The Best Medellín Neighborhoods (2016 Update)
An article about the best Medellín neighborhoods written back in 2013 is one of the most popular articles on this website. Unfortunately the information in that post is out-of-date and it has several inaccuracies. So I have written this 2016 update to the popular Medellín neighborhoods article.
I have lived in Medellín for over six years. During this time I have lived in six different barrios in the Medellín metro area. I have also previously written extensively about renting in many different Medellín neighborhoods .
In this post I will tell you my five favorite districts in the Medellín metropolitan area. By districts, I mean comunas and suburbs (suburbs are separate municipalities in the metro). There are 22 districts in the Medellín metro. If you’re looking for the best things to do in each neighborhood in Medellin from another expat’s perspective, check out this link.
Understanding Estratos
When looking at Medellín neighborhoods it is important to understand the estrato system. Residential properties in Colombia are ranked on a 1-6 socioeconomic scale (with 6 being the highest). These are known as estratos or strata.
Understanding estratos is very important, as this is a factor for housing costs and also for utilities costs. Households in lower estrato neighborhoods pay a lower rate for gas, electric, water and triple play TV/Internet/phone services.
Estrato 6 is considered a wealthy area for Colombians and estrato 5 is an upper middle class area. While estratos 3 and 4 are considered Colombian middle class areas. And estratos 1 and 2 are generally poor areas.
Residents in estatos 5 and 6 pay more for utilities to help subsidize lower utility rates in estratos 1 and 2.
Note that Colombian middle class is not the same as middle class in the U.S. Middle class in Colombia may be a Colombian household earning only $1,000 USD per month or even less. Many households in Colombia also have multiple people earning a living to make ends meet due to typically low pay.
In the Medellín metro area only 3.4% of homes are ranked as estrato 6 and 7.2% of homes are ranked as estrato 5. A total of 43.8% of homes in Medellín are classified as estratos 3 or 4. And 45.5% are classified as estratos 1 or 2. The vast majority of the homes in Medellín (76.4% of homes) are in estratos 2-4.
1. El Poblado
El Poblado is the most popular of the Medellín neighborhoods for foreigners. It is a comfortable place to live with all the shopping malls, nightlife and restaurants nearby.
The majority of the hotels and rental apartments in Medellín are also located in El Poblado. So this is where most expat visitors to the city stay.
A majority of the housing found in El Poblado is found in high-rise apartments. Some of these high-rises can have spectacular views of the city. The comuna also has some streets lined with one-story, two-story and three-story attached homes located in certain neighborhoods like Provenza and Manila.
El Poblado is a wealthy neighborhood that offers a Western lifestyle, which is why it is expected to remain popular with foreigners.
El Poblado is known as Comuna 14 and it has 22 barrios (neighborhoods). 93 percent of the homes in El Poblado are classified as estrato 5 or 6.
But El Poblado is primarily an estrato 6 area with 74 percent of the home in El Poblado ranked as estrato 6. Consequently El Pobaldo has some of the most expensive real estate in the city.
Also 95 percent of all the estrato 6 homes located in Medellín are located in El Poblado. The average estrato of all homes in El Pobaldo is 5.6.
The first furnished apartment I rented in Medellín as a trial of living in the city was located in El Poblado.
Best shopping: Santafé, Oviedo and El Tesoro
Best barrios: El Poblado, Astorga and Alejandria. Also Provenza, which is a neighborhood that isn’t an official barrio but is popular for it’s walk-ability, restaurants and cafes
Best restaurants: Carmen, Restaurante Barcal, La Provincia, Oci.Mde, Toscano
To rent: a comfortable two-bedroom unfurnished apartment, you would pay: 1.3 million to 3.0 million pesos ($439 – $1,112) per month with an average rental of this size costing 2.15 million pesos ($726).
Unfurnished rentals in El Poblado typically take about 11 months for owners to rent due to high prices and a big inventory.
