin at $1,625. In Saint-Louis it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Saint-Louis – 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 Saint-Louis. 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.