01
Coste de vida
$705/mo
CO · MEDELLINDatos locales
Vivir en Medellín.
Colombia's second city and the metropolis of the Aburrá valley (~2.5M in the municipality, ~4M metro). Famous as the 'City of Eternal Spring' for its warm, stable year-round temperatures around 1,500 m; homicides fell to a multi-decade low in 2024, though the rate stays above rich-world norms. Rents run below Bogotá, English is limited outside El Poblado/Laureles expat circles, and the valley's air quality remains a real drawback.
Verificado
Población 2.528.343
· America/Bogota· Se aplican las normas de Colombia
DANE — proyecciones de población municipales 2018–2035 (Medellín), base CNPV 2018
Fuente oficial
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2025
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Notas
- DANE projection for the Medellín municipality (city proper, excludes the wider Valle de Aburrá metro): 2,528,343 for 2025 (1,333,203 women / 1,195,140 men), based on the 2018 census updated for post-COVID mortality. The Aburrá conurbation (Bello, Envigado, Itagüí, Sabaneta, etc.) totals ~4 million.
CO · MEDELLIN
01
Vista rápida
Las cifras principales de Medellín, cada una con su fuente y su frescura. Una cifra oficial viva no es lo mismo que una estimación de encuesta ni que una normal climática de 30 años.
9.0/10
02
Alquiler, 1–3 dorm.
$600–$1350
/mes
03
Impuestos del autónomo
17,3%
Seguridad
2.2/1011,3/100k
Calidad del aire
5.8/1015,5 µg/m³
Internet
0.9/1017 Mbps
Inglés
2.0/10Low
Sanidad privada
7.9/10$1250/yr
Qué significan las etiquetasoficial — cifra viva de un gobierno o una autoridaddatos abiertos — conjunto de datos abierto (Eurostat, AEMA, M-Lab, UdSC…)encuesta — estimación de una encuesta o un índicerecopilado — estimación montada por SettleMetric: abre la fuente para ver el método
02
Lo que te cuesta al mes
Una estimación para planificar: alquiler de oferta real más una cesta de coste de vida ajustada a tu hogar. No es un presupuesto en firme.
Hogar
Estilo de vida
Zona
Total estimado
$1305/mes
≈ $15.660 / año
En qué se va
- Alquiler (1 dorm.)$600
- Food & groceries$230
- Restaurants & eating out$110
- Recreation & culture$90
- Household & personal care$85
- Utilities (electricity, water, gas)$75
- Transport (urban)$70
- Mobile & home internet$45
- Gastos corrientes$705
El alquiler sale de la matriz de alquileres de oferta de abajo. Los gastos corrientes escalan una cesta de una persona ($705/mes) según el tamaño del hogar y el estilo de vida; los factores de equivalencia son un supuesto nuestro. No se incluyen colegios ni gastos únicos de instalación.
03
Coste de vida
Lo que gasta al mes una persona sola —comida, suministros, transporte, comer fuera y lo demás—, sin contar el alquiler.
DANE income/spending bands 2025 (basket anchor)
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2025
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Illustrative split of the ≈$705/mo single-person non-rent basket into typical urban categories, anchored on DANE 2025 income bands and published utility/transport/mobile tariffs, converted at 3,349.7 COP/USD. Categories sum to ≈$705. Curated estimate, not a DANE household-budget survey line; national/major-city average — El Poblado-tier neighbourhoods run higher.
01Food & groceries230 USD
02Restaurants & eating out110 USD
03Recreation & culture90 USD
04Household & personal care85 USD
05Utilities (electricity, water, gas)75 USD
06Transport (urban)70 USD
07Mobile & home internet45 USD
Cesta de gasto de un hogar de una persona en Colombia, sin contar el alquiler. Lo que no es alquiler varía poco entre ciudades; la parte propia de cada ciudad es el alquiler, que aparece más abajo en Vivienda.
01Cost of living (single, excl. rent)a nivel de país705USD/month, single person, excluding rent9.0
Qué mide esto
Monthly cost of a defined single-person basket (food, transport, utilities, mobile+internet, modest leisure) excluding rent, curated from national statistics office price data and large local retailers' published prices, converted to USD at the ECB rate recorded in fx-rates. The method field of each value itemizes the basket inputs.
Cuanto más bajo, mejorUSD/month, single person, excluding rentse vuelve a verificar cada 365 días
Recopilado por SettleMetric
DANE — línea de pobreza y clasificación por ingreso 2025 (basket anchor), CPI-consistent
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2025
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Curated single-person non-rent basket (food, utilities, urban transport, mobile+internet, modest leisure and misc.) for a foreign remote worker in a major Colombian city, anchored on DANE 2025 income bands (national poverty line 482,041 COP/mo; middle-class per-capita spending 853,608–4,596,352 COP/mo) and typical published utility/transport/mobile tariffs. Estimated ≈ 2,360,000 COP/mo ÷ 3,349.7 COP/USD (ECB EUR/COP 3,817.83 ÷ EUR/USD 1.1399, fx-rates 2026-07-02) ≈ 705 USD. Curated estimate — DANE has not published a 2025/2026 one-person-household consumption line comparable to Poland's GUS figure; to be refined from ENPH microdata.
04
Vivienda
Lo que cuesta alquilar, por tipo de vivienda y zona.
