Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Van and Medellin

For one person, living is cheaper in Van: $956 a month against $1,639 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

46

Cost of Living Index in Van
Learn more

Van Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
Learn more

Medellin Living Index

Jump to prices

Van

🇹🇷 Turkey

$956

/mo nomad

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $956 per month in Van vs $1,639 in Medellin, rent included.

Van $956
Medellin $1,639

A couple spends around $1,536 per month in Van vs $2,413 in Medellin, rent included.

Van $1,536
Medellin $2,413

A family of three spends $2,116 per month in Van vs $3,186 in Medellin, rent included.

Van $2,116
Medellin $3,186

Van is about 42% cheaper than Medellin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Van sits 30% below the global median, while Medellin is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.48 ₺373

$8.09 COP 25.4K

-7.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.59 ₺1,723

$47.05 COP 148.0K

-26.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.93 ₺395

$9.50 COP 29.9K

-16.53%

Cappuccino

$3.57 ₺178

$3.01 COP 9,485

18.60%

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

$1.14 ₺56.6

$1.80 COP 5,660

-36.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.42 ₺21.17

$1.41 COP 4,443

-70.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.33 ₺166

$3.18 COP 9,990

4.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.10 ₺154

$5.75 COP 18.1K

-46.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.96 ₺47.67

$1.51 COP 4,751

-36.42%

White Bread (500g)

$1.00 ₺49.80

$2.38 COP 7,480

-57.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.25 ₺112

$1.77 COP 5,573

27.12%

Eggs

$1.48 ₺73.9

$2.89 COP 9,093

-48.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.99 ₺448

$10.19 COP 32.1K

-11.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.07 ₺203

$9.87 COP 31.1K

-58.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.62 ₺1,127

$13.99 COP 44.0K

61.69%

Apples (1kg)

$1.82 ₺90.9

$3.97 COP 12.5K

-54.16%

Banana (1kg)

$1.83 ₺91.1

$1.55 COP 4,883

18.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.09 ₺54.3

$2.18 COP 6,867

-50.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.15 ₺57.4

$2.18 COP 6,870

-47.25%

Potato (1kg)

$0.52 ₺25.73

$1.96 COP 6,174

-73.47%

Onion (1kg)

$0.35 ₺17.44

$1.59 COP 5,000

-77.99%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.74 ₺36.87

$1.15 COP 3,604

-35.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.61 ₺30.53

$1.24 COP 3,911

-50.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.16 ₺108

$3.96 COP 12.5K

-45.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.36 ₺516

$13.68 COP 43.0K

-24.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.01 ₺99.9

$1.66 COP 5,222

21.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 ₺139

$2.26 COP 7,104

23.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.73 ₺36.59

$1.17 COP 3,674

-37.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 243.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.30 ₺64.6

$1.27 COP 3,989

2.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.76 ₺37.85

$2.05 COP 6,442

-62.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.21 ₺359

$8.55 COP 26.9K

-15.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 ₺64.0

$1.35 COP 4,237

-5.19%

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

$42.2K ₺2.1M

$34.1K COP 107.2M

23.99%

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

$38.9K ₺1.9M

$34.7K COP 109.1M

12.22%

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

$79.9 ₺3,981

$170 COP 533.7K

-52.90%

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

$10.46 ₺521

$13.55 COP 42.6K

-22.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.39 ₺667

$28.07 COP 88.3K

-52.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.0 ₺2,841

$43.70 COP 137.5K

30.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 54.1K

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ₺324

$6.91 COP 21.7K

-6.08%

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

$624 ₺31.1K

$797 COP 2.5M

-21.61%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K ₺566.1K

$9,112 COP 28.7M

24.70%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.86 ₺2,285

$84.7 COP 266.5K

-45.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.35 ₺1,661

$58.0 COP 182.3K

-42.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.7 ₺3,969

$135 COP 424.6K

-40.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.8 ₺4,425

$97.9 COP 307.9K

-9.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$469 ₺23.4K

$1,208 COP 3.8M

-61.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$278 ₺13.9K

$642 COP 2.0M

-56.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$816 ₺40.6K

$2,028 COP 6.4M

-59.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$586 ₺29.2K

$1,012 COP 3.2M

-42.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,491 ₺74.3K

$4,170 COP 13.1M

-64.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$968 ₺48.2K

$1,910 COP 6.0M

-49.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

41.33

10.94

277.79%

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

Last update for Van: 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

Van

$278 29.1%

Medellin

$642 39.1% 130% $363

Groceries & Markets

Van

$229 23.9%

Medellin

$297 18.1% 29.8% $68

Eating Out

Van

$156 16.3%

Medellin

$170 10.4% 9% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Van

$111 11.7%

Medellin

$169 10.3% 51.6% $58

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Van

$104 10.9%

Medellin

$211 12.9% 104% $108

Sport & Entertainment

Van

$70 7.3%

Medellin

$58 3.5% 17.8% $12

Getting Around

Van

$8 * 0.8%

Medellin

$94 5.7% 1065% $86

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $469 in Van 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $35 in Van versus $47 in Medellin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $229 vs $297 – making Van the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Van

🇨🇴 Medellin

🕒 Local time

14:02 2:02 PM

06:02 6:02 AM

8 h behind Van

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,141,015

2,486,723

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.01 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.18 USD

10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 49.82 TRY (100 TRY = 2.01 USD). 1 EUR = 55.45 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3,146 COP (10,000 COP = 3.18 USD). 1 EUR = 3,501 COP (10,000 COP = 2.86 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Van Medellin 12,010 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Van
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

Van vs Medellin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Medellin is pricier by about 71%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,434 per month in Van 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 Van, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $469 there versus $1,208 in Medellin.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $35 in Van and $47 in Medellin. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 30% more in Medellin, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

Families tend to lean toward Van – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.