---
title: "Cost of Living: Cairo vs Medellín — Geo-Parity"
description: "Colombia is 213% more expensive than Egypt for monthly essentials ($811 vs $259). Full 32-item price comparison: rent, pint, groceries, transport, gym."
canonical: "https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/colombia-vs-egypt/"
json: "https://geo-parity.com/api/micro-costs.json?base=EG&target=CO"
generator: geo-parity markdown twin
---
Cost of Living · EG vs CO

# 🇪🇬 Cairo vs 🇨🇴 Medellín: what everyday life costs

Monthly essentials: **$259** in Egypt vs **$811** in Colombia — 213% more expensive.

- **Essentials, Egypt**: $259/mo
- **Essentials, Colombia**: $811/mo
- **Difference**: +213%
- **1-bed city rent, Colombia**: $504/mo

## Biggest differences

Smallest premium in Colombia

- Jeans (mid-range brand): +47%
- Running shoes (brand): +47%
- Imported beer, 330ml bottle: +47%

Pricier in Colombia

- Rent: 3-bedroom, city center: +285%
- Rent: 1-bedroom, outside center: +285%
- Rent: 1-bedroom, city center: +285%

## The full basket (32 items)

| Item | Egypt | Colombia | Diff |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Housing |  |  |  |
| Rent: 1-bedroom, city center | $131 | $504 (2,042,699 COP) | +285% |
| Rent: 1-bedroom, outside center | $105 | $403 (1,634,184 COP) | +285% |
| Rent: 3-bedroom, city center | $240 | $922 (3,735,249 COP) | +285% |
| Food out |  |  |  |
| Meal, inexpensive restaurant | $2.35 | $6.77 (27,440 COP) | +188% |
| Dinner for two, mid-range | $9.78 | $28.20 (114,298 COP) | +188% |
| Fast-food combo meal | $1.73 | $4.52 (18,320 COP) | +161% |
| Groceries |  |  |  |
| Milk, 1L | $0.25 | $0.54 (2,189 COP) | +116% |
| Bread, fresh loaf 500g | $0.73 | $1.57 (6,363 COP) | +115% |
| Eggs, dozen | $0.77 | $1.67 (6,769 COP) | +117% |
| Chicken breast, 1kg | $2.27 | $4.91 (19,901 COP) | +116% |
| White rice, 1kg | $0.91 | $1.96 (7,944 COP) | +115% |
| Apples, 1kg | $1.09 | $2.36 (9,565 COP) | +117% |
| Local cheese, 1kg | $2.73 | $5.89 (23,873 COP) | +116% |
| Water, 1.5L bottle | $0.45 | $0.98 (3,972 COP) | +118% |
| Drinks |  |  |  |
| Domestic beer, pint (draught) | $0.78 | $2.26 (9,160 COP) | +190% |
| Imported beer, 330ml bottle | $3.81 | $5.61 (22,738 COP) | +47% |
| Cappuccino | $0.65 | $1.88 (7,620 COP) | +189% |
| Coke/Pepsi, 330ml | $0.52 | $1.13 (4,580 COP) | +117% |
| Transport |  |  |  |
| Public transport, monthly pass | $10.21 | $26.72 (108,300 COP) | +162% |
| Public transport, one-way | $0.43 | $1.13 (4,580 COP) | +163% |
| Taxi start (normal tariff) | $0.52 | $1.50 (6,080 COP) | +188% |
| Taxi, per km | $0.23 | $0.68 (2,756 COP) | +196% |
| Petrol/gasoline, 1L | $0.45 | $0.67 (2,716 COP) | +49% |
| Utilities & comms |  |  |  |
| Basic utilities, 85m² apartment | $31.40 | $82.20 (333,168 COP) | +162% |
| Internet, 60Mbps+ unlimited | $10.99 | $28.77 (116,609 COP) | +162% |
| Mobile plan, 10GB+ data | $7.07 | $18.49 (74,942 COP) | +162% |
| Lifestyle |  |  |  |
| Gym membership, month | $6.52 | $18.80 (76,199 COP) | +188% |
| Cinema seat | $1.83 | $5.26 (21,320 COP) | +187% |
| Men's haircut | $3.91 | $11.28 (45,719 COP) | +188% |
| Jeans (mid-range brand) | $26.23 | $38.54 (156,208 COP) | +47% |
| Running shoes (brand) | $42.91 | $63.06 (255,591 COP) | +47% |
| Coworking hot desk, month | $32.62 | $94.01 (381,035 COP) | +188% |

Estimated from World Bank — Consumption price levels with per-item elasticity — model figures, not quotes. Compare any pair in the [interactive tool](https://geo-parity.com/expenses/?tab=prices&base=EG&target=CO).