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 30 jun 2026
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Matrix of average unfurnished asking rents by apartment type × location, mid-2026, converted at the official TRM 3,334.93 COP/USD (2026-07-04). 'Center' = desirable central/mid core (Laureles / Estadio, stratum 4–5): apartaestudio ≈1.85M / 1BR ≈2.6M / 2BR ≈3.4M / 3BR ≈4.5M COP. 'Outside' = cheaper outer neighbourhoods (Belén, Envigado, La América, stratum 3–4): apartaestudio ≈1.5M / 1BR ≈2.0M / 2BR ≈2.7M / 3BR ≈3.5M COP. Room-count midpoints derived transparently from portal ranges; the 1BR-center cell equals the scored rent-1br-center value.
- Notas
- Asking prices, unfurnished, before administración (COP 150k–800k) and utilities (COP 150k–300k). Premium El Poblado sits well above the 'center' column shown (a 1BR there is ≈$1,050–1,500). Studio/apartaestudio figures rest on fewer listings than 1BR/2BR, so treat those cells as indicative.
| Vivienda | Centro | Fuera del centro |
|---|---|---|
| Estudio | 600 USD/mes | 450 USD/mes |
| 1 dormitorio | 780 USD/mes | 600 USD/mes |
| 2 dormitorios | 1020 USD/mes | 810 USD/mes |
| 3 dormitorios | 1350 USD/mes | 1050 USD/mes |
05
Clima
Temperatura y lluvia a lo largo del año, más la calidad del aire.
Datos abiertos
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2020
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- WMO 1991–2020 station normals for Medellín Olaya Herrera airport (WMO 27015330), NCEI accession 0253808 (public domain), station elevation 1,490 m on the Aburrá valley floor. Values rounded to 0.1 from the source CSV (annual: tMin 17.7, tMax 28.0°C, precip 1,758 mm). The valley floor runs marginally warmer than hillside residential neighbourhoods; nights are mild year-round.
Temperatura media de día y de noche (líneas, eje izquierdo) y lluvia total (barras, eje derecho) por mes, con normales de 1991–2020. Pasa el cursor por un mes para ver las cifras exactas.
| ene | feb | mar | abr | may | jun | jul | ago | sept | oct | nov | dic | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Máxima diurna °C | 27.9° | 28.3° | 28.2° | 27.8° | 27.9° | 28.4° | 28.6° | 28.7° | 28.1° | 27.3° | 27.1° | 27.3° |
| Mínima nocturna °C | 17.5° | 17.8° | 18.0° | 17.9° | 18.0° | 17.7° | 17.5° | 17.6° | 17.5° | 17.4° | 17.6° | 17.6° |
| Lluvia mm | 72 | 81 | 132 | 181 | 219 | 145 | 134 | 126 | 171 | 212 | 171 | 115 |
01Climate comfort2pleasant months/year2.0
Qué mide esto
Number of months whose 1991–2020 climate normals satisfy: mean daily maximum between 15°C and 28°C and monthly precipitation under 150mm. Computed from the city's climate-normals indicator; the raw normals are stored alongside so users can judge by their own taste.
Cuanto más alto, mejorpleasant months/yearse vuelve a verificar cada 3650 días
Recopilado por SettleMetric
SettleMetric computation over climate-normals
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2020
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Months with mean daily max 15–28°C AND precipitation < 150mm: only Jan (27.9°C, 72mm) and Dec (27.3°C, 115mm) qualify = 2. Ten months miss the strict test — seven exceed the 28°C max ceiling by a fraction (28.1–28.7°C) and the rest carry >150mm rain (Mar–May, Sep–Nov are the two wet seasons). This understates real comfort: Medellín's temperature is famously stable and spring-like all year (its 'Eternal Spring' reputation); the criterion penalises it for a whisker over 28°C at the warm valley-floor station and for heavy tropical rainfall, not for genuine seasonality. Users should read the raw normals alongside this score.
02Air quality (PM2.5)15,5µg/m³, annual mean PM2.55.8
Qué mide esto
Annual mean fine-particulate (PM2.5) concentration for the city, latest available year. Anchors follow the WHO 2021 guideline (5 µg/m³ → 10) through the EU limit value territory (25 µg/m³ → 2). Preferred source: European Environment Agency city-level air quality data; outside Europe: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database or the national monitoring network.
Cuanto más bajo, mejorµg/m³, annual mean PM2.5se vuelve a verificar cada 730 días
Recopilado por SettleMetric
Área Metropolitana del Valle de Aburrá (AMVA) — SIATA, Informe Anual de Calidad del Aire 2023
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2023
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- City annual mean PM2.5 for Medellín ≈ 15.5 µg/m³ (2023) from the official AMVA/SIATA Valle de Aburrá monitoring network annual report; the network reports a further fall to ≈14.8 µg/m³ in 2024. Figure attributed to the AMVA 2023 annual report; the exact per-station table should be reconciled against the report PDF.
- Notas
- ≈3× the WHO 2021 annual guideline (5 µg/m³) and above the 2030 EU limit (10), within the current EU limit (25). The Aburrá valley traps pollution and suffers seasonal contingency episodes (Feb–Mar, Oct) when levels spike several-fold; neighbouring Bello and Envigado read higher than Medellín proper. Air quality is a genuine drawback of the location. To be re-verified against the AMVA 2024 annual report.
06
Seguridad
Cómo de segura es la vida diaria, según estadísticas oficiales de criminalidad.
