Think twice.
Numbeo's Safety Index puts Medellin at 46/100 for crime — that makes it read about the same as than Colombia's national picture overall (45/100 vs 45/100).
City page · part of Colombia
The one number a country page can't give you
What people who actually live in Medellin report
Numbeo aggregates thousands of resident-submitted perception surveys into a per-city Crime Index (higher = worse) and its inverse, a Safety Index — the only real city-granularity crime signal feeding this page, alongside Colombia's national advisory, political, health, and police-trust data.
Crime Index
54.1
Safety Index
45.9
Sub-scores
Same real inputs as Colombia's national page, with crime swapped for Medellin's own Numbeo number above.
Local know-how
Staying safe in Medellin, specifically
- • Medellín is generally a safe city for tourism, depending on the part of town you visit and the hours and is much safer than in previous years.
- • A scam that has become increasingly common as of 2024 involves young men matching with local women on Tinder and going on a date with them.
- • Don't travel alone after dark.…
Legal status (national law)
Legal since 1981+ UN decl. sign.
Source: Wikipedia — LGBTQ rights by country →Pack this, know this
The little things that trip people up
Plug & voltage
A / B · 120V
Driving side
right
Emergency
police: 112 / ambulance: 125 / fire: 119
Tipping
A service charge of 10% is generally added to the bill in nice restaurants (if it's not, you should add it yourself). Tipping taxi drivers is not common. Most "tipping" is merely rounding up to the nearest thousand pesos (e.g., rounding up your cafe bill to COP$7,000 from COP$6,700). Private tour guides do not need to be tipped, but it is common to do so, if you liked the guide.
SIM / Data
Carriers: It's simple enough to get a SIM card and even an unlocked phone at the international airport in Bogotá, although there is, of course, a price hike. They're not hard to find in any city either, just ask your hotel or hostel staff where to go. Topping up is also easy, and can be done pretty much on any street corner.
Cash vs. Card
The currency of Colombia is the Colombian peso, but the symbol you will encounter is $ (ISO code: COP). Wikivoyage uses the notation "COP$" for clarity.
How this compares to Colombia
Numbeo's Safety Index puts Medellin at 46/100 for crime — that makes it read about the same as than Colombia's national picture overall (45/100 vs 45/100).
See the full Colombia page and all receipts →