To buy: El Poblado has over 40 new apartment projects listed in the free Informe Inmobiliario property magazine. You can find this magazine distributed in many places like Exito stores. New apartments in El Poblado generally cost from 4.3 million to over 5.3 million pesos ($1,451 to $1,788) per square meter.
Existing apartments in El Poblado tend to sell for between 2.5 million to 4.5 million pesos per square meter. They average around 3.2 million pesos ($1,080) per square meter based on a survey of 50 properties sized from 70-100 square meters.
In general El Poblado is the most expensive area in Medellín for both buying property and renting unfurnished apartments.
2. Envigado
Directly south of El Poblado is Envigado, which is a separately administered municipality within the Medellín metro area. With its proximity to El Poblado, Envigado is probably the second most popular area of the Medellín metropolitan area for foreigners to live after El Poblado.
Envigado is primarily a residential community – you won’t find many hotels in Envigado like are found throughout El Poblado. Envigado is larger than El Poblado with a population of over 200,000 – compared to a population of less than 130,000 in El Poblado.
Throughout most of Envigado you will quiet streets lined with one-story, two-story and three-story attached homes that are more difficult to find in El Poblado. Envigado also has put in place some height restrictions, which makes it difficult for many of these low-rise buildings from being replaced with high-rises.
In Envigado, you will also find some neighborhoods similar to El Poblado with high-rise apartment buildings.
Envigado has over 40 barrios (neighborhoods). 76.8 percent of the homes in Envigado are classified as estrato 3, 4 or 5. Less than 3 percent of homes in Envigado are classified as estrato 6. And 20.8 percent of homes are classified as estrato 1 or 2. The average estrato of all homes in Envigado is 3.4.
Best shopping: City Plaza (which is the only Western-style mall in Envigado). But a new larger mall is being built next to the Envigado Exito
Best barrios: Bosques de Zuñiga, Jardines, Zuñiga
Best restaurants: Carbone E Pasta, Chiclayo, Contenedores Food Place, Lucio Carbon y Vino
To rent: a comfortable two-bedroom unfurnished apartment, you would pay: 800,000 to 3.3 million pesos ($270 – $1,114) per month with an average rental of this size costing 1.57 million pesos ($530). Envigado unfurnished apartment rentals are 14.7 percent cheaper on average than in El Poblado for similar size apartments.
To buy: Envigado has less than 20 new apartment projects listed in the Informe Inmobiliario property magazine. New apartments in Envigado generally cost from 3 million to over 4.6 million pesos ($1,012 to $1,552) per square meter.
Existing apartments in Envigado tend to sell for between 2.0 million to 4.2 million pesos per square meter. They average around 2.8 million pesos ($945) per square meter based on a survey of 50 properties sized from 70-100 square meters. In general properties in Envigado tend to be about 10% cheaper than in El Poblado.
3. Laureles-Estadio
Laureles-Estadio is primarily a residential community – you won’t find that many hotels in the area like are found throughout El Poblado. Laureles-Estadio is a bit smaller than El Poblado with a population of about 121,000. The comuna of Laureles-Estadio is located north of Belén and west of the Medellín River
Throughout most of Laureles-Estadio you will quiet tree-lined streets lined with one-story, two-story and three-story attached homes that are more difficult to find in El Poblado. The comuna also has a few areas with high-rise apartment buildings.
Laureles-Estadio has long been considered an upper-middle class neighborhood of Medellín.
Laureles-Estadio is home of Estadio Atanasio Giradot, which is where Atlético Nacional and Independiente Medellin play fútbol matches. Near the stadium is a large sports complex that has an Olympic size pool; velodrome; basketball, volleyball and tennis courts and many other arenas.
Laureles-Estadio also has two popular nightlife areas – the La 70 (Setenta) entertainment district that is lined with bars and restaurants and Calle 33, which has a bit more laid-back bars.
