5 Best Neighborhoods in Medellín: A Guide to

Choosing a Neighborhood
Posted by Jeff | Sep 21, 2019 | Neighborhoods | 17 

We look at the 5 best neighborhoods in Medellín for foreigners

including comparing the neighborhoods in terms of cost of living,
safety and walkability and several other categories.

I have lived in the Medellín metro area for over eight years. During
this time, I have lived in seven different barrios in the metro area. In
addition, I have written extensively about renting in many
neighborhoods in Medellín.
In this article, we look at the five best neighborhoods in the Medellín
metro, which are the most popular with foreigners living in Medellín
or visiting the city.

By neighborhoods in this article, I mean comunas of Medellín and

separate municipalities in the Aburrá Valley. In Medellín, there are 16
comunas and in the Aburrá Valley there are 10 municipalities. Barrios
are too small to compare.

Several Medellin Guru readers asked about the best neighborhoods

in Medellín. So, we now provide a comprehensive guide to the best
neighborhoods in Medellín.

Understanding Estratos in Colombia

It is very important to understand estratos when looking at
neighborhoods in Colombia. Residential properties in Colombia are
ranked in a socioeconomic scale, which are known as
“estratos”. Estratos in Colombia run from 1 to 6, as follows:

1. Low-low class (bajo-bajo)

2. Low class (bajo)

3. Low-middle class (medio-bajo)

4. Middle class (medio)

5. Middle-high class (medio-alto)

6. High class (alto) – the wealthiest

In addition, it is important to understand that middle class in

Colombia is not the same as middle class in a wealthy country like
the U.S. Also, the wealthy estrato 6 in Colombia represents only
about 3 to 4 percent of housing in Colombia.

The majority of Colombians live in estrato 1, 2 or 3 neighborhoods,

which represents about 80 percent of the housing in Colombia. And
most foreigners tend to live in estratos 3 to 6.

Apartment buildings near Santafé mall in El Poblado, Medellín

1. El Poblado
El Poblado is the most popular neighborhood for foreigners living in
or visiting Medellín. In addition, El Poblado is considered the most
upscale neighborhood in the city of Medellín.

El Poblado is where the most hotels, hostels and furnished

apartments catering to foreigners are located. So, El Pobaldo is
where most foreign visitors to Medellín stay. El Poblado is known as
Comuna 14 and it has 22 barrios.

El Poblado is the wealthiest neighborhood in Medellín. El Poblado is

primarily an Estrato 6 neighborhood with about 74 percent of the
households rated at estrato 6. Also, it’s where the most expensive
real estate and most expensive apartment rentals in the city tend to
be located.

Most of the housing in El Poblado is located in high-rise apartments.

And some of the high-rises in El Poblado have spectacular views of
the city.  In addition, El Poblado has some streets lined with one-
story, two-story and three-story attached casas (home) located in
some neighborhoods such as Manila and Provenza.

I lived for over a month over eight years ago in a furnished

apartment in El Poblado during an early trial of living in Medellín. It
didn’t take me long to determine that El Poblado wasn’t for me. I
prefer to live in a neighborhood that has a lower cost of living and
isn’t as westernized. No neighborhood is perfect and there are
downsides of living in El Poblado.

Population: 132,688

Best Barrios: Astorga, El Poblado, El Tesoro, La Florida, Manila,

Provenza

Best Shopping: Santafé, El Tesoro, Oviedo

Best Restaurants: Barcal, Barbaro Cocina Primitiva, Carmen, El

Cielo, Oci.Mde

To Rent: for a comfortable two-bedroom unfurnished apartment in

El Poblado, you would pay an average of 2,096,000 pesos per month
($619).

To Buy: El Poblado has over 35 new apartment projects listed in the

free September 2019 Informe Inmobiliario property magazine. You
can find this magazine distributed in many places like Exito stores.

New apartments in El Poblado generally cost from 5.4 million to over

10 million pesos ($1,580 to $2,926) per square meter. Existing
apartments and casas in El Poblado tend to sell for between 2.8
million to 5.8 million pesos per square meter.

In general, El Poblado is the most expensive area in Medellín for

renting unfurnished apartments, renting furnished apartments and
buying property.
 A view from the hills of Envigado

2. Envigado
Envigado is another popular neighborhood for foreigners living in
Medellín.

Most notably, Envigado is less commercial than El Poblado and it is

located directly south of El Poblado. Envigado is a separate
municipality from Medellín. The Envigado municipality has over 40
barrios (neighborhoods).