01Homicide rate11,3intentional homicides per 100,000/year2.2
Qué mide esto
Intentional homicide victims per 100,000 population, latest available year. Country level: UNODC national series. City level: official municipal/police statistics where published; otherwise null (country value shown as country-level).
Cuanto más bajo, mejorintentional homicides per 100,000/yearse vuelve a verificar cada 730 días
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2024
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- 319 homicides in Medellín in 2024 (SISC), 59 fewer than 2023 (−16%); the city's SISC/security-secretariat reported an official rate of 11.3 per 100,000, the lowest among Colombia's main cities and the lowest local rate since the mid-20th century. Victims: 290 men (91%), 28 women (9%).
- Notas
- Municipal SISC figure (city proper). Well below the Colombian national rate (~25/100k) and below Bogotá (~15/100k) in 2024 — a historic low after decades of cartel-era violence — but still several times rich-world capital levels. 2025 figures were trending slightly upward at time of writing; to be re-verified against the SISC year-end 2025 balance.
Policía Nacional de Colombia — SIEDCO, recorded offences 2024 (population: DANE 2024 projection)
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2024
- Verificado
- 12 jul 2026
- Método
- Policía Nacional (SIEDCO) recorded-offence counts for 2024 divided by the DANE 2024 population (52,613,753), times 100,000.
- Notas
- From the Policía Nacional's SIEDCO recorded-offence data for 2024. Theft is hurto a personas (all methods — Colombian law does not separate violent robbery, so it is folded into theft); burglary is hurto a residencias; serious assault is lesiones personales (all intentional injury, not only aggravated); sexual violence is delitos sexuales. Drug offences are tracked as seizures and arrests, not recorded crimes, so they are omitted. Intentional homicide (about 25.7/100k, SIEDCO 2024) is the scored safety headline shown separately. Recording practices and legal definitions differ between countries, so read the levels as context, not a league table.
01Theft601por 100 000
02Serious assault170por 100 000
03Sexual violence59,8por 100 000
04Burglary56,4por 100 000
From the Policía Nacional's SIEDCO recorded-offence data for 2024. Theft is hurto a personas (all methods — Colombian law does not separate violent robbery, so it is folded into theft); burglary is hurto a residencias; serious assault is lesiones personales (all intentional injury, not only aggravated); sexual violence is delitos sexuales. Drug offences are tracked as seizures and arrests, not recorded crimes, so they are omitted. Intentional homicide (about 25.7/100k, SIEDCO 2024) is the scored safety headline shown separately. Recording practices and legal definitions differ between countries, so read the levels as context, not a league table.
07
Infraestructura
Velocidad de internet y cómo llegan los paquetes a tu puerta.
01Domestic delivery qualitya nivel de paísGood7.0
Qué mide esto
Quality of in-country parcel delivery. excellent = nationwide next-day widely available, dense parcel-locker network, real-time tracking standard; good = 1–3 day delivery, lockers in major cities; basic = reliable but slow (3–7 days), mostly to-door or post-office pickup; poor = unreliable delivery, street addresses often unusable, informal workarounds common. Classified from official service/coverage data of the national postal operator and the two largest private carriers; inputs itemized in each value's method field.
Valorado por categoría—se vuelve a verificar cada 730 días
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 30 jun 2026
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Composite of the national operator (4-72 / Servicios Postales Nacionales) plus the dominant private networks (Servientrega, Coordinadora, Interrapidísimo, TCC, Envía) that provide dense nationwide door-to-door and office-pickup coverage with tracking; 1–3 day delivery between major cities is standard, longer to rural/remote municipalities. Parcel-locker networks are limited compared with Europe. Rated 'good' (reliable major-city coverage, not next-day-everywhere with dense lockers).
02International delivery easea nivel de paísSignificant friction4.0
Qué mide esto
Ease of receiving goods from abroad. seamless = major international carriers deliver door-to-door, meaningful duty-free de-minimis threshold, customs clearance predictable in days; minor-friction = carriers present but low de-minimis, extra paperwork or routine delays; significant-friction = frequent customs holds, high brokerage fees, some marketplaces refuse to ship; unreliable = parcels regularly lost or blocked, informal import channels dominate. De-minimis thresholds and clearance rules from the national customs authority (official source, cite the regulation); carrier presence from carriers' official pages.
Valorado por categoría—se vuelve a verificar cada 365 días
Fuente oficial
DIAN — modalidad de tráfico postal y envíos urgentes; de minimis USD 200 (Decreto 1090 de 2020)
- Datos a fecha de
- 1 ago 2020
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Notas
- Major carriers (DHL, FedEx, UPS) serve Colombia. De-minimis: shipments with FOB ≤ USD 200 are duty-free under the tráfico-postal/envíos-urgentes modality (Decreto 1090/2020), but the VAT (IVA) exemption applies only to origins under a free-trade agreement (e.g. USA, South Korea); from other origins IVA is charged. Consignments are capped (≤ USD 2,000, ≤ 50 kg, ≤ 6 identical units). Customs holds, brokerage fees and slower clearance are common → significant friction for non-FTA imports.
03Internet speeda nivel de país17,4Mbps, median fixed download0.9
Qué mide esto
Median fixed-broadband download speed over the trailing 6 months from M-Lab NDT open data (CC0), aggregated at country or city level. Not comparable with Ookla figures (different test methodology) — do not mix sources within this criterion.
