Living in Medellin, Colombia: How Much It REALLY Costs... 

Do you still have to use Check Mig to enter into Colombia?

Yes you do

@@AKJoel ok thank you.

And can you imagine it was even cheaper 12 months ago? I was renting on AirBnb (which is a ripoff) and still only spending around $1000 a month total including all expenses lol

Glad it was helpful! 😁

No worries! Hope you enjoy Medellin :)

The prices I mentioned are 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom fully furnished

It must have been a long time since you looked for an apartment in Medellín. I'm in the middle of it, and no, these are not gringo prices, but today's reality.😢

This is so true, I was born in Cali, CO but lived in the USA for most of my life and I always have my cousins represent me instead of me doing it on my own because then they take advantage.

Glad you found it useful mate! 👍🏾

Come on down brotha, been here since the 2000s, a lot has changed, some for the better and some for the worse. Definitely dont just stay in Medellin and explore other cities like Bogota, Pereira, Armenia, Cali, Sant Marta etc. Medellin is a great city with incredible weather and the surrounding environs outside the city are gorgeous. And when you get down here dont believe what the Paisas tell you about Bogota and how it's soo cold. There is a big rivalry between the Paisas and the rollos (people from Bogota). The paisas will tel you that Bogota is cold when in fact sure its colder then medellin but compared to NY, Toronto or DC it's actuallt very mild. Bogota has much more business opportunities than medellin, the architecture is much nicer, the traffic is worse than medellin but Bogota is a much more international city with waaay better restaurants, nightlife and muuch more interesting things to see and do than medellin. Medellin seems like a small town compared to bogota. If you stay/live in the right neighborhoods of bogota and live a short walk/bike ride from your job then Bogota traffic doesnt even really effect you. Bogota is a very underated city and has much much more to offer than Medellin. I've lived in colombia for over two decades so you can trust me. Also, Bogota is filled with gorgeous women just like Medellin if you know the right people, have the right group of friends and go to the right spots. Same as in any major US/Candian city there will be throngs of beautiful women just like in Toronto, Miami, LA or NY. Don't believe what the paisas say about Bogota.

I appreciate that!

Get out of there mate, best decision I ever made!

@@AKJoel I here you man working in the construction industry as well all it is. Is work and sleep haha

Life's too short for that mate

Glad it was helpful Anthony 😁👍🏾

You're welcome!

I've heard this guy mention that you have to be colombian to buy a condo, so idk. 50k would def be a steal. Pays for itself in 3 to 5 years depending on rent.

In which area did you find these 30k - 50k apartments??

You can buy an apartment as a foreigner but unless you've built up Colombian credit over a few years, you aren't getting a loan from the bank and you'll have to pay with cash upfront.

@@AKJoel I don’t remember anymore. That’s what our guide kept saying to us when he would take us to the different Miradores. Obviously not in the middle of all the action. It’s the areas a little farther out close to the different amazing miradores.

Anytime!

AirBnb is great for when you first arrive here to try out different areas and see what you like, but once you decide on a place and want to stay 6+ months you definitely have to start looking to book through the local route using local real estate agencies to find much cheaper places.

@@AKJoel Thanks so much. I have a place booked for my first month and was going to try a different area for 3 months to see what I like. I am more excited than anything.. I CANT wait!

Enjoy!!

Medellin is amazing! I have been there twice, going again for my third exploration trip. I hope you have an amazing time!@@tradiavereen678

That's a great price for rent. Congrats!

Yeah I really like inDrive, except for the fact that you need cash, which I don't always have on me. Uber is easier cos it just uses my card for payment.

I just got back from my second trip a few days ago. My GF uses inDrive. We were in Comuna 13 and we couldnt get an Uber but inDrive worked. Same another time in El Centro at the palace Mall So I would think a good strategy is to have both@@AKJoel

Check out this video, I think it'll answer a lot of the questions you have! ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-dJMn-noZ9CE.html

I use Claro

What do you expect about the taxis, they're a step up from a go cart. The taxis in Colombia are pieces of shit and dangerous..imagine getting into a high speed collision in one of those tiny junk cars.

