Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ankara and Badulla

For one person, living is cheaper in Badulla: $547 a month against $1,389 in Ankara, rent and utilities included – about $10,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Ankara, Turkey
Badulla, Sri Lanka
Ankara
🇹🇷 Turkey
$1,389
/mo nomad
Badulla
🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
$547
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ankara and in Badulla

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Ankara and in Badulla actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,389 per month in Ankara vs $547 in Badulla, rent included.

  • Ankara $1,389
  • Badulla $547

A couple spends around $2,087 per month in Ankara vs $883 in Badulla, rent included.

  • Ankara $2,087
  • Badulla $883

A family of three spends $2,785 per month in Ankara vs $1,219 in Badulla, rent included.

  • Ankara $2,785
  • Badulla $1,219

Ankara costs about 154% more than Badulla, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Ankara sits 3% above the global median, while Badulla is 60% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Ankara
Badulla
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.10 ₺507
$3.84 LKR 1,275
163.02%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$43.81 ₺2,197
$24.93 LKR 8,289
75.73%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.78 ₺490
$7.54 LKR 2,506
29.71%
Cappuccino
$4.12 ₺207
$2.47 LKR 823
66.80%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.68 ₺84.3
$0.68 LKR 227
147.06%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.72 ₺36.05
$0.27 LKR 90.6
166.67%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$5.02 ₺252
$2.26 LKR 752
122.12%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$6.60 ₺331
$3.02 LKR 1,006
118.54%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Ankara
Badulla
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.16 ₺58.4
$1.62 LKR 539
-28.40%
White Bread (500g)
$0.96 ₺48.39
$0.57 LKR 190
68.42%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.25 ₺113
$0.61 LKR 203
268.85%
Eggs
$2.66 ₺134
$1.65 LKR 548
61.21%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.09 ₺506
$15.15 LKR 5,036
-33.40%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.43 ₺272
$3.70 LKR 1,230
46.76%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$19.99 ₺1,003
$7.60 LKR 2,528
163.03%
Apples (1kg)
$1.91 ₺95.8
$6.61 LKR 2,198
-71.10%
Banana (1kg)
$2.18 ₺109
$0.89 LKR 296
144.94%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.26 ₺63.3
$4.27 LKR 1,420
-70.49%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.65 ₺82.6
$1.26 LKR 420
30.95%
Potato (1kg)
$0.65 ₺32.69
$1.09 LKR 362
-40.37%
Onion (1kg)
$0.55 ₺27.40
$0.79 LKR 261
-30.38%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.99 ₺49.75
$1.22 LKR 405
-18.85%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.66 ₺32.90
$0.46 LKR 152
43.48%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.25 ₺113
$10.15 LKR 3,374
-77.83%
Wine (Bottle)
$12.37 ₺620
$13.31 LKR 4,426
-7.06%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.12 ₺106
$1.91 LKR 634
10.99%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.20 ₺161
$2.85 LKR 947
12.28%
🚌 Getting Around
Ankara
Badulla
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.77 ₺38.86
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$11.85 ₺595
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.28 ₺64.3
$0.41 LKR 136
212.20%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.84 ₺42.02
$0.33 LKR 111
154.55%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$8.22 ₺412
$0.87 LKR 288
844.83%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.39 ₺69.5
$1.37 LKR 454
1.46%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$48.4K ₺2.4M
$42.8K LKR 14.2M
13.18%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$40.2K ₺2.0M
$46.1K LKR 15.3M
-12.69%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Ankara
Badulla
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$99.9 ₺5,011
$56.2 LKR 18.7K
77.65%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$11.15 ₺559
$4.32 LKR 1,437
158.10%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$17.94 ₺900
$20.66 LKR 6,871
-13.17%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Ankara
Badulla
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$72.0 ₺3,611
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$14.80 ₺742
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$7.77 ₺390
$4.39 LKR 1,460
76.99%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Ankara
Badulla
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$1,084 ₺54.3K
$40.51 LKR 13.5K
2574.77%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$22.5K ₺1.1M
$17.5K LKR 5.8M
28.30%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Ankara
Badulla
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$53.4 ₺2,677
$18.24 LKR 6,066
192.65%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$47.87 ₺2,401
$17.37 LKR 5,777
175.59%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$104 ₺5,229
$77.6 LKR 25.8K
34.34%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$97.8 ₺4,905
$41.18 LKR 13.7K
137.49%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Ankara
Badulla
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$748 ₺37.5K
$76.3 LKR 25.4K
879.37%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$557 ₺27.9K
$44.38 LKR 14.8K
1154.44%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,142 ₺57.3K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$902 ₺45.2K
$89.8 LKR 29.9K
903.48%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,644 ₺82.5K
$4,570 LKR 1.5M
-64.03%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,142 ₺57.3K
$747 LKR 248.4K
52.92%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Ankara
Badulla
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,058 ₺53.1K
$222 LKR 73.7K
377.86%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
43.85
12.5
250.80%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Ankara: November 2, 2026

Last update for Badulla: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Ankara
$557
Badulla
$44 92% $512
Groceries & Markets
Ankara
$251
Badulla
$237 5.7% $14
Eating Out
Ankara
$208
Badulla
$104 49.8% $103
Clothing & Footwear
Ankara
$136
Badulla
$69 49.1% $67
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Ankara
$129
Badulla
$81 37% $48
Sport & Entertainment
Ankara
$88
Badulla
$8.8 * 90% $79
Getting Around
Ankara
$20
Badulla
$2.1 * 89.8% $18

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $748 in Ankara versus $76 in Badulla. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Ankara are about 4.8 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Ankara versus $25 in Badulla. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $251 vs $237 – making Badulla the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇹🇷 Ankara
🇱🇰 Badulla
🕒 Local time
22:21 10:21 PM
00:51 12:51 AM
2 h 30 min ahead of Ankara
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
5,864,049 Capital
110,000
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD, EUR to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 50.15 TRY (100 TRY = 1.99 USD). 1 EUR = 56.05 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 333 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 372 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Ankara Badulla 6,020 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Ankara
  • Badulla

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index
Ankara vs Badulla: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