Cuanto más alto, mejorMbps, median fixed downloadse vuelve a verificar cada 365 días
Datos abiertos
M-Lab NDT country aggregates for Colombia
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2023
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Mean of the daily country median download (download_MED) values in M-Lab's public statistics API for Colombia; the published file covers the first 16 days of 2023 (≈181,872 tests), mean ≈ 17.4 Mbps; the 2024 file (first 16 days) is consistent at ≈ 16.9 Mbps.
- Notas
- M-Lab NDT is single-stream and reads well below Ookla-style figures — comparable only within this criterion. M-Lab's public stats API exposes only a partial-year window for Colombia, so this is a limited-coverage figure to be refined via BigQuery. Urban fibre plans advertise 100–900 Mbps; the M-Lab median reflects the mixed national access base.
08
Sanidad
Lo que cuesta un seguro médico privado completo.
01Private healthcare costa nivel de país1250USD/year, comprehensive private insurance premium, healthy 35-year-old7.9
Qué mide esto
Median of at least three publicly quoted annual premiums for comprehensive private medical insurance (outpatient + inpatient, ~$100k coverage, small deductible) for a healthy 35-year-old resident foreigner, from local and international insurers. Method field lists the insurers quoted.
Cuanto más bajo, mejorUSD/year, comprehensive private insurance premium, healthy 35-year-oldse vuelve a verificar cada 365 días
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 4 jul 2026
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Comprehensive private cover in Colombia layers on top of the mandatory contributory system (EPS): a 'medicina prepagada' or voluntary health plan (Sura, Colsanitas, Coomeva) with outpatient + inpatient access for a healthy 35-year-old runs roughly 250,000–450,000 COP/month; midpoint ≈ 350,000 COP/mo ≈ 4,200,000 COP/yr ≈ 1,254 USD at 3,349.7 COP/USD (range ≈ $895–$1,610). Curated market midpoint — Colombian prepaid-medicine premiums are age/plan-banded and quoted on request, not from a public engine.
- Notas
- Residents affiliated to an EPS already have universal contributory cover; prepaid medicine buys faster access, private hospitals and broader networks. Premiums exclude the mandatory 12.5% health contribution (counted in the tax burden), not an insurance premium. International (IPMI) plans cost several times more.
09
Dinero y cripto
Normas sobre cripto y con qué libertad se mueve el dinero personal.
01Crypto regulationa nivel de paísLegal regulated8.0
Qué mide esto
Own classification of the legal status of holding, trading and cashing out cryptocurrency for individuals: legal-friendly (legal with clear, favourable rules or explicit tax exemptions), legal-regulated (legal under standard licensing/AML and taxation), restricted (partial bans: payments or banking access prohibited), banned (holding/trading prohibited). Classified from national regulators' and central banks' official positions.
Valorado por categoría—se vuelve a verificar cada 180 días
Fuente oficial
DIAN — Concepto Unificado 100202208-1621 de 2023 sobre criptoactivos (tratamiento tributario)
- Datos a fecha de
- 8 ene 2026
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Notas
- Crypto is legal to hold/trade but is not legal tender (Banco de la República); the DIAN treats it as an intangible asset. Gains taxed as ordinary income (up to 39%) if held <2 years, or as ganancia ocasional (15%) if held ≥2 years; holdings must be declared. From tax-year 2025 the DIAN (Resolución 000240) requires registered virtual-asset service providers to report Colombian users' operations; the SFC administers a PSAV registry. No consumer ban; banking access can be uneven.
02Financial control levela nivel de paísModerate7.0
Qué mide esto
Own composite of state control over personal money flows: currency/capital controls (IMF AREAER), restrictions on foreign accounts and transfers, mandatory income declaration scope for residents, cash payment limits, banking access for foreigners. Low = free movement of personal funds and easy non-resident banking; very-high = strict capital controls and pervasive reporting. Method field on each value lists the inputs used.
Valorado por categoría—se vuelve a verificar cada 365 días
Fuente oficial
- Datos a fecha de
- 26 feb 2026
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Composite: the COP is convertible and there are no hard capital controls, but Colombia keeps a foreign-exchange regime (régimen cambiario) in which certain operations (external credit, foreign investment, some import/export) must be channelled through the regulated exchange market (IMC or a Banco de la República compensation account) with a declaración de cambio; residents may hold foreign accounts and compensation accounts. Service-export income (freelancer earnings) is not subject to mandatory channelling but reporting/traceability rules apply. Standard AML/UIAF and tax-reporting scope. Rated 'moderate' (freer than capital-control regimes, more paperwork than fully open EU/OECD peers).
10
Idioma
Hasta dónde llega el inglés en la vida diaria y en los trámites.
01English proficiencya nivel de paísLow2.0
Qué mide esto
Own banding of how far English gets a resident in daily life (government offices, healthcare, housing, services). Informed by EF EPI band (research source, cited with attribution, not republished) plus official language status and service-sector realities. Values are our bands, not EF scores.
Valorado por categoría—se vuelve a verificar cada 730 días
Estudio
EF EPI 2025 — Colombia rank 76/123, score 480 (Low Proficiency band)
- Datos a fecha de
- 1 nov 2025
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Notas
- Own band informed by EF EPI 2025 (attribution: EF Education First); score 480 sits in EF's 'Low Proficiency' band. Spanish is the working language for government, healthcare and most services; English is workable in tourist/expat pockets of Bogotá and Medellín and in tech/BPO circles but not broadly across daily life.