In addition, Envigado is primarily a residential community. So, you

won’t find many hotels or hostels in Envigado like are found in El
Poblado.

Envigado has many areas with tree-lined streets and it has fewer
high-rise apartments than are found in El Poblado. In addition,
Envigado is considered to be more of a working-class community. In
Envigado, 96 percent of housing is in estrato 2 to 5 and only 4
percent is in estrato 1 or 6.
Best Barrios: Bosques de Zuñiga, El Dorado, La Magnolia, Jardines,
San Marcos, Zuñiga

Population: 232,900

Best Shopping: Viva Envigado

Best Restaurants: Lucio Carbon y Vino, Lemoncillo, La tRES uno,

Romero Cocina Artesanal

To Rent: for a comfortable two-bedroom unfurnished apartment in

Envigado, you would pay an average of 1,784,000 pesos per month
($527).

To Buy: Envigado has over 40 new apartment projects listed in the

Informe Inmobiliario property magazine. New apartments in
Envigado generally cost from 3.5 million to over 6.6 million pesos
($1,024 to $1,931) per square meter.

Existing apartments and casas in Envigado tend to sell for between

2.6 million to 5.0 million pesos per square meter.
 A typical Laureles street

3. Laureles-Estadio      
Laureles-Estadio is another popular neighborhood for foreigners
living in Medellín. It has many areas with tree-lined streets and much
fewer high-rise apartments than are found in El Poblado.

Also, Laureles is primarily a residential neighborhood. Laureles-

Estadio is known as Comuna 11 and it has 15 barrios
(neighborhoods).

Laureles-Estadio is home of Estadio Atanasio Giradot, which is the

stadium where Atlético Nacional and Independiente Medellin play
fútbol matches. Also, near the stadium is a huge sports complex that
has an Olympic size pool; basketball, volleyball and tennis courts;
velodrome and many other sports arenas.

The first unfurnished apartment I rented in Medellín was located in

Estadio near the stadium. Laureles-Estadio is primarily an estrato 4
and 5 neighborhood with about 99 percent of the homes rated as
estrato 4 or 5.
Population: 122,972

Best Barrios: Estadio, Florida Nueva, Laureles, Suramericana

Best Shopping: Unicentro

Best Restaurants: Ammazza, Barbaro Cocina Primitiva, Delirio

Exquisito, El Correo

To Rent: for a comfortable two-bedroom unfurnished apartment in

Laureles-Estadio, you would pay an average of 1,530,000 pesos per
month ($452).

To Buy: Laureles-Estadio only has only eight new apartment projects

listed in the Informe Inmobiliario property magazine. New
apartments in Laureles-Estadio generally cost from 5.0 million to 7.0
million pesos ($1,563 to $2,048) per square meter.

Existing apartments and casas in Laureles-Estadio tend to sell for

between 3.0 million to 5.0 million pesos per square meter.

Apartment buildings in Sabaneta near Aves Maria mall

4. Sabaneta
Sabaneta is located directly south of Envigado. Sabaneta is a
separate municipality from Medellín, like Envigado. Sabaneta has
been booming with developers building many apartment buildings
over the past several years. With all the new apartment buildings in
the area there are many unfurnished rentals available.

Sabaneta has a total area of about 5.8 square miles, which makes it
the smallest municipality in all of Colombia. The Sabaneta
municipality has 31 barrios (neighborhoods).

Much of the daily life in Sabaneta is centered around Parque

Sabaneta, which is a one square block plaza that is filled with trees
for shade. In addition, this park is surrounded by several small
restaurants, bars and shops.

In addition, Sabaneta has become increasingly popular with

foreigners looking for an alternative. Rentals in Sabaneta can be
much cheaper than in El Poblado, Envigado or Laureles-Estadio.

Sabaneta is more of a working-class community. 98 percent of the

housing in Sabaneta is estrato 2 to 4. And only 2 percent is estrato 1,
5 or 6.

I currently live in Sabaneta. I have lived in Sabaneta for over three

years and I hear English more and more around town as more
foreigners discover this area.

Population: 103,217

Best Barrios: Lagos de la Doctora, San Rafael, Santa Ana, Vegas de la

Doctora and near Mayorca mall and Parque Sabaneta.