## Beyond prices

What each place pays, charges and offers — wages, rent, healthcare, climate, risk and time off. Figures come from the same engines behind the individual tools, so they match what those pages say. They sit about **11,258 km** apart as the crow flies.

| Measure | 🇪🇬 Egypt | 🇨🇴 Colombia |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Median local wage Monthly, USD. The local midpoint, not an average. | $291 | $358 |
| Rent, modelled 1-bed Monthly, USD. | — | $448 |
| Rent as % of a local wage Are locals priced out? | — | 125.4% |
| Out-of-pocket healthcare Per person per year, USD. | $81.00 | $95.00 |
| Doctors per 1,000 WHO. | 0.7 | 2.5 |
| Comfortable days a year 18-27 °C and dry. Measured at Cairo and Medellín. | 117 | 125 |
| Rule of law World Bank WGI. A survey composite, so the band leads, not the decimal. | weak | weak |
| Country risk INFORM, 0-10. Lower is safer. | 5.1 (high) | 5.2 (high) |
| Public holidays Observed nationwide; regional days are counted separately. | 15 | 19 |
| Air quality Mean annual PM2.5, µg/m³. WHO guideline is 5. Lower is better. | 53.6 | 14.8 |
| Life expectancy Years at birth — the outcome, not the spending. | 71.8 | 77.9 |
| Homicide rate Per 100,000 a year. A count, not a perception score. | 1.3 | 24.9 |
| Population online % using the internet. Reach, not speed — the row below is speed. | 74.6% | 79.3% |
| Internet download Measured median, Mbps. | 27 | 195.3 |

## The whole Egypt → Colombia move, in one place

Everything above is free and always will be. The relocation report is the same engines run together for this one corridor: what you keep after rent, prices, healthcare and tax; the local wage ladder you would be earning against; which visas your income qualifies for; the day count that makes you tax-resident; and the months worth being there for.

[See the Egypt → Colombia report — £7](https://geo-parity.com/report/egypt-to-colombia/) One-off. No subscription. Free preview first.

## Related

- [Reverse view: Colombia vs Egypt](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/colombia-vs-egypt/)
- [Fair salary: Egypt → Colombia](https://geo-parity.com/salary/egypt-to-colombia/)
- [How much to retire in Colombia?](https://geo-parity.com/fire/colombia/)
- [Cost of living in Colombia vs the US](https://geo-parity.com/ppp/colombia/)

## More comparisons

### Egypt compared with

- [Egypt vs South Africa](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/egypt-vs-south-africa/)
- [Egypt vs Türkiye](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/egypt-vs-turkiye/)
- [Egypt vs Argentina](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/egypt-vs-argentina/)
- [Egypt vs Brazil](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/egypt-vs-brazil/)
- [Egypt vs Saudi Arabia](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/egypt-vs-saudi-arabia/)
- [Egypt vs China](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/egypt-vs-china/)

### Moving to Colombia from

- [Nigeria vs Colombia](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/nigeria-vs-colombia/)
- [India vs Colombia](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/india-vs-colombia/)
- [Indonesia vs Colombia](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/indonesia-vs-colombia/)
- [Vietnam vs Colombia](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/vietnam-vs-colombia/)
- [Thailand vs Colombia](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/thailand-vs-colombia/)
- [Malaysia vs Colombia](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/malaysia-vs-colombia/)

## Frequently asked questions

- **How much more expensive is Colombia than Egypt?**: A single person's monthly essentials run about $811 in Colombia versus $259 in Egypt — 213% more. Rents differ the most; world-priced goods like petrol and electronics the least.
- **What does a beer cost in Colombia?**: A domestic draught pint is roughly $2.26 in Colombia (≈ 9160.09 COP), versus about $0.78 in Egypt.
- **How much is rent in Colombia compared to Egypt?**: A 1-bedroom city-center apartment is estimated at $504/month in Colombia versus $131/month in Egypt (+285%). Housing is the most locally-priced item in the basket.
- **How are these prices estimated?**: Curated US baseline prices scaled by each country's purchasing-power price level with per-item elasticities (housing 1.4, services 1.1, groceries 0.8, world-priced goods 0.4) — model estimates for orientation, not quotes.

Model estimates — verify locally. Agents: GET /api/micro-costs.json?base=EG&target=CO.

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Source: Geo-Parity — https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/colombia-vs-egypt/ · JSON: https://geo-parity.com/api/micro-costs.json?base=EG&target=CO