11
Educación
Opciones de colegios internacionales para familias.
01International schools8accredited international schools, count6.9
Qué mide esto
Count of international schools in the metro area accredited by or member of IB, CIS, COBIS, or an equivalent national-curriculum-abroad body (verified against the accreditor's public registry, not aggregator sites).
Cuanto más alto, mejoraccredited international schools, countse vuelve a verificar cada 730 días
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 4 jul 2026
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Count of internationally-accredited schools in the Medellín metro (city + Envigado/Itagüí/El Retiro). Two verified directly against their accreditor's own registry: Lycée Français de Medellín (AEFE réseau, homologué — aefe.gouv.fr) and Deutsche Schule Medellín (German ZfA network / Itagüí — pasch-net.de). Six further internationally-accredited schools are well attested across sources as IB / Cambridge / CIS members: The Columbus School (Envigado, IB/US), Vermont School (IB), Colegio Colombo Británico (Envigado, IB), Colegio Montessori (IB PYP), The New School (Envigado, IB), and Marymount School (Cambridge curriculum + CIS/NEASC accreditation).
- Notas
- Only the AEFE and ZfA schools were confirmed one-by-one against the accreditor's public registry; the IB and Cambridge/CIS members' official directories (ibo.org, cambridgeinternational.org, cis.org) blocked automated access, so those six rest on strongly consistent secondary reporting pending direct registry reconciliation. The true accredited-international total for the Aburrá valley may be a little higher (several additional bilingual schools hold IB or Cambridge status). Count excludes purely bilingual schools with no external accreditation.
12
Demografía
Quién más vive aquí: el porcentaje de residentes extranjeros y las mayores comunidades nacionales, según estadísticas oficiales.
Openness to foreignersa nivel de paísReservadaGallup MAI 3,98/9 · 2019
Qué mide esto
How accepting the resident population is of migrants and foreigners — the inverse of xenophobia, a real concern for someone relocating. Our own five-band reading (very-open / open / moderate / reserved / low) informed primarily by the Gallup Migrant Acceptance Index (0–9 scale: three questions on migrants living in the country, becoming neighbours, and marrying into the family; 2019 wave), cross-checked where available with the World Values Survey wave 7 / European Values Study 2017 question on whether people would not want immigrants or foreign workers as neighbours (a higher share = more hostile). Banding guide against the Gallup 0–9 score: ≥7.0 very-open, 5.5–7.0 open, 4.0–5.5 moderate, 2.5–4.0 reserved, below 2.5 low (the 2019 global average of 5.21 sits in 'moderate'). Country level only: no credible city-level survey of attitudes to foreigners exists, so on city pages the country reading is shown as country context. Gallup is a research source cited with attribution, not republished in bulk; the raw index score/year and any cross-check figure are carried inside each value. Value shape: { band, gallupMai?, gallupYear?, unwantedNeighborPct?, unwantedNeighborSource? }. Display-only: attitudinal, survey-based and ~2019 vintage, so it is shown as honest context and never folded into the composite score.
Datos de referencia—se vuelve a verificar cada 1825 días
Estudio
Gallup Migrant Acceptance Index, 2019 update (research, attribution)
- Datos a fecha de
- 23 sept 2020
- Verificado
- 15 jul 2026
- Notas
- Gallup MAI 3.98/9 (2019 wave, down sharply from 6.13 in 2016 — one of the world’s largest declines, −2.15) as Colombia absorbed millions of Venezuelans; the share saying migrants living in the country is a good thing fell from 61% to 29%. Still above the least-accepting group. Band: reserved.
Migración Colombia (Venezuelan migrants registered) over DANE 2025 population projection
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 ago 2025
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Venezuelan migrants registered in Colombia = 2,830,000 (Migración Colombia, 31 Aug 2025; of these ≈1.9M hold the PPT temporary-protection permit, ≈385,000 irregular). Divided by DANE 2025 population projection of 52,695,952 = 5.4%. Adding non-Venezuelan foreign residents (a much smaller number) brings the total foreign-national share to ≈5.6%. Basis includes the temporary-protection population because they live in Colombia while the status is active; the pure valid-visa/cédula-de-extranjería count is far lower. Approximate — the two migration statistics are not published on one consistent resident register.
Mayores comunidades de los residentes extranjeros
Migración Colombia — Informe de migrantes venezolanos en Colombia
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 ago 2025
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Migración Colombia publishes the Venezuelan migrant total (2,830,000 at 31 Aug 2025) as by far the dominant foreign community — an estimated ≈96% of the foreign-national population. Colombia does not publish a full official by-citizenship breakdown of all foreign residents comparable to Eurostat's; other nationalities (US, other Latin American, European) exist in much smaller numbers but are not enumerated here for lack of an official consolidated series.
- Notas
- Only the officially published dominant group (Venezuelans) is listed; the shares of smaller foreign communities are not available from a single official source. Counts include Venezuelans on temporary protection (PPT), who live in Colombia while the status is active.
01Venezuela (incl. PPT temporary protection)96%2.830.000
Only the officially published dominant group (Venezuelans) is listed; the shares of smaller foreign communities are not available from a single official source. Counts include Venezuelans on temporary protection (PPT), who live in Colombia while the status is active.