Best Shopping: Mayorca

Best Restaurants: El Sombrero, El Veijo John, Mama Santa
Parrillada, Pizzeria Olivia

To Rent: for a comfortable two-bedroom unfurnished apartment in

Sabaneta, you would pay an average of 1,306,000 pesos per month
($386).

To Buy: Sabaneta has over 40 new apartment projects listed in the

Informe Inmobiliario property magazine. New apartments in
Sabaneta generally cost from 2.4 million to over 5.0 million pesos
($702 to $1,463) per square meter.

Existing apartments and casas in Sabaneta tend to sell for between

1.9 million to 4.0 million pesos per square meter.

Apartment buildings in the Loma de los Bernal barrio in Belén

5. Belén
Belén is a neighborhood that is slowing becoming more popular for
foreigners living in Medellín. Belén is located west of El Poblado on
the other side of the Medellín river. Also, Belén is located south of
Laureles-Estadio.

Belén is considered a middle-class area except that it has more of a

blue-collar feel. Belén is known as Comuna 16 and it has 22 barrios
(neighborhoods). In Belén, 98 percent of the housing in estrato 2 to 5
and only 2 percent in estrato 1.

Similar to Laureles/Estadio, in Belén you will find many tree-lined

streets lined with one-story, two-story and three-story attached
homes that are more difficult to find in El Poblado. In addition, Belén
has some areas with high-rise apartment buildings, especially in the
Loma de los Bernal barrio.

Furthermore, Belén is the comuna where I lived for over four years in
three different barrios (Fatima, Loma de Los Bernal and Los Alpes)

Population: 197,493

Best Barrios: Fátima, Loma de los Bernal, Los Alpes

Best Shopping: Mayorca

Best Restaurants: Chef Burger, Crepes & Waffles, El

Rancherito, Pizzeria Olivia

To Rent: for a comfortable two-bedroom unfurnished apartment in

Belén, you would pay an average of 1,281,000 pesos per month
($379).

To Buy: Belén only has seven new apartment projects listed in the
Informe Inmobiliario property magazine. New apartments in Belén
generally cost from 3.3 million to over 4.5 million pesos ($966 to
$1,316) per square meter.

Existing apartments and casas in Belén tend to sell for between 1.9
million to 3.5 million pesos per square meter.
Choosing a Neighborhood in Medellín
Medellín has a wide range of neighborhoods and housing available.
When choosing a neighborhood there are many things consider
including:

Cost to rent or buy property

Safety

Other costs of living

Restaurants

Nightlife

Walkability and Bike-ability

Shopping

Traffic

In the following sections, we look at each of these above categories

in detail and rank the five best neighborhoods in Medellín in this
article in each category. We rank the neighborhoods from 1 to 5 with
1 being the best. And in a few categories there are ties.

All five best neighborhoods in Medellín in the article are about equal
in terms of public transportation availability. So, this category wasn’t
included.

A. Cost to Rent or Buy Property

In general, the cost to rent or buy property will be more expensive in
El Poblado than in the other four popular neighborhoods for
foreigners.

In December 2018, we surveyed 1,000 unfurnished apartments in all

five neighborhoods popular with foreigners. And here is a
comparison of the unfurnished rental prices in these five
neighborhoods:

Average Unfurnished Apartment Rental Costs Per Square Meter by Neighborhood for
Four Years

The unfurnished apartment rental prices in El Poblado may be lower

than in many cities in the U.S. But the rental prices in El Poblado are
higher than in other four neighborhoods in Medellín.

This is due to El Poblado being primarily estrato 6 with about 74

percent of homes in El Poblado being rated as estrato 6 on a 1 to 6
scale.

Also, furnished rental apartments are more expensive in El Poblado.

We also found that furnished apartment rental costs are higher in El
Poblado. One of the findings in our early 2019 survey of 750
furnished apartments in Medellín is that El Poblado has the highest
furnished apartment rental prices in Medellín. Furnished rentals are
cheaper other neighborhoods.

In addition, El Poblado tends to have higher prices for buying

properties than in Envigado, as seen above in this article.

Many of the apartment buildings in El Poblado have nice views. But

other neighborhoods like Envigado, Sabaneta and Belén also have
apartment buildings with nice views.

