Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tawau and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Tawau: $920 a month against $1,692 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $9,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Tawau
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Tawau Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index

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Tawau

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$920

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,692

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $920 per month in Tawau vs $1,692 in Medellin, rent included.

Tawau $920
Medellin $1,692

A couple spends around $1,420 per month in Tawau vs $2,471 in Medellin, rent included.

Tawau $1,420
Medellin $2,471

A family of three spends $1,921 per month in Tawau vs $3,249 in Medellin, rent included.

Tawau $1,921
Medellin $3,249

Tawau is about 46% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Tawau sits 32% below the global median, while Medellin is 25% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.26 MYR 13.20

$8.34 COP 26.9K

-60.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$20.02 MYR 81.0

$46.53 COP 150.3K

-56.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.20 MYR 16.97

$9.47 COP 30.6K

-55.65%

Cappuccino

$3.19 MYR 12.91

$3.13 COP 10.1K

1.92%

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

$0.97 MYR 3.92

$1.77 COP 5,705

-45.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.35 MYR 1.42

$1.42 COP 4,601

-75.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.63 MYR 10.65

$3.15 COP 10.2K

-16.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.64 MYR 18.75

$5.70 COP 18.4K

-18.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.76 MYR 7.14

$1.53 COP 4,950

15.03%

White Bread (500g)

$1.13 MYR 4.57

$2.29 COP 7,401

-50.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.49 MYR 6.03

$1.94 COP 6,282

-23.20%

Eggs

$2.16 MYR 8.74

$3.07 COP 9,905

-29.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.38 MYR 62.2

$9.99 COP 32.3K

53.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.49 MYR 18.15

$10.45 COP 33.7K

-57.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.43 MYR 38.14

$13.96 COP 45.1K

-32.45%

Apples (1kg)

$2.87 MYR 11.59

$4.05 COP 13.1K

-29.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.60 MYR 6.49

$1.53 COP 4,937

4.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.23 MYR 9.03

$2.10 COP 6,797

6.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.73 MYR 7.00

$2.29 COP 7,409

-24.45%

Potato (1kg)

$1.40 MYR 5.68

$2.11 COP 6,813

-33.65%

Onion (1kg)

$1.22 MYR 4.92

$1.71 COP 5,521

-28.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 MYR 4.81

$1.17 COP 3,780

1.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 MYR 2.08

$1.58 COP 5,104

-67.72%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.51 MYR 18.24

$3.91 COP 12.6K

15.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.08 MYR 77.2

$14.04 COP 45.4K

35.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.89 MYR 11.70

$1.76 COP 5,690

64.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.92 MYR 19.90

$2.71 COP 8,760

81.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.77 MYR 3.12

$1.18 COP 3,811

-34.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.72 MYR 47.38

$76.3 COP 246.4K

-84.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.25 MYR 5.06

$1.81 COP 5,836

-30.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.56 MYR 2.27

$2.13 COP 6,878

-73.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.37 MYR 21.73

$8.13 COP 26.3K

-33.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.81 MYR 3.29

$1.28 COP 4,119

-36.72%

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

$45.3K MYR 183.0K

$34.4K COP 111.2M

31.39%

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

$35.9K MYR 145.0K

$34.1K COP 110.3M

5.03%

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

$50.6 MYR 205

$178 COP 574.1K

-71.54%

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

$10.23 MYR 41.38

$13.89 COP 44.9K

-26.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.43 MYR 115

$30.74 COP 99.3K

-7.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.70 MYR 173

$41.94 COP 135.5K

1.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.07 MYR 24.56

$16.80 COP 54.3K

-63.87%

Cinema Ticket

$3.63 MYR 14.68

$7.47 COP 24.1K

-51.41%

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

$240 MYR 971

$790 COP 2.6M

-69.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.5K MYR 42.5K

$12.3K COP 39.7M

-14.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.3 MYR 220

$86.3 COP 278.9K

-37.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.23 MYR 163

$59.3 COP 191.4K

-32.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.8 MYR 367

$138 COP 446.9K

-34.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.9 MYR 323

$98.8 COP 319.2K

-19.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$433 MYR 1,752

$1,341 COP 4.3M

-67.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$275 MYR 1,113

$667 COP 2.2M

-58.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$783 MYR 3,166

$1,976 COP 6.4M

-60.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$526 MYR 2,128

$1,033 COP 3.3M

-49.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,980 MYR 8,007

$4,098 COP 13.2M

-51.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,030 MYR 4,165

$1,940 COP 6.3M

-46.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$412 MYR 1,666

$646 COP 2.1M

-36.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.17

10.94

-61.88%

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

Last update for Tawau: November 3, 2026

Last update for Medellin: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tawau

$275 30%

Medellin

$667 39.4% 142% $392

Groceries & Markets

Tawau

$262 28.5%

Medellin

$307 18.2% 17.3% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Tawau

$119 13%

Medellin

$172 10.2% 44.3% $53

Eating Out

Tawau

$105 11.4%

Medellin

$173 10.2% 64.8% $68

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tawau

$89 9.7%

Medellin

$222 13.1% 149% $133

Sport & Entertainment

Tawau

$50 5.4%

Medellin

$57 3.4% 13.9% $6.9

Getting Around

Tawau

$19 2.1%

Medellin

$93 5.5% 396% $75

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $433 in Tawau versus $1,341 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 57% higher in Medellin, 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 $20 in Tawau versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $262 vs $307 – making Tawau the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Tawau

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

14:55 2:55 PM

01:55 1:55 AM

13 h behind Tawau

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

420,806

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.247 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 4.04 MYR (1 MYR = 0.247 USD). 1 EUR = 4.54 MYR (1 MYR = 0.22 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3,230 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,626 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Tawau Medellin 18,120 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Tawau
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

Tawau vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 84%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,379 per month in Tawau and $2,538 in Medellin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Tawau, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $433 there versus $1,341 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $20 in Tawau 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 $920 in Tawau and $1,692 in Medellin. That makes Tawau about 46% cheaper.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $920 in Tawau and $1,692 in Medellin. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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