13
Cómo puedes quedarte
Cómo puedes entrar y quedarte legalmente. Se aplican en todo Colombia.
Todos los requisitos y filtro por nacionalidad- 01Visa V — Nómada digital (digital nomad)Visado de nómada digitalTodas las nacionalidadesingresos ≥ 5.252.715 COP/monthPassport from a country exempt from Colombian short-stay visas (Resolución 5477/2022 art. 46)2 años +
- 02Visa M — Profesional independiente (self-employed professional)Residencia temporalTodas las nacionalidadesingresos ≥ 8.754.525 COP/monthAim to exercise, independently and without an employment relationship, a regulated profession or an unregulated activity of interest to Colombia3 años +→ vía a la residencia permanente
- 03Visa M — Socio o propietario (business owner / shareholder)Visado de negociosTodas las nacionalidadesingresos ≥ 175.090.500 COP/yearInvestment or capital participation in a Colombian commercial company of at least 100 SMMLV, registered in the Cámara de Comercio and reflected in the company's capital3 años +→ vía a la residencia permanente
- 04Visa-free entry / Permiso de Ingreso (short stay)Estancia sin visadoUS citizens, UK citizens, EU citizensPassport from a country exempt from Colombian short-stay visas (US, UK, EU/Schengen and many others)3 meses +
- 05Visa R — Residente por tiempo acumulado (permanent residence)Residencia temporalTodas las nacionalidadesHave held an accumulating Visa M (worker, independent professional, business owner/shareholder, investor, etc.) continuously for 5 years, OR 2 years as spouse/permanent partner of a Colombian national5 años +→ vía a la residencia permanente
- 06Estatuto Temporal de Protección (ETPV / PPT) — Venezuelan migrantsPrograma especialVenezuelan citizensVenezuelan citizenship and enrolment in the Registro Único de Migrantes Venezolanos (RUMV) under the ETPV (created 2021)63 meses→ vía a la residencia permanente
14
Lo que pagarías en impuestos
Los regímenes fiscales entre los que puede elegir un autónomo. Las normas son nacionales: las mismas en todo Colombia.
Regímenes completos y calculadoraMira cuánto te quedaría
Tus ingresos frente a los regímenes fiscales reales de Colombia, con el mismo motor que la calculadora completa.
- 1 Régimen Simple (SIMPLE) — professional services (grupo 3)49.620 EURneto/año17.3 % de carga
- 2 Renta ordinaria — cédula general (progressive, art. 241 ET)43.215 EURneto/año28.0 % de carga
15
¿Para quién es Medellín?
El mismo lugar se lee distinto según por qué te mudes. Cada perspectiva reúne los datos que más importan para ese plan, con sus fuentes y las contrapartidas dichas sin rodeos.
Contrato o trabajo por cuenta propia en tecnología, facturando a clientes de fuera.
Juega a tu favor
Freelancer tax burden17,3%
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 1 ene 2026
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Best eligible scheme co-rst-professional at €60,000 = 229,069,800 COP (3,817.83 COP/EUR), ≈ 4,374 UVT → SIMPLE professional-services band 0–6,000 UVT = 5.9% of gross = 13,515,118; plus mandatory independent social security on IBC = 40% of income: health 12.5% of IBC = 5% of gross = 11,453,490 and pension 16% of IBC = 6.4% of gross = 14,660,467. Total = 39,629,075 COP → 17.3%. Consistent with the co-rst-professional worked examples. Note: at this income IBC ≈ 4.36 SMMLV ≥ 4, so the Fondo de Solidaridad Pensional adds ≈ 0.4% (all-in ≈ 17.7%); and the SIMPLE pension discount, if claimed, would lower it further — both unmodeled, so 17.3% is the modeled, conservative-of-those figure.
Cost of living (single, excl. rent)$705/mo
DANE — línea de pobreza y clasificación por ingreso 2025 (basket anchor), CPI-consistent
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2025
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Curated single-person non-rent basket (food, utilities, urban transport, mobile+internet, modest leisure and misc.) for a foreign remote worker in a major Colombian city, anchored on DANE 2025 income bands (national poverty line 482,041 COP/mo; middle-class per-capita spending 853,608–4,596,352 COP/mo) and typical published utility/transport/mobile tariffs. Estimated ≈ 2,360,000 COP/mo ÷ 3,349.7 COP/USD (ECB EUR/COP 3,817.83 ÷ EUR/USD 1.1399, fx-rates 2026-07-02) ≈ 705 USD. Curated estimate — DANE has not published a 2025/2026 one-person-household consumption line comparable to Poland's GUS figure; to be refined from ENPH microdata.
Domestic delivery qualityGood
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 30 jun 2026
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Composite of the national operator (4-72 / Servicios Postales Nacionales) plus the dominant private networks (Servientrega, Coordinadora, Interrapidísimo, TCC, Envía) that provide dense nationwide door-to-door and office-pickup coverage with tracking; 1–3 day delivery between major cities is standard, longer to rural/remote municipalities. Parcel-locker networks are limited compared with Europe. Rated 'good' (reliable major-city coverage, not next-day-everywhere with dense lockers).
