Cost of living comparison
Colombo is 34.8% more expensive than Chennai.
- Restaurants
-
pay 80.0% more in Colombo
- Groceries
-
pay 2.2 times more in Colombo
- Transportation
-
pay 12.1% more in Colombo
- Housing
-
pay 52.0% more in Colombo
- Childcare
-
pay 62.4% less in Colombo
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 30.1% more in Colombo
- Clothing
-
pay 13.1% more in Colombo
The cost of groceries, restaurants, housing, entertainment and sports, clothing, and transportation in Colombo are more expensive than in Chennai. Notably, groceries and restaurants are significantly more expensive in Colombo.
If you lived in Colombo instead of Chennai, you would:
pay 80.0% more for restaurants
|
Chennai
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$1.78
₹152.53
|
$3.40
LKR1,019.14
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$4.45
₹382.17
|
$7.48
LKR2,242.11
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.43
₹37.26
|
$0.74
LKR221.66
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.20
₹17.56
|
$0.39
LKR117.20
|
|
pay 2.2 times more for groceries
|
Chennai
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$0.54
₹46.33
|
$0.57
LKR170.84
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$3.76
₹323.03
|
$6.94
LKR2,080.21
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$2.45
₹209.95
|
$6.54
LKR1,961.34
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$0.93
₹79.63
|
$2.22
LKR665.06
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.61
₹138.53
|
$2.38
LKR714.06
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.27
₹108.78
|
$3.28
LKR982.64
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.41
₹34.99
|
$0.51
LKR153.03
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.63
₹53.73
|
$2.65
LKR793.40
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.26
₹22.08
|
$0.53
LKR158.82
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.23
₹19.64
|
$0.51
LKR152.48
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.24
₹20.51
|
$0.55
LKR163.66
|
|
pay 12.1% more for transportation
|
Chennai
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.63
₹396.98
|
$4.84
LKR1,450.30
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$11.85
₹1,016.84
|
$6.80
LKR2,038.28
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$17,776.60
₹1,525,263.21
|
$35,303.89
LKR10,588,871.29
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$3.56
₹305.05
|
$3.13
LKR937.61
|
|
pay 52.0% more for housing
|
Chennai
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$10.05
₹862.39
|
$16.40
LKR4,918.57
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$195.87
₹16,806.28
|
$297.60
LKR89,259.73
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$116.42
₹9,988.98
|
$180.09
LKR54,014.35
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$31.71
₹2,720.47
|
$43.85
LKR13,151.09
|
|
pay 62.4% less for childcare
|
Chennai
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$84.21
₹7,225.45
|
$28.60
LKR8,577.77
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$1,425.36
₹122,298.38
|
$586.98
LKR176,056.55
|
|
pay 30.1% more for entertainment and sports
|
Chennai
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.01
₹172.86
|
$2.04
LKR611.48
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$1.83
₹157.39
|
$2.59
LKR777.01
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.21
₹360.98
|
$9.34
LKR2,802.64
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$19.49
₹1,672.21
|
$13.89
LKR4,164.76
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$2.96
₹254.21
|
$3.40
LKR1,019.14
|
|
pay 13.1% more for clothing
|
Chennai
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$26.09
₹2,238.74
|
$29.69
LKR8,905.25
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$24.99
₹2,143.84
|
$22.31
LKR6,692.36
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$47.54
₹4,079.10
|
$68.77
LKR20,626.52
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$35.84
₹3,075.18
|
$37.51
LKR11,249.74
|
|
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