Hey Tom, yeah the gym culture at Smart Fit is absolutely bananas haha I couldn't handle it any longer! You're right about Sabaneta, however it can be a bit quiet for some people and too far away from Laureles and Poblado - so you can feel isolated. Especially for new visitors to the city who don't speak English. That being said, a mate of mine is moving there next month - he found an awesome place for only $550 a month!

My hubby is Colombian and it drives him nuts when I close his car door too hard. Then when I try to close it more softly, the car door light goes on saying the door isn’t fully closed lol 😂

Yes I do take singing classes - I've also seen yoga classes advertised around the city. Basically most activities, you can find here!

My pleasure!! 🙂

My home base is in the greater New York City area, if you're ever in town look me up. Otherwise, my girlfriend and I spend three months of the year in Santiago, Chile, and 6 months traveling out of a backpack somewhere in the world. Hopefully one day we can share a meal together. 🤟🌱

Well it's $1500 in the most expensive neighbourhood in the city which is overrun with tourists who are staying short term - hence the prices have skyrocketed recently. That's 1 reason I don't live in Poblado haha

Yeh in the last 12 months AirBnB pricing has absolutely skyrocketed. Also the USD has fallen from 5000 to 4000.

@@AKJoel in 2017 it was 2,800 and it was still cheaper than today.

Damn haha big changes!

You're gonna love it!

Hahaha this made me laugh, but actually it's true!

Great little cafe that one!

1. Oh wow - when I was living in Seattle I went to LA Fitness, but my mates just let me in as a guest so I never actually looked at the price haha. 2. I believe that's a new rule, because when I got my student visa last year they never asked for proof of health insurance. Now it's mandatory. However, I currently don't have a visa - I'm just on the tourist stamp of 90 days, which I extended for another 90 days to total 180 days.

yeah things have definitely increased in price!

I don't wanna post it online cos i wanna keep it empty, but I'm sure if you do some research you'll figure it out haha👍🏾

@@AKJoel hahaha but you also need people to spot you but will do some research, thanks!

Good question. I'd say: Poblado $1200 Laureles $750 (depends on area) Envigado $650 That's with an actual separate bedroom, not a studio.

@@AKJoel sounds good brother ..I’ll look around in Poblado my goodness that’s cheap does your vip included list of agencies or persons that can provide furnished one bed room apartments as you mentioned?

Last I checked our Rent Like a Local list had 20+ local rental agencies who can help you find a long term property without paying gringo prices (we're also constantly adding to and updating the list)

You're right - most things are super cheap except rent lol You can still find affordable rent in the best part of town ($600 a month) but you have to go through the local avenues and rent unfurnished. Also they definitely don't have the variety of options here as they do in Aus, but you can still get different varieties of things!

I'm not that kind of guy so it's not in my personal budget lol

Sorry mate, I don't wanna advertise it all over RU-vid so that it'll stay empty 😅😅

I wouldn’t want RU-vid to know where I worked out either 😅 Bodytech is an overall better gym than smart fit. It’s higher quality, more expensive and less people

I did another video which was living on $5k a month, which I think is high end. My lifestyle seems pretty middle of the road to me! I don't even eat out lol

My girlfriend found her, I'm not actually sure how, but before when I lived alone I found maids from searches/recommendations in Facebook groups

Just to make it clear that's not including rent haha so all in closer to US$1500 p/m

@@AKJoel not bad , glad your enjoying everything Joel, keep up the good videos

Belen is cheaper than Laureles - monthly rent around $700-$800 I'd say for a nice place. Beautiful neighborhood too, one of my favorites!

@@AKJoel awesome, this is important to know. Thanks for the response

It's called Beardman Barber, located on Calle 10a

thank you, I appreciate it, and which employers do you recomed? :)

The rent might be a problem though. $400 is almost impossible in Laureles or Poblado, unless you live with roommates and split the rent. Unless you meant expenses not including rent?