A lo que estar atento
Internet speed17 Mbps
M-Lab NDT country aggregates for Colombia
Datos abiertos
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2023
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Mean of the daily country median download (download_MED) values in M-Lab's public statistics API for Colombia; the published file covers the first 16 days of 2023 (≈181,872 tests), mean ≈ 17.4 Mbps; the 2024 file (first 16 days) is consistent at ≈ 16.9 Mbps.
- Notas
- M-Lab NDT is single-stream and reads well below Ookla-style figures — comparable only within this criterion. M-Lab's public stats API exposes only a partial-year window for Colombia, so this is a limited-coverage figure to be refined via BigQuery. Urban fibre plans advertise 100–900 Mbps; the M-Lab median reflects the mixed national access base.
English proficiencyLow
EF EPI 2025 — Colombia rank 76/123, score 480 (Low Proficiency band)
Estudio
- Datos a fecha de
- 1 nov 2025
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Notas
- Own band informed by EF EPI 2025 (attribution: EF Education First); score 480 sits in EF's 'Low Proficiency' band. Spanish is the working language for government, healthcare and most services; English is workable in tourist/expat pockets of Bogotá and Medellín and in tech/BPO circles but not broadly across daily life.
Mudarse con pareja e hijos en edad escolar.
Juega a tu favor
International schools8
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 4 jul 2026
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Count of internationally-accredited schools in the Medellín metro (city + Envigado/Itagüí/El Retiro). Two verified directly against their accreditor's own registry: Lycée Français de Medellín (AEFE réseau, homologué — aefe.gouv.fr) and Deutsche Schule Medellín (German ZfA network / Itagüí — pasch-net.de). Six further internationally-accredited schools are well attested across sources as IB / Cambridge / CIS members: The Columbus School (Envigado, IB/US), Vermont School (IB), Colegio Colombo Británico (Envigado, IB), Colegio Montessori (IB PYP), The New School (Envigado, IB), and Marymount School (Cambridge curriculum + CIS/NEASC accreditation).
- Notas
- Only the AEFE and ZfA schools were confirmed one-by-one against the accreditor's public registry; the IB and Cambridge/CIS members' official directories (ibo.org, cambridgeinternational.org, cis.org) blocked automated access, so those six rest on strongly consistent secondary reporting pending direct registry reconciliation. The true accredited-international total for the Aburrá valley may be a little higher (several additional bilingual schools hold IB or Cambridge status). Count excludes purely bilingual schools with no external accreditation.
Private healthcare cost$1250/yr
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 4 jul 2026
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Comprehensive private cover in Colombia layers on top of the mandatory contributory system (EPS): a 'medicina prepagada' or voluntary health plan (Sura, Colsanitas, Coomeva) with outpatient + inpatient access for a healthy 35-year-old runs roughly 250,000–450,000 COP/month; midpoint ≈ 350,000 COP/mo ≈ 4,200,000 COP/yr ≈ 1,254 USD at 3,349.7 COP/USD (range ≈ $895–$1,610). Curated market midpoint — Colombian prepaid-medicine premiums are age/plan-banded and quoted on request, not from a public engine.
- Notas
- Residents affiliated to an EPS already have universal contributory cover; prepaid medicine buys faster access, private hospitals and broader networks. Premiums exclude the mandatory 12.5% health contribution (counted in the tax burden), not an insurance premium. International (IPMI) plans cost several times more.
A lo que estar atento
Homicide rate11,3/100k
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2024
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- 319 homicides in Medellín in 2024 (SISC), 59 fewer than 2023 (−16%); the city's SISC/security-secretariat reported an official rate of 11.3 per 100,000, the lowest among Colombia's main cities and the lowest local rate since the mid-20th century. Victims: 290 men (91%), 28 women (9%).
- Notas
- Municipal SISC figure (city proper). Well below the Colombian national rate (~25/100k) and below Bogotá (~15/100k) in 2024 — a historic low after decades of cartel-era violence — but still several times rich-world capital levels. 2025 figures were trending slightly upward at time of writing; to be re-verified against the SISC year-end 2025 balance.
Air quality (PM2.5)15,5 µg/m³
Área Metropolitana del Valle de Aburrá (AMVA) — SIATA, Informe Anual de Calidad del Aire 2023
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2023
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- City annual mean PM2.5 for Medellín ≈ 15.5 µg/m³ (2023) from the official AMVA/SIATA Valle de Aburrá monitoring network annual report; the network reports a further fall to ≈14.8 µg/m³ in 2024. Figure attributed to the AMVA 2023 annual report; the exact per-station table should be reconciled against the report PDF.
- Notas
- ≈3× the WHO 2021 annual guideline (5 µg/m³) and above the 2030 EU limit (10), within the current EU limit (25). The Aburrá valley traps pollution and suffers seasonal contingency episodes (Feb–Mar, Oct) when levels spike several-fold; neighbouring Bello and Envigado read higher than Medellín proper. Air quality is a genuine drawback of the location. To be re-verified against the AMVA 2024 annual report.
Optimizar impuestos, banca y normas sobre cripto.
Juega a tu favor
Crypto regulationLegal regulated
DIAN — Concepto Unificado 100202208-1621 de 2023 sobre criptoactivos (tratamiento tributario)
Fuente oficial
- Datos a fecha de
- 8 ene 2026
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Notas
- Crypto is legal to hold/trade but is not legal tender (Banco de la República); the DIAN treats it as an intangible asset. Gains taxed as ordinary income (up to 39%) if held <2 years, or as ganancia ocasional (15%) if held ≥2 years; holdings must be declared. From tax-year 2025 the DIAN (Resolución 000240) requires registered virtual-asset service providers to report Colombian users' operations; the SFC administers a PSAV registry. No consumer ban; banking access can be uneven.