Here is our ranking of the five best neighborhoods in Medellín in

terms of cost to rent or buy properties with 1 being the lowest cost
and 5 being the highest cost.
 Ranking neighborhoods in terms of cost to rent or
buy

Photos courtesy of Colombian National Police

B. Safety
We previously looked at the safest neighborhoods in Medellín in
terms of homicides and robberies.

I have seen many posts on the Internet that claim that El Poblado
and Laureles are two of the safest neighborhoods in Medellín.

The highest counts of reported robberies and thefts in the comunas

in Medellín occur in the La Candelaria comuna (El Centro). And this is
followed by Laureles-Estadio and El Poblado, which are two of the
most popular neighborhoods for foreigners in Medellín. So,
statistically El Poblado and Laureles are not really two of the safest
neighborhoods in terms of robberies.

The following three tables show robbery statistics in 2017 for the top
three comunas in Medellín with the highest counts of robberies and
also robbery statistics for Sabaneta and Envigado:

2017 Rates of robberies of persons

2017 Rates of robberies of businesses

2017 Rates of robberies of homes

These tables demonstrate that Sabaneta and Envigado have

substantially lower rates of robberies than Laureles-Estadio or El
Poblado.

In addition, Laureles-Estadio has a higher homicide rate than the

other four neighborhoods, as seen in the following table:

2018 Homicide rates in Medellín comunas and 4 municipalities

The following table is our ranking of the five best neighborhoods in

Medellín in terms of safety. Sabaneta and Envigado tie for number 1
due to both neighborhood having low rates of robberies and
homicides.
 Ranking neighborhoods in terms of safety

Sabaneta and Envigado are followed by El Poblado, which has a high

rate of robberies but a low rate of homicides. And this is followed by
Belén with a higher rate of homicides. And last is Laureles-Estadio,
which has a high rate of robberies and a rate of homicides that is
higher than the other four neighborhoods.

C. Other Costs of Living

Other costs of living include groceries, utilities (electricity, water and
gas), Internet and TV services, dining out, medical, nightlife,
entertainment and several other costs of living.

In general, El Poblado has the highest costs in the city for groceries,
utilities, Internet and TV services, dining out, nightlife and other
categories. The shops, restaurants, bars, and fitness centers in El
Poblado tend to have higher prices than in other neighborhoods.

Prices for almost everything from groceries, restaurants, nightlife,

haircare, pet services and most other services are typically more
expensive in El Poblado. This shouldn’t be surprising, as El Poblado is
considered the most affluent neighborhood in Medellín.

Belén and Sabaneta typically have the lowest costs out of these five
neighborhoods for other costs of living in my experience living in
both neighborhoods. And this is followed by Laureles-Estadio and
Envigado.
The following table is our ranking of the five best neighborhoods in
Medellín in terms of other costs of living with Belén and Sabaneta
tied for first:

Ranking of the neighborhoods in terms of other

costs of living

Food options from some of the best restaurants in Laureles

D. Restaurants
El Poblado in general has a much larger variety of restaurants than
the other four neighborhoods when it comes to modern,
international dining. There are hundreds of restaurants of all types
found in El Poblado, particularly in Parque Lleras and Provenza.

In comparison, Laureles-Estadio has more of the cheaper, traditional

Colombian food options with many restaurants with inexpensive
menú del día lunch specials. Also, Laureles-Estadio has a number of
good restaurants – just not as many as are found in El Poblado. We
previously looked at 17 of the best restaurants in Laureles.

Also, Envgado has a growing number of good restaurants – but not

as many as are found in El Poblado or Laureles-Estadio. We
previously looked at 15 of the best restaurants in Envigado.

In addition, Sabaneta has a growing number of good restaurants but

fewer than in El Poblado, Laureles-Estadio or Envigado. We
previously looked at 14 of the best restaurants in Sabaenta.

The following table is our ranking of the five best neighborhoods in

Medellín in terms of restaurants:

Ranking of the neighborhoods in terms of

restaurants

E. Nightlife
El Poblado has Parque Lleras, which is the top nightlife district in
Medellín. Parque Lleras is considered the nightlife capital of Medellín.
And it’s also a tourist attraction in an area known as Zona Rosa in the
El Poblado neighborhood.

There are well over 100 open air restaurants, bars and nightclubs
located in the streets around Parque Lleras. There are many
nightclubs, playing either a mixture of Latin music genres like
reggaetón or salsa, rock, electronica music and more. These tend to
be upscale, pricier nightclubs.

