Is Medellin Safe? Pros and Cons to living in Medellin, Colombia 2025

Living in Medellin isn’t all it’s painted out to be. Things aren’t THAT cheap, you’re not always going to feel safe, and the weather isn’t perfect. Plus, the culture is quite a bit different from Western culture.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s a lot to love about Medellin, but there are definitely some drawbacks. 

We lived in Medellin for a month and would like to share some things we really didn’t like about living in the city, as well some things we really did like.

Oftentimes when deciding whether or not to move somewhere, the bad things are more important than the good. These can be the deal breakers. We think it’s important you have these things in mind when coming, because we can promise you … Medellin isn’t always the paradise it’s painted to be.

✈️ Checkout out our detailed 2 Week and 3 Week Colombia Itineraries! 🇨🇴

Is Living in Medellin Safe? Pros and Cons

Here’s a summary chart with our top 6 pros and cons of living here. We dive into each one afterwards!

6 Cons to Living in Medellin

First off, there are TONS of expats in Medellin. Mainly Americans and Canadians, but people from Europe and Australia as well. It seems like tons of people are being drawn to Medellin from all parts of the world.

Let’s start with the things we didn’t like about living in Medellin.

➡️ Read: Ultimate Guide to Visiting Tayrona National Park 🇨🇴

1 – People Don’t Move Out of the Way

In America and Europe people have manners. (generally) They walk on the proper side of the sidewalk, and they generally move out of the way to accommodate you. This is not the case in Colombia. Walking through the supermarket is a nightmare. People go through their lives like no one else exists. They walk in front of you. They cut you off. They walk into you. They cut in line.

I don’t think we’ll ever truly understand this aspect of Colombian life. This might not seem like a huge deal, but situations like this would come up almost every time we walked out of our apartment.

“Did that guy really not see us walking here?” – Us, every single day walking in Medellin.

READ 👉 Top 9 Things to Do in Medellin

2 – El Poblado

This whole neighborhood … but especially the area by Parque Lleras. 

It seems like every American 40 year old male who can’t find a girlfriend/wife in the US/UK comes down here thinking they’re gonna pick up a Colombian woman. 

El Poblado is by far the most touristy neighborhood of Medellin and has become an America inside of Colombia. 

This is where you’ll find all the prostitutes and all the drugs. You’ll see A TON of cops here at night. Shady Colombians come here to rip off as many tourists as possible. Prices are much higher than the rest of Medellin.

I don’t think I ever walked a block in this neighborhood without a Colombian trying to get me to buy some Cocaine. I tried to avoid El Poblado at all costs. Kelsey liked El Poblado because of all the great coffee shops and co-working spaces here during the day.

SEE 👉 6 Things to Do in Guatape – Complete Guide

3 – Driving

First off, I didn’t drive in Colombia. Nor has any other tourist that we’ve heard of. Every time we hopped in a cab or a bus, we thought we’re going to die. Not exaggerating. These people drive like mad men! Stomping on the gas, jamming on the brakes, cutting people off. It really is crazy.

If you think NYC or LA is bad, come to Colombia…

READ 👉 Guide to Taxis in Colombia

4 – Pollution

It’s pretty clear Colombia doesn’t have stringent environmental regulations like the first world. Everywhere you go in nature, whether it be parks or hikes just outside the city, there is trash EVERYWHERE.

Plastic bottles, cigarette packages, soda cans, you name it. People do not care about keeping things clean here. Colombia is known for being very dirty and having trash everywhere, and that is definitely true!

🛌 Here are all your hotel options in Medellin

5 – Safety

Colombia gets a bad rap for being dangerous. (Ecuador is WAY worse in 2024)

Sometimes this reputation is justified, and sometimes it’s not. Medellin is probably the safest Colombian big city, especially if you’re staying in one of the touristy neighborhoods. (Santa Marta is one of the worst touristy cities – we almost got robbed here!)

But still, you’re going to have to be very careful walking on the streets at night. You could get robbed at any time, but especially at night. Everyone in Medellin has a story about getting robbed at gunpoint from some guys on a motorbike. You’re going to have to be cautious.

To put things into perspective … I’ve never met someone who’s gotten robbed in an American city from some guys on a motorbike. In Colombia, this is quite common.

🛌 Here are all your hotel options in Medellin 🇨🇴

6 – People Just Aren’t That Friendly

This is kind of like NYC people versus suburban people. People in Medellin just aren’t that friendly. They hardly say hi, and when they do it’s very formal. Everyone looks out for themselves and that’s pretty much it. 