Laureles-Estadio is known as Comuna 11 and it has 15 barrios (neighborhoods). 99% of the homes in this comuna are classified as estrato 4 or 5 and only 1% of homes are classified as estrato 2 or 3. It has no homes classified as estrato 1 or estrato 6. The average estrato of all homes in Laureles-Estadio is 4.6.
The first unfurnished apartment I rented in Medellín six years ago was located in Estadio and I enjoyed living there.
A recent article in El Colombiano newspaper indicated that Laureles-Estadio was the most popular apartment rental area in Medellín. It represented about 32 percent of all space leased in the first half of the year.
Best shopping: Unicentro
Best neighborhoods: Laureles, Suramericana, UPB
Best restaurants: Il Massimo, Kusi, La Pampa, Opera Pizza, Sushi House
To rent: a comfortable two-bedroom unfurnished apartment, you would pay: 700,000 to 2.0 million pesos ($236 – $675) per month with an average rental of this size costing 1.2 million pesos ($405). Laureles-Estadio unfurnished apartment rentals are 24.1 percent cheaper on average than in El Poblado for similar-sized apartments.
To buy: Laureles-Estadio only has eight new apartment projects listed in the Informe Inmobiliario property magazine due to the cumuna being essentially fully built-out and not having space to build. New apartments in Laureles-Estadio (when they can be found) generally cost from 3.0 million to over 4.4 million pesos ($1012 to $1,485) per square meter.
Existing apartments in Laureles-Estadio tend to sell for between 1.7 million to 3.3 million pesos per square meter. They average around 2.4 million pesos ($810) per square meter based on a survey of 50 properties sized from 70-100 square meters.
4. Belén
Belén is similar to Laureles/Estadio, it’s a middle-class area except that it has more of a blue-collar feel. At one time, it was a little dangerous, and there are a few parts that still are, but for the most part it’s just a place with families trying to carve out a life in the city.
Belén is located directly south of Laureles, its northern neighbor across Calle 33, so you’ll have an easy time crossing over. Belén is much larger than El Poblado with a population of over 200,000.
Similar to Laureles/Estadio, in Belén you will find many quiet tree-lined streets lined with one-story, two-story and three-story attached homes that are more difficult to find in El Poblado. Belén also has a few areas with high-rise apartment buildings, especially in Loma de los Bernal.
You won’t be bored here either, not with a big park in the comuna as well as one of Medellín’s most underrated attractions — Pueblito Paisa, the mini replica of an old Antioquian town that sits atop the Cerro Nutibara.
Belén is known as Comuna 16 and it has 22 barrios (neighborhoods). 81 percent of the homes in this comuna are classified as estrato 3, 4 or 5. Belén has no homes classified as estrato 6. The average estrato of all homes in Belén is 3.5.
I lived for four years in Belén and enjoyed it. A recent article in El Colombiano newspaper indicated that Belén was the second most popular apartment rental area in Medellín. It represented about 20 perecent of the total space leased in the first half of the year.
Best shopping: Los Molinos
Best neighborhoods: Fátima, Loma de los Bernal, Los Alpes
Best restaurants: El Rancherito, Crepes and Waffles, Il Forno, Parmessano
To rent: a comfortable two-bedroom unfurnished apartment, you would pay: 840,000 to 1.55 million pesos ($283 – $523) per month with an average rental of this size costing 1.14 million pesos ($385). Belén apartment rentals are 27.1 percent cheaper on average than in El Poblado for similar size apartments.
To buy: Belén has only 11 new apartment projects listed in the Informe Inmobiliario property magazine due to the area being nearly fully built-out and not having much space to build.
Most of the new projects in Belén are in Loma de los Bernal, which is a barrio that has been booming with many new apartments built over the past few years.
New apartments in Belén generally cost from 2.9 million to over 4.4 million pesos ($979 to $1,485) per square meter.
Existing apartments in Belén tend to sell for between 1.6 million to 3.2 million pesos per square meter. They average roughly around 2.2 million pesos ($742) per square meter based on a survey of 50 properties.
