Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between St. Gallen and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $3,451 in St. Gallen, rent and utilities included – about $21,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

167

Cost of Living Index in St. Gallen
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St. Gallen Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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St. Gallen

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,451

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,451 per month in St. Gallen vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

St. Gallen $3,451
Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $5,120 per month in St. Gallen vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

St. Gallen $5,120
Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $6,789 per month in St. Gallen vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

St. Gallen $6,789
Medellin $3,186

St. Gallen costs about 111% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both St. Gallen and Medellin sit above the global median – St. Gallen by 154%, Medellin by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$28.78 CHF 23.88

$8.09 COP 25.4K

255.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$144 CHF 119

$47.05 COP 148.0K

205.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.04 CHF 14.97

$9.50 COP 29.9K

89.89%

Cappuccino

$6.03 CHF 5.00

$3.01 COP 9,485

100.33%

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

$5.95 CHF 4.94

$1.80 COP 5,660

230.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.10 CHF 4.23

$1.41 COP 4,443

261.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.80 CHF 7.30

$3.18 COP 9,990

176.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.38 CHF 5.29

$5.75 COP 18.1K

10.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.25 CHF 1.87

$1.51 COP 4,751

49.01%

White Bread (500g)

$3.16 CHF 2.62

$2.38 COP 7,480

32.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.77 CHF 3.13

$1.77 COP 5,573

112.99%

Eggs

$7.72 CHF 6.40

$2.89 COP 9,093

167.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$24.91 CHF 20.67

$10.19 COP 32.1K

144.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$29.02 CHF 24.08

$9.87 COP 31.1K

194.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$39.94 CHF 33.14

$13.99 COP 44.0K

185.49%

Apples (1kg)

$3.06 CHF 2.54

$3.97 COP 12.5K

-22.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 CHF 1.29

$1.55 COP 4,883

0.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.40 CHF 1.99

$2.18 COP 6,867

10.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.17 CHF 5.12

$2.18 COP 6,870

183.03%

Potato (1kg)

$1.71 CHF 1.42

$1.96 COP 6,174

-12.76%

Onion (1kg)

$2.14 CHF 1.77

$1.59 COP 5,000

34.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.20 CHF 1.83

$1.15 COP 3,604

91.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 CHF 0.98

$1.24 COP 3,911

-4.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.98 CHF 9.11

$3.96 COP 12.5K

177.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.23 CHF 9.32

$13.68 COP 43.0K

-17.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.10 CHF 1.74

$1.66 COP 5,221

26.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 CHF 1.89

$2.26 COP 7,103

0.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.08 CHF 3.38

$1.17 COP 3,674

248.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$86.4 CHF 71.7

$77.4 COP 243.4K

11.65%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.62 CHF 5.49

$1.27 COP 3,989

421.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.76 CHF 3.95

$2.05 COP 6,442

132.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$79.2 CHF 65.7

$8.55 COP 26.9K

826.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.23 CHF 1.85

$1.35 COP 4,237

65.19%

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

$38.4K CHF 31.8K

$34.1K COP 107.2M

12.64%

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

$38.6K CHF 32.0K

$34.7K COP 109.1M

11.33%

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

$312 CHF 259

$170 COP 533.7K

83.93%

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

$37.60 CHF 31.19

$13.55 COP 42.6K

177.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.0 CHF 44.76

$28.07 COP 88.3K

92.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$79.6 CHF 66.0

$43.70 COP 137.5K

82.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

Cinema Ticket

$28.27 CHF 23.45

$6.91 COP 21.7K

309.12%

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

$2,308 CHF 1,915

$797 COP 2.5M

189.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$32.2K CHF 26.7K

$9,112 COP 28.7M

253.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$144 CHF 120

$84.7 COP 266.5K

70.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$64.0 CHF 53.1

$58.0 COP 182.3K

10.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$146 CHF 121

$135 COP 424.6K

8.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$183 CHF 152

$97.9 COP 307.9K

87.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,895 CHF 1,572

$1,208 COP 3.8M

56.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,504 CHF 1,248

$642 COP 2.0M

134.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,868 CHF 2,379

$2,028 COP 6.4M

41.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,256 CHF 1,871

$1,012 COP 3.2M

122.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$11.3K CHF 9,337

$4,170 COP 13.1M

169.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,285 CHF 6,873

$1,910 COP 6.0M

333.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,694 CHF 5,553

$657 COP 2.1M

918.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.1

10.94

-80.80%

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

Last update for St. Gallen: 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

St. Gallen

$1.5K 43.6%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 57.3% $862

Groceries & Markets

St. Gallen

$575 16.7%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 48.3% $278

Eating Out

St. Gallen

$458 13.3%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 62.9% $288

Monthly Utilities & Internet

St. Gallen

$404 11.7%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 47.7% $192

Clothing & Footwear

St. Gallen

$242 7%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 30.2% $73

Sport & Entertainment

St. Gallen

$136 3.9%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 57.7% $79

Getting Around

St. Gallen

$133 3.9%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 29.7% $40

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,895 in St. Gallen 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 St. Gallen are about 10 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $144 in St. Gallen versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $575 vs $297 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇭 St. Gallen

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

00:02 12:02 AM

18:02 6:02 PM

6 h behind St. Gallen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

78,213

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.83 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.924 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,502 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

St. Gallen Medellin 9,120 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

St. Gallen
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

St. Gallen vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – St. Gallen is pricier by about 111%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,177 per month in St. Gallen 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 Medellin, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,208 there versus $1,895 in St. Gallen.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $144 in St. Gallen 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 $3,451 in St. Gallen and $1,639 in Medellin. That makes Medellin about 52% cheaper.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Medellin, where all-in costs run around $1,639, than in St. Gallen at $3,451. In Medellin it covers expenses comfortably, while in St. Gallen 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 or specific career opportunities are the priority, St. Gallen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.