Laureles-Estadio also has nightlife options that are more local style.
Significantly less frequented by foreigners, is Calle 33 in Laureles.
Another popular nightlife area is LA 70 (Setenta), also in Laureles. In
this area you will find few foreigners and various salsa bars and small
clubs.

Also, Belén has nightlife options that are more local Colombian style.
In Belén is barrio Nueva Villa de Aburrá, which is home to La Villa.
This is a horseshoe-shaped plaza that transforms daily from a stately
promenade to a throng of music-loving youth that hosts music
festivals and was even named by Timeout as one of the hippest
neighborhoods in the world. Also, there are more nightlife options
along Avenida 80.

In addition, Envigado has nightlife options that are more local

Colombian style. In Envigado, there are several fondas and small
discos near Parque Envigado. Fondas are bars with wooden chairs
and a dance floor and also some bar food and are popular places to
drink, dance and eat.

Sabaneta is similar to Enviado with nightlife options that are more

local Colombian style. In Sabaneta, there are a few fondas near
popular Parque Sabaneta and also in the Doctora neighborhood.

The following table is our ranking of the five best neighborhoods in

Medellín in terms of nightlife:
 Ranking neighborhoods in terms of nightlife

Apartment buildings up the hills in El Poblado

F. Walkability and Bike-ability

Walkability and bike-ability of neighborhoods are important to some
foreigners. Much of El Poblado is hilly and not very walkable. For
example, El Tesoro mall is located high up the hills in El Poblado and
almost nobody walks from lower in El Poblado to El Tesoro.

Also, it’s about a 15-minute walk up-hill from the Poblado metro
station to Parque Lleras. And it’s about a 15-minute walk uphill to
the Santafé mall from the Aguacatala metro station.
If you live in El Poblado you will need to contend with the hills. But
not all of El Poblado is hilly. For example, Avenida Poblado where the
Santafé and Oviedo malls are located is flat and walkable. Also, the
Ciudad del Rio neighborhood is flat and walkable.

Envigado is also hilly. Similar to El Poblado, as you go east in

Envigado you are going up hills.  But there are some parts of Enviado
that are flat. For example, the area along Avenida Las Vegas in
Envigado is flat. Also, similar to El Poblado it is a walk uphill from
metro stations in Envigado to many of the neighborhoods in
Envigado.

In comparison, Laureles-Estadio is very flat. So, it is considered the

most walkable area. Sabaneta is also mostly flat with less than 30
apartment buildings located up the hills in Sabaneta to the east. So,
Sabaneta is very walkable.

In addition, Belén is mostly flat except for some barrios to the west
such as Loma de los Bernal.

In terms of bike-ability, generally Laureles-Estatadio, Belén and

Sabaneta are considered more bike-able than El Poblado or Envigado
due to the hills.

The following table ranks the five best neighborhoods in Medellín in

terms of walkability and bike-ability:

Ranking neighborhoods in terms of walkability and

 bike-ability

The Santafé mall in El Poblado in Medellín

G. Shopping
El Poblado has more shopping options than the other
neighborhoods. El Poblado has three of the most upscale malls in
Medellín: Santafé, El Tesoro and Oviedo.

Santafé has about 460 shops

El Tesoro has about 400 shops

Oviedo has about 320 shops

In comparison, Envigado has the largest mall in Colombia, Viva

Envigado mall, with about 400 shops. Also, in Envigado are the
smaller City Plaza mall with less than 90 shops and the Terracina
Plaza with less than 70 shops.
 The Viva Envigado Mall in Envigado

Sabaneta has one large mall, Mayorca Mega Plaza, with about 400
shops. Also, in Sabaneta is the smaller Aves Maria mall with less than
90 shops.

In comparison, Laureles-Estadio only has the older and

smaller Unicentro mall with about 270 shops and the even smaller
Viva Laureles mall with 90 shops.

In addition, Belén has one Western-style mall, Los Molinos mall, with

about 160 shops.  Also, in Belén a new mall, Arkadia mall, is currently
being constructed in the La Mota barrio of Belén across the street
from PriceSmart and next to Clínica las Américas. This new mall is
expected to open in late 2019.