Obviously there are exceptions, but we’ve gotten a lot of cold-shoulder one-word answers when asking for directions on the street. (We speak Spanish)

The kindness you find in South Asia is just not going to be found here in Medellin. Not saying the people are outwardly mean … they’re just not that friendly. We get the impression they’re tired of wealthy Americans driving up prices in their city.

SEE 👉 Cerro de Las Tres Cruces – Our Favorite Hike in Medellin 🗻

6 Pros to Living in Medellin

Although it may seem like there is plenty to dislike about Medellin, there are also a ton of amazing things here. The nightlife is vibrant, the hikes are great and easily accessible, and there are a bunch of day trips than can be easily done from the city.

Here are our favorite things about living in Medellin!

➡️ Read: Best 5 Hikes in Medellin 🥾

1 – The Prices

Everything is cheaper. Lunch can be had for 20,000 COP with a main course, soup, and fruit juice. Taxis are cheap. Eating out is cheap. Groceries are cheap. Rent is cheap-ER than the US/Canada, although it is definitely going up A LOT. You could easily be paying $1000 / month for your nice apartment in El Poblado. 

➡️ Read: The Ultimate 2 Week Colombia Itinerary ✨

2 – The Weather

70-80 degrees and sunny, pretty much every day. Medellin is called the “City of Eternal Spring” for a reason. 

HOWEVER, this does mean that a lot of places don’t have A/C. Medellin can be quite hot during the day around lunch time, and you are going to be sweating your balls off if you don’t have A/C. Our apartment only had A/C in the bedroom, and we usually only hung out in the bedroom at night because the living room was pretty hot.

Mornings are cool but after lunch most apartments heat up and you are going to be sweating. If you don’t like sweating at pretty much all hours of the day, make sure you find a place with A/C!

SEE 👉 Best 11 Things to Do in Jardin – Our Favorite Place in Colombia

3 – Fresh Fruit is Everywhere

Back home we almost never drink fruit juice. It’s too expensive and not fresh. Here we drink multiple glasses of fresh fruit per day. The fruit is cheap, fresh, and available. This is probably our favorite part of Colombia. 

There is never a shortage of fresh fruit. We have it at almost every meal, and there is an endless variety of fruits to try while here.

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4 – Cheap Hair Cuts

Barbers take their job SERIOUSLY in Medellin. There are a TON of barbers, and a haircut shouldn’t cost you more than $5. With the cost of haircuts in the US right now at $30-$40 minimum, this is one of my favorite parts of life in Medellin. 

I can get an amazing haircut here every two weeks and not worry about the cost.

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5 – The Hiking (Top 5 Hikes in Medellin!)

Since Medellin is in a valley and surrounded by mountains on all sides, there are a TON of cool hikes to do that are very close to the city. You can get to a lot of these places using public transportation or taxis in less than an hour. 

We did a ton of hikes during our time living in Medellin and were really impressed. There’s even this 1 hour hike in the Southwest with an amazing Calisthenics park at the top. (Cerro de Las Tres Cruces)

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6 – Coffee

Since Medellin is a hotspot for digital nomads, there are a TON of coffee shops and coworking spaces in El Poblado and Laureles. The coffee is very fresh and is grown right here in Colombia. See Kelsey’s post on coffee shops in Medellin.

💡 TIP: If you like coffee you have to visit SALENTO! This is the heart of the “coffee-growing region in Colombia and has a ton to see and do! View your accommodation options in Salento HERE! 🏨

Living in Medellin Colombia – Summary

It seems to me that Medellin is painted as a sort of “paradise” online and amongst other travelers. It’s known for great weather, beautiful women, vibrant nightlife, tons of coffee shops, and tons to do. All of these things are true, but there are definitely some drawbacks to this city that could be deal breakers for some.

Personally, I could never live in Medellin. The lack of safety, the heat, the people selling drugs on the streets, the culture, … definitely not for me long term … and I speak Spanish. If you don’t speak Spanish, good luck making local friends.

For others, Medellin really is the perfect place for a digital nomad. The coffee shops and co-working spaces were full with these sorts of people from North America and Europe. If you’re looking for a place to make friends with others living this way, you will certainly not have a problem living in Medellin.

Maybe just try it out for a bit before you commit!

🚌 Checkout out our detailed 2 Week and 3 Week Colombia Itineraries! ✈️