@@AKJoel Yes, including rent. You have to think that laureles and poblado are the most expensive neighborhoods. And yes I meant splitting the place.

There are more neighborhoods to live in than Poblado and Laureles in Medellín. Poblado and Parque Lleras isn't even as cool as it once was 13 yrs ago. Now it's just a gentrified commercial mess with some restaurant prices approaching North American Levels. With all due respect people have found Poblado many, many years before you did but you think you're living in paradise. Poblado is far from the paradise with few gringos it once was 10-20 years ago. Now it's just a gentrified and over commercialized mess with super high prices that were not so high back a decade or more ago! It's become a giant tourist trap essentially, it wasn't like that when I first moved to Medellín many years ago.

I've always said in my videos that I don't like Poblado - there's much better places to stay in Medellin

You can't live for $400-500 bro 😂

That's true!

It seems like the prostitutes are cheap there, because everybody has one.

I can say Bogata is not cheap it's pretty close to US pricing.

Some things like ordering all my meals on Rappi from a supermarket are definitely things that most Colombians probably wouldn't do, but I don't mind spending more cos its convenient and saves time.

Cheers Paul! 😁

How much in Thailand?

@@AKJoel about $350-$400. Higher end $650-$700 for a big, ultra modern spot. Pretty good for our Aussie dollar but a lot of drawbacks compared to Colombia imo.

I agree with everyone you said - you can't go to the "hot spots" mainly Parque Lleras because it's filled with these types of guys you mentioned. I stay well away from any of those areas and I have an amazing life here and basically never see those types of people. In regards to the air quality - yes it's bad haha, but you can get cleaner air by living higher up the mountains in areas such as Envigado - at the bottom of the valley in Laureles is the worst. It's true though that some parts of Medellin have definitely been ruined by tourists and are extremely "gross" as you said - but that being said a lot has changed since you were here in 2018. From what I've seen the % that these tourists make up is decreasing by the day. More and more families, couples and entrepreneurs are moving to the city which is overall increasing the quality of expats you'll meet here.

Let's face it, Medellin has something for everyone, from gross to beautiful. @@AKJoel

That sounds superb. What time is the next flight from LHR, I'm on my way 😂🤣🤣

Where are you comparing to though? Not expensive compared to major cities in the US, UK, Canada, or Australia.

We have a list of our personal contacts but that's a paid product - otherwise your best bet would be to head to the Medellin Facebook groups and search "maid" and see who's been recommended.

I do! I'm probably upper intermediate level - I have some full interviews on my channel in Spanish

That's a very realistic budget, however I'm not sold on the $1000 a month comfortable lifestyle for a foreigner. You got a great deal on your $600-$700 apartment btw, well done!

Daaaamn my rent alone in Florida is $1500…. 🤯

hahahahaha that'll only cost you $15 max

Medellin is booming, deal with it mate 👍🏾🇨🇴

@@AKJoel Taylor Swift song: haters gonna hate.

Hahahaha exactly!!

😂 just trying to give people a realistic look at cost of living

@@AKJoel lol no doubt just giving you a hard time... Good video. I haven't been to Colombia in 20 years so I'm sure things are much different.

Wow - yeah it's even changed a lot in the past 12 months, I can't even imagine how it would've been 20 years ago.

His rent figures were high because for some odd reason he quoted for a 2 bedroom instead of a 1 bedroom or studio.

😅 or you can just date women who don't take your money lol

@@AKJoel They always do it brother, its only a matter of time. 👀

marriott suite in medellin is $1200 a night, its expensive everywhere thats nice.

I don't think anybody who's living here long term is staying in the Marriot lol

Haha it'll never get that bad!

@@AKJoel Crossing fingers. I'm going to do my first trip with my wife next year.

Is Nashville an expensive city in relation to the rest of the US?

@@AKJoel I’d say it’s on the same level as Atlanta and Chicago. LA is more expensive and NYC is off the charts.

Going on 4 years now!