Financial control levelModerate
Fuente oficial
- Datos a fecha de
- 26 feb 2026
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Composite: the COP is convertible and there are no hard capital controls, but Colombia keeps a foreign-exchange regime (régimen cambiario) in which certain operations (external credit, foreign investment, some import/export) must be channelled through the regulated exchange market (IMC or a Banco de la República compensation account) with a declaración de cambio; residents may hold foreign accounts and compensation accounts. Service-export income (freelancer earnings) is not subject to mandatory channelling but reporting/traceability rules apply. Standard AML/UIAF and tax-reporting scope. Rated 'moderate' (freer than capital-control regimes, more paperwork than fully open EU/OECD peers).
Freelancer tax burden17,3%
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 1 ene 2026
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Best eligible scheme co-rst-professional at €60,000 = 229,069,800 COP (3,817.83 COP/EUR), ≈ 4,374 UVT → SIMPLE professional-services band 0–6,000 UVT = 5.9% of gross = 13,515,118; plus mandatory independent social security on IBC = 40% of income: health 12.5% of IBC = 5% of gross = 11,453,490 and pension 16% of IBC = 6.4% of gross = 14,660,467. Total = 39,629,075 COP → 17.3%. Consistent with the co-rst-professional worked examples. Note: at this income IBC ≈ 4.36 SMMLV ≥ 4, so the Fondo de Solidaridad Pensional adds ≈ 0.4% (all-in ≈ 17.7%); and the SIMPLE pension discount, if claimed, would lower it further — both unmodeled, so 17.3% is the modeled, conservative-of-those figure.
Priorizar la seguridad, el aire y una vida diaria sencilla.
Juega a tu favor
Cost of living (single, excl. rent)$705/mo
DANE — línea de pobreza y clasificación por ingreso 2025 (basket anchor), CPI-consistent
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2025
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Curated single-person non-rent basket (food, utilities, urban transport, mobile+internet, modest leisure and misc.) for a foreign remote worker in a major Colombian city, anchored on DANE 2025 income bands (national poverty line 482,041 COP/mo; middle-class per-capita spending 853,608–4,596,352 COP/mo) and typical published utility/transport/mobile tariffs. Estimated ≈ 2,360,000 COP/mo ÷ 3,349.7 COP/USD (ECB EUR/COP 3,817.83 ÷ EUR/USD 1.1399, fx-rates 2026-07-02) ≈ 705 USD. Curated estimate — DANE has not published a 2025/2026 one-person-household consumption line comparable to Poland's GUS figure; to be refined from ENPH microdata.
A lo que estar atento
Homicide rate11,3/100k
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2024
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- 319 homicides in Medellín in 2024 (SISC), 59 fewer than 2023 (−16%); the city's SISC/security-secretariat reported an official rate of 11.3 per 100,000, the lowest among Colombia's main cities and the lowest local rate since the mid-20th century. Victims: 290 men (91%), 28 women (9%).
- Notas
- Municipal SISC figure (city proper). Well below the Colombian national rate (~25/100k) and below Bogotá (~15/100k) in 2024 — a historic low after decades of cartel-era violence — but still several times rich-world capital levels. 2025 figures were trending slightly upward at time of writing; to be re-verified against the SISC year-end 2025 balance.
Air quality (PM2.5)15,5 µg/m³
Área Metropolitana del Valle de Aburrá (AMVA) — SIATA, Informe Anual de Calidad del Aire 2023
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2023
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- City annual mean PM2.5 for Medellín ≈ 15.5 µg/m³ (2023) from the official AMVA/SIATA Valle de Aburrá monitoring network annual report; the network reports a further fall to ≈14.8 µg/m³ in 2024. Figure attributed to the AMVA 2023 annual report; the exact per-station table should be reconciled against the report PDF.
- Notas
- ≈3× the WHO 2021 annual guideline (5 µg/m³) and above the 2030 EU limit (10), within the current EU limit (25). The Aburrá valley traps pollution and suffers seasonal contingency episodes (Feb–Mar, Oct) when levels spike several-fold; neighbouring Bello and Envigado read higher than Medellín proper. Air quality is a genuine drawback of the location. To be re-verified against the AMVA 2024 annual report.
Climate comfort2/12 mo
SettleMetric computation over climate-normals
Recopilado por SettleMetric
- Datos a fecha de
- 31 dic 2020
- Verificado
- 4 jul 2026
- Método
- Months with mean daily max 15–28°C AND precipitation < 150mm: only Jan (27.9°C, 72mm) and Dec (27.3°C, 115mm) qualify = 2. Ten months miss the strict test — seven exceed the 28°C max ceiling by a fraction (28.1–28.7°C) and the rest carry >150mm rain (Mar–May, Sep–Nov are the two wet seasons). This understates real comfort: Medellín's temperature is famously stable and spring-like all year (its 'Eternal Spring' reputation); the criterion penalises it for a whisker over 28°C at the warm valley-floor station and for heavy tropical rainfall, not for genuine seasonality. Users should read the raw normals alongside this score.
16
Comparar Medellín
Panorama completo del país:
resumen de Colombia