However, keep in mind that while the El Poblado malls are larger
with a wider selection of stores, they tend to have prices that are
higher than can be found in other malls in Medellín.

The following table ranks the five best neighborhoods in Medellín in

terms of shopping:
 Ranking neighborhoods in terms of shopping

Traffic in Medellín near the Bancolombia headquarters in El Poblado during rush hour

H. Traffic
Some of the worst traffic in Medellín in my experience is found in El
Poblado. Avenida Poblado and Calle 10 tend to have bad traffic
during rush hour and even during lunch hour. And it can be very
difficult to go to or from El Tesoro mall up the hills in El Poblado
during rush hour.

Traffic is one of the downsides of living in Medellín we previously

looked at. And traffic reportedly is the biggest concern of expats
living in the city.
In my over eight years living in Medellín the worst traffic in the city I
have encountered has tended to be El Poblado and El Centro.

And this is followed by traffic in Envigado that has become much

worse over the past few years.  In comparison, Laureles-Estadio,
Belén and Sabaneta tend to have less traffic. And Sabaneta is so
small (only about 5.8 square miles) that you can walk many places.

I have lived over three years in Sabaneta and travel through

Envigado often going to El Poblado. While traffic has increased with
the growth of Envigado, I haven’t experienced nowhere near as much
traffic in Envigado as I have experienced in El Poblado.

The following table ranks the five best neighborhoods in Medellín in

terms of traffic in the neighborhood based on my experiences – note
this isn’t traffic going between neighborhoods:

Ranking neighborhoods in terms of traffic

What is the Best Neighborhood in Medellín?

The answer to this question depends on your priorities. Each
neighborhood has pros and cons.

If you equally weigh the eight categories in this article, Sabaneta

would edge out the other neighborhoods followed by Laureles-
Estadio, as seen in the following table:
 Ranking the best neighborhoods in Medellín

But if your most important categories are availability of shopping,

nightlife and restaurants, El Poblado would win. El Poblado is the
most popular neighborhood for foreigner visitors and also is the
most popular neighborhood for expats living in the city.

But El Poblado has several downsides. So, many foreigners living in

the city have decided to live in other neighborhoods in the city
including Laureles-Estadio, Envigado, Sabaneta and Belén.

A majority of foreigners living in Medellín live in the five

neighborhoods in this article. But I also have met foreigners living in
Buenos Aires, Bello, La Candelaria (El Centro), La América, La Estrella,
Itagüí, Robledo and several other neighborhoods in the city.

Medellin Guru’s Guide to Renting and Buying

Apartments and Choosing a Neighborhood
On the Medellin Guru website, we have a comprehensive and up-to-
date guide to renting apartments, buying apartments and choosing a
neighborhood in Medellín found in several articles, including:

Renting Unfurnished Apartments:

Apartment Rental Guide: Renting Unfurnished Apartments in

Medellín

Guide to Finding Unfurnished Apartments in Medellín and Casas

Guide to Overcoming the Fiador (Cosigner) Requirement in

Colombia

2018 Unfurnished Apartment Rental Costs in Medellín

6 Inexpensive Neighborhoods for Unfurnished Rentals in Medellín

Furnishing Apartments: A Guide to Furnishing Apartments in

Medellín

Apartment vs Casa (House) Rentals in Medellín: Pros and Cons

Renting Furnished Apartments: 

Furnished Apartment Rental Costs in Medellín – 2019 Survey

Results

Guide to Finding a Furnished Room for Rent in Medellín

Buying Apartments:

Medellín Real Estate: 2020 Property Buyer’s Guide for Foreigners

Current Costs to Buy New Apartments in Medellín – 2019 Update

Rent vs Buy: Downsides of Renting and Buying Property in

Medellín

11 Things Real Estate Agents in Colombia May Not Tell You

How to Obtain an Investment Visa for Investments in Real Estate

Choosing a Neighborhood in Medellín:

Also, we have several articles that can be used to help foreigners
choose a neighborhood in Medellín:

What are the Safest Neighborhoods in Medellín and the Aburrá

Valley?

5 Best Neighborhoods in Medellín: A Guide to Choosing a

Neighborhood

8 Downsides of El Poblado: Living in Medellín’s Expensive

Neighborhood

Estratos: A Guide to Understanding Estratos in Colombia

El Poblado vs Laureles: Which is the Better Neighborhood to Live

in?