5. Sabaneta
Sabaneta is a separately administered municipality within the Medellín metro area. It is located directly south of Envigado. Sabaneta is much smaller than El Poblado with a population of about 55,000
However, Sabaneta in recent years has been growing much faster than El Poblado. Sabaneta has a total area of about 5.8 square miles, which makes it the smallest municipality in Colombia. Due to its small size Sabaneta is a very walk-able municipality.
Sabaneta is primarily a residential community. In Sabaneta, you will find several neighborhoods similar to El Poblado with high-rise apartment buildings but they tend to be a bit more spread out. Also in Sabaneta you can find some quiet streets lined with one-story, two-story and three-story attached homes.
Much of the daily life in Sabaneta is centered around Parque Sabaneta, which is a nice one square block-sized plaza with a church on one side that is filled with trees and surrounded by shops, stalls, restaurants and bars.
Sabaneta has 31 barrios (neighborhoods). 67.2 percent of the homes in Sabaneta are classified as estrato 3 or 4. Less than one percent of homes in Sabaneta are classified as estrato 5 or 6. But with a boom of apartment construction currently going on in Sabaneta neighborhood ratings can change fairly quickly. The average estrato of all homes in Sabaneta is 2.8.
I currently live in Sabaneta, where I have lived for a year and a half. Out of the neighborhoods I have lived in Medellín I have liked living in Sabaneta the best. I now plan to live in Sabaneta for the foreseeable future.
In 2015, Sabaneta was reportedly even ranked the best neighborhood to live in the Medellín metro area.
Best shopping: Mayorca
Best barrios: Lagos de la Doctora, Vegas de la Doctura, Vegas de San Jose as well as the areas within walking distance to Aves Maria mall and Parque Sabaneta
Best restaurants: El Sombrero, El Viejo John, La Doctora, Pizza en Leña, Restaurante Mama Santa
To rent: a comfortable two-bedroom unfurnished apartment, you would pay: 700,000 to 1.7 million pesos ($236 – $574) per month with an average rental of this size costing 1.1 million pesos ($371). Sabaneta unfurnished apartment rentals are 28.3 percent cheaper on average than in El Poblado for similar size apartments.
To buy: Sabaneta is booming with over 50 new apartment projects listed in the Informe Inmobiliario property magazine. New apartments in Sabaneta generally cost from 2.8 million to over 4.4 million pesos ($945 to $1,485) per square meter.
Existing apartments in Sabaneta tend to sell for between 1.7 million to 3.4 million pesos per square meter. They average roughly around 2.4 million pesos ($810) per square meter based on a survey of 50 properties.
The Bottom Line – The Best Medellín Neighborhoods
El Poblado remains the most popular neighborhood for foreigners out of all of the Medellín neighborhoods. El Poblado is expected to remain the most popular neighborhood for foreigners for the foreseeable future.
However keep in mind that the wealthy El Poblado comuna represents only about 4.3 percent of the housing in the Medellín metro area. El Poblado also remains the most expensive area to live in the city.
Many expats have discovered other Medellín neighborhoods besides El Poblado. I have lived in several neighborhoods other than El Poblado in over six years living in the city.
Is Medellin safe you might ask? I have never encountered a security problem anywhere I have lived in the city (knock on wood). But I am also safety conscious and take care not to flash cellphones/cameras/money plus I take taxis at night. I also don’t go to certain parts of the city after dark. I even installed security doors in two apartments.
Other neighborhoods in the city like Envigado, Laureles-Estadio, Belén and Sabaneta can offer quality lifestyles for a substantially lower cost than in El Poblado.
I have also met a few expats that live in other even less expensive neighborhoods in Medellín. This includes Bello, La Candelaria and La Estrella where apartment rentals can be 30 percent to over 40 percent less expensive than in El Poblado.
The bottom line is to each his own and Medellín offers many different neighborhoods with a wide range of amenities and costs-of-living.
