Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Toowoomba and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,614 a month against $2,110 in Toowoomba, rent and utilities included – about $6,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

102

Cost of Living Index in Toowoomba
Learn more

Toowoomba Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index

Jump to prices

Toowoomba

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,110

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,110 per month in Toowoomba vs $1,614 in Medellin, rent included.

Toowoomba $2,110
Medellin $1,614

A couple spends around $2,921 per month in Toowoomba vs $2,402 in Medellin, rent included.

Toowoomba $2,921
Medellin $2,402

A family of three spends $3,732 per month in Toowoomba vs $3,190 in Medellin, rent included.

Toowoomba $3,732
Medellin $3,190

Toowoomba costs about 31% more than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Toowoomba and Medellin sit above the global median – Toowoomba by 56%, Medellin by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.56 A$23.82

$7.93 COP 25.2K

108.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$72.1 A$104

$46.13 COP 146.3K

56.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.30 A$13.38

$9.50 COP 30.1K

-2.11%

Cappuccino

$3.81 A$5.48

$3.11 COP 9,866

22.51%

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

$2.71 A$3.90

$1.83 COP 5,800

48.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.34 A$3.37

$1.38 COP 4,360

69.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.78 A$9.75

$3.05 COP 9,672

122.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.10 A$10.22

$5.50 COP 17.4K

29.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 A$2.16

$1.45 COP 4,600

3.45%

White Bread (500g)

$2.27 A$3.27

$2.36 COP 7,496

-3.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 A$2.80

$1.68 COP 5,328

15.48%

Eggs

$4.55 A$6.55

$2.86 COP 9,077

59.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.62 A$12.40

$10.19 COP 32.3K

-15.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.89 A$12.79

$9.53 COP 30.2K

-6.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.73 A$16.87

$14.04 COP 44.5K

-16.45%

Apples (1kg)

$3.15 A$4.53

$4.07 COP 12.9K

-22.60%

Banana (1kg)

$1.79 A$2.58

$1.50 COP 4,742

19.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 A$1.97

$2.17 COP 6,891

-36.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.15 A$3.09

$2.31 COP 7,310

-6.93%

Potato (1kg)

$2.49 A$3.59

$1.93 COP 6,113

29.02%

Onion (1kg)

$2.23 A$3.20

$1.64 COP 5,196

35.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.39 A$3.45

$1.13 COP 3,571

111.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 A$1.42

$1.25 COP 3,954

-20.80%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$34.77 A$50.0

$3.99 COP 12.6K

771.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.72 A$19.75

$13.35 COP 42.3K

2.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.59 A$6.60

$1.70 COP 5,384

170.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.53 A$9.39

$2.37 COP 7,525

175.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 A$4.38

$1.21 COP 3,827

151.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.22 A$3.20

$1.32 COP 4,179

68.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.61 A$2.31

$2.14 COP 6,774

-24.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$34.11 A$49.08

$8.47 COP 26.8K

302.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 A$1.90

$1.30 COP 4,114

1.54%

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

$26.7K A$38.4K

$28.0K COP 88.7M

-4.65%

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

$23.3K A$33.5K

$35.4K COP 112.3M

-34.18%

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

$74.5 A$107

$172 COP 545.6K

-56.71%

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

$30.11 A$43.33

$13.37 COP 42.4K

125.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.1 A$77.8

$28.73 COP 91.1K

88.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.16 A$59.2

$45.24 COP 143.5K

-9.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.69 A$25.46

$17.04 COP 54.0K

3.81%

Cinema Ticket

$13.85 A$19.92

$6.28 COP 19.9K

120.54%

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

$2,039 A$2,934

$770 COP 2.4M

164.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,996 A$10.1K

$9,011 COP 28.6M

-22.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$75.1 A$108

$86.4 COP 274.0K

-13.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.8 A$77.4

$57.1 COP 181.1K

-5.83%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.8 A$108

$137 COP 432.9K

-45.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 A$176

$97.9 COP 310.4K

24.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,215 A$1,748

$1,055 COP 3.3M

15.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,130 A$1,626

$616 COP 2.0M

83.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,618 A$2,328

$1,892 COP 6.0M

-14.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,409 A$2,028

$1,023 COP 3.2M

37.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,392 A$4,881

$4,059 COP 12.9M

-16.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,674 A$3,847

$1,678 COP 5.3M

59.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,869 A$5,567

$652 COP 2.1M

493.05%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.69

10.94

-47.99%

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

Last update for Toowoomba: October 11, 2026

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Toowoomba

$1.1K 53.6%

Medellin

$616 38.2% 45.5% $514

Groceries & Markets

Toowoomba

$309 14.6%

Medellin

$295 18.3% 4.5% $14

Eating Out

Toowoomba

$274 13%

Medellin

$168 10.4% 38.6% $106

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Toowoomba

$159 7.5%

Medellin

$214 13.3% 35% $56

Clothing & Footwear

Toowoomba

$147 7%

Medellin

$170 10.5% 15.9% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Toowoomba

$69 3.3%

Medellin

$58 3.6% 16% $11

Getting Around

Toowoomba

$22 * 1.1%

Medellin

$93 5.8% 316% $71

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,215 in Toowoomba versus $1,055 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 493% higher in Toowoomba, 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 $72.0 in Toowoomba versus $46.00 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $309 vs $295 – making Medellin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Toowoomba

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

03:27 3:27 AM

12:27 12:27 PM

15 h behind Toowoomba

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

108,398

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 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 AUD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Toowoomba Medellin 14,480 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Toowoomba
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

Toowoomba vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Toowoomba is pricier by about 31%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,165 per month in Toowoomba and $2,421 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 $72.0 in Toowoomba and $46.00 in Medellin. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 5% more in Toowoomba, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Medellin, where all-in costs run around $1,614, than in Toowoomba at $2,110. In Medellin it covers expenses comfortably, while in Toowoomba 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.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Medellin. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Toowoomba makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.