El Poblado vs Envigado: Which is the Better Neighborhood to Live

in?

El  Poblado vs Sabaneta: Which is the Better Neighborhood to Live

in?

El Poblado vs Belén: Which is the Better Neighborhood to Live in?

2018 Unfurnished Apartment Rental Costs in Medellín in 5

Neighborhoods Popular with Expats

6 Inexpensive Neighborhoods for Unfurnished Rentals in Medellín

 Medellin Guru partnered With RE/MAX for real estate services

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bilingual and speak both English and Spanish.

To use this real estate partner service from RE/MAX, just click on the
button below.

 Buy or Sell Real Estate in Colombia with RE/MAX

Fill out a very short form and RE/MAX offers a free consultation to
provide information about the local market, current pricing
information and tips for buying or selling properties.

The Bottom Line: Best Neighborhoods in

Medellín – A Guide to Choosing a Neighborhood
The bottom line is you have many neighborhood choices in Medellín
and the Aburrá Valley and to each his own, everyone’s priorities are
different. The different neighborhoods in Medellín offer a wide range
of amenities and a wide range of cost-of-living.

The five neighborhoods in this article are currently the most popular
for foreigners living in Medellín and are expected to remain the most
popular with foreigners.

El Poblado remains the most popular neighborhood for foreigners

out of all of the Medellín neighborhoods. And El Poblado is expected
to continue being the most popular neighborhood for foreigners for
the foreseeable future.

However, many expats have discovered other Medellín

neighborhoods besides El Poblado. I have lived in several
neighborhoods other than El Poblado in over eight years living in the
city.
 No neighborhood is perfect and each neighborhood has benefits and
downsides. Also, we recommend trying out a neighborhood on a trial
basis before deciding to live there. You can easily do this by renting
furnished apartments.

Finally, where you decide to live can have a big impact on your cost
of living in Medellín and the Aburrá Valley.

Sign up for the Free Medellin Guru Newsletter – You can see all of
the previous Medellin Guru weekly email newsletters and sign up
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Join the October 2019 Medellin La Octava Maravilla: A Popular

Guru Meetup at 20Mission Cerveza Restaurant with a View in Sabaneta

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jeff

Jeff is the founder and editor-in-chief of Medellin

Guru. He first discovered Colombia back in 2006 and
 has traveled to all the major cities in Colombia. Jeff is
fortunate to have lived over eight years in Medellín.
He has traveled to over 40 countries and hasn’t
found a place he prefers living in more than
Medellín.

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July 26, 2019
 July 26, 2019

17 Comments

John on September 21, 2019 at 12:19 am

Jeff you are truly a star. Fantastic information. My only comment is

that when you talk about the individual area. The rental cost is
very helpful. But your figures to buy based on per square metre
are totally meaningless to me. Perhaps this an American thing but
in the UK or Australia, there is no concept of what a square metre
is. Indeed the UK is still old fashioned feet and inches. Also I get
confused when people talk about millions. Sometimes meaning
pesos other times dollars. I would be most grateful if for buying
you couid provide a range. For example a typical appartment in
Poblado can cost from $nnn, nnn to $nnn, nnn. For example.
Whereas Sabaneta is lower at $nnn, nnn. Also I then have to
convert from US dollars to Australian dollars, Thanks so much.
John. Aka Jo Elgas Facebook.

REPLY

Jeff on September 21, 2019 at 12:36 am

Hi John, thanks for the comment. We plan to look at buying

in more detail in the future with prices per square meter
and we’ll add per square feet. And hopefully the price
differences based on age of the property.

REPLY
 John and Susan Pazera on September 26, 2019 at 10:01 am

That will be great!

REPLY

Fabi G Johns on September 26, 2019 at 2:27 pm

Thank you so much for your thorough and

insightful articles.
You have truly been a blessing to me and my
family in deciding many of our decisions as we
embark in a new adventure in Medellin.

Thanks again,
Fabi Johns

REPLY

John on September 21, 2019 at 1:35 am

Thanks. Just a broad based figure ranges would be helpful.

REPLY

geoffrey on September 21, 2019 at 9:32 am

The adjustment to metric was, and still is something of a

challenge for me too. But listings will tell you the sq. meters
only so including that data can be of help when analyzing
the relative value of properties on the market.

REPLY

Jeff on September 21, 2019 at 5:17 pm

To convert square meters to square feet, multiply the

 square meters by 10.764.

REPLY

Sandra on September 26, 2019 at 2:05 pm

Get an area converter app for your phone. It will give

you instant results!

REPLY

Tom on September 21, 2019 at 9:35 am

Very interesting article. I looked at apartments in El Poblado and

other neighborhoods like Laureles, Envigado and Sabaneta. The
prices per square meter were much cheaper in Sabaneta than the
other neighborhoods. Also, El Poblado looks to have too much
supply as there are so many for sale signs on windows and so
many properties listed on Espacio Urbano. You mentioned over 35
new projects in El Poblado. I recall several years ago when a gringo
real estate agent in Medellin said “Poblado is done” with nowhere
else to build. LOL, since that time they continued to build and they
are now building 35+ new expensive properties in Poblado.

REPLY

Peter on September 21, 2019 at 12:15 pm

LOL. I just looked for “Poblado is done” and found this post
written by Brad Hinkelman at Casacol in 2014 –
http://blog.casacol.co/blog/poblado-is-done/.

Shows a complete lack of knowledge about the real estate

market in Medellin. The builders continued to build in El
Poblado over the past several years and are still building 5
years later with over 35 projects currently in the El Poblado
 area. Poblado was not “done”.

It looks more like Laureles and Belen are “done” based on

the above post with only a few new projects in each.

REPLY

Dave on September 21, 2019 at 1:49 pm

“Poblado Done” way back in 2014 what a joke. Also,

beware of Casacol that pushes high priced properties
for sale and also has many high priced furnished
rentals. You can easily find cheaper furnished rentals
on Airbnb.

I agree that Poblado has too much inventory. There

are so many apartments for sale and for rent. I
wonder how long it take to sell in Poblado, I bet it’s a
long time.

I looked at overpriced properties in El Poblado and

decided to buy a nice apartment in Sabaneta for
about half the price per square meter. El Poblado is
overrated — too expensive, too hilly and too much
traffic.

REPLY

Russ on September 21, 2019 at 11:28 pm

Thanks for this interesting article that obviously took a lot of work.
This should be required reading for any newbie to Medellin.

Also, be careful of real estate companies pushing properties in El

Poblado that may be cheap compared to the U.S. but are
expensive for Medellin.
 REPLY

Jeannie on September 22, 2019 at 9:29 am

As always Jeff, you write remarkable, honest and very informative

articles. Great job Sir!

REPLY

Gerry Galster on September 24, 2019 at 12:21 pm

Jeff, Great article with a lot of good information. I used you guide
to apply for a retirement visa which I got this year. I have only
rented furnished apartments so far but may look for a
unfurnished in the future.
thanks again for your hard work.
I have a question I got the visa and also a cedilla do also need to
get health insurance here? is that a requirement?

REPLY

John and Susan Pazera on September 26, 2019 at 10:08 am

Hi Jeff,
This is surely one of your best posts. #1 in the top 10. You put a lot
of work into this and it shows! Very informative and a must-read
for anyone considering moving here. The only request is that they
move to Sabanete and not here in Laureles!

Cheers,
John and Susan

REPLY

Jeff on September 26, 2019 at 5:54 pm

 Hi John and Susan, thanks!

LOL about your request that they move to Sabanete and not
to Laureles. I’m sure this article will help some decide on
Sabaneta. Today I met one expat in Parque Sabaneta who
recognized me and said articles on this site helped him
decide on Sabaneta.

REPLY

Nolan on December 14, 2019 at 2:58 pm

Very well written Jeff!! After living here for several years now, it’s
nice to read through this and see someone else’s perspective—
especially seeing how you’ve broken it down. I see how the
numbers add up, but really? Sabaneta? One thing I don’t think
you’ve stressed enough is the fact that most developments in both
Sabaneta and even Envigado are way up in the hills. Yes, you’ll get
more bang for your buck, but it can often be hellish trying to hail
an Uber or order something from Rappi. Also, let’s be honest,
traffic is an issue everywhere. If you plan to dine out somewhere
nice or meet with friends on the weekends and you live in
Sabeneta that usually means trekking through 3 municipalities of
traffic and a much longer commute. That’s what’s kept my wife
and I from moving there. Regardless, this is a very solid overview
and it’s awesome to see the detail you’ve put into this. Great work!!

REPLY

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