Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Suzhou and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Suzhou: $876 a month against $1,589 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

42

Cost of Living Index in Suzhou
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Suzhou Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Suzhou

🇨🇳 China

$876

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,589

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $876 per month in Suzhou vs $1,589 in Medellin, rent included.

Suzhou $876
Medellin $1,589

A couple spends around $1,504 per month in Suzhou vs $2,364 in Medellin, rent included.

Suzhou $1,504
Medellin $2,364

A family of three spends $2,132 per month in Suzhou vs $3,139 in Medellin, rent included.

Suzhou $2,132
Medellin $3,139

Suzhou is about 45% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Suzhou sits 35% below the global median, while Medellin is 19% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.26 ¥28.52

$8.01 COP 25.8K

-46.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.42 ¥197

$46.55 COP 149.9K

-36.80%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.29 ¥35.42

$9.43 COP 30.4K

-43.90%

Cappuccino

$3.38 ¥22.62

$2.91 COP 9,374

16.15%

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

$0.73 ¥4.87

$1.75 COP 5,643

-58.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.39 ¥2.60

$1.32 COP 4,263

-70.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.25 ¥15.08

$3.13 COP 10.1K

-28.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.60 ¥30.76

$5.55 COP 17.9K

-17.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.89 ¥12.63

$1.41 COP 4,542

34.04%

White Bread (500g)

$2.04 ¥13.65

$2.44 COP 7,858

-16.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.29 ¥8.64

$1.63 COP 5,245

-20.86%

Eggs

$1.82 ¥12.21

$2.82 COP 9,084

-35.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.80 ¥119

$9.69 COP 31.2K

83.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.50 ¥23.40

$9.32 COP 30.0K

-62.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.57 ¥57.4

$13.46 COP 43.3K

-36.33%

Apples (1kg)

$2.03 ¥13.60

$4.00 COP 12.9K

-49.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.28 ¥8.55

$1.48 COP 4,768

-13.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.39 ¥9.29

$2.12 COP 6,839

-34.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ¥10.05

$2.25 COP 7,253

-33.33%

Potato (1kg)

$0.63 ¥4.22

$1.91 COP 6,155

-67.02%

Onion (1kg)

$1.17 ¥7.81

$1.62 COP 5,214

-27.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.83 ¥5.57

$1.15 COP 3,696

-27.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ¥3.70

$1.26 COP 4,063

-56.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.56 ¥30.55

$3.82 COP 12.3K

19.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.01 ¥60.3

$13.11 COP 42.2K

-31.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.06 ¥7.13

$1.60 COP 5,136

-33.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 ¥13.80

$2.26 COP 7,263

-8.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.39 ¥2.60

$1.17 COP 3,770

-66.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$43.93 ¥294

$75.0 COP 241.5K

-41.44%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.73 ¥11.61

$1.27 COP 4,098

36.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.36 ¥2.39

$2.05 COP 6,600

-82.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.20 ¥68.3

$8.20 COP 26.4K

24.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 ¥8.60

$1.27 COP 4,088

0.79%

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

$19.6K ¥131.5K

$26.8K COP 86.2M

-26.62%

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

$17.7K ¥118.8K

$34.4K COP 110.8M

-48.42%

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

$99.4 ¥665

$162 COP 522.3K

-38.72%

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

$12.81 ¥85.7

$13.12 COP 42.3K

-2.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.12 ¥74.5

$28.09 COP 90.5K

-60.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.16 ¥222

$44.33 COP 142.7K

-25.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.47 ¥124

$16.33 COP 52.6K

13.10%

Cinema Ticket

$5.85 ¥39.15

$6.09 COP 19.6K

-3.94%

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

$1,213 ¥8,119

$764 COP 2.5M

58.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.4K ¥143.2K

$8,904 COP 28.7M

140.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.4 ¥350

$85.0 COP 273.6K

-38.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.14 ¥275

$57.5 COP 185.1K

-28.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.3 ¥558

$132 COP 424.2K

-36.76%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.6 ¥579

$95.8 COP 308.3K

-9.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$457 ¥3,061

$1,028 COP 3.3M

-55.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$193 ¥1,294

$604 COP 1.9M

-68.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 ¥6,913

$1,802 COP 5.8M

-42.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$594 ¥3,977

$993 COP 3.2M

-40.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,329 ¥35.7K

$3,921 COP 12.6M

35.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,773 ¥18.6K

$1,639 COP 5.3M

69.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,381 ¥9,246

$626 COP 2.0M

120.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.53

10.94

-67.73%

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

Last update for Suzhou: October 3, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Suzhou

$221 25.5%

Medellin

$288 18.3% 30.6% $68

Accommodation & Living

Suzhou

$193 22.3%

Medellin

$604 38.3% 213% $411

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Suzhou

$123 14.3%

Medellin

$203 12.9% 64.9% $80

Clothing & Footwear

Suzhou

$119 13.7%

Medellin

$166 10.6% 40.5% $48

Eating Out

Suzhou

$115 13.3%

Medellin

$166 10.6% 44.1% $51

Getting Around

Suzhou

$49 5.7%

Medellin

$91 5.8% 86.2% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Suzhou

$45 5.2%

Medellin

$57 3.6% 25.9% $12

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $457 in Suzhou 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 121% higher in Suzhou, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $29.00 in Suzhou versus $47.00 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $221 vs $288 – making Suzhou the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Suzhou

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

14:33 2:33 PM

01:33 1:33 AM

13 h behind Suzhou

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

12,748,262

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.149 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.11 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.149 USD). 1 EUR = 7.51 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3,220 COP (10,000 COP = 3.11 USD). 1 EUR = 3,611 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

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Between locations

Suzhou Medellin 15,490 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Suzhou
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

Suzhou vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 82%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,313 per month in Suzhou and $2,384 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Suzhou, 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 $29.00 in Suzhou 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 $876 in Suzhou and $1,589 in Medellin. That's a gap of about 82%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Suzhou, where all-in costs run around $876, than in Medellin at $1,589. In Suzhou it covers expenses comfortably, while in Medellin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Suzhou – 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 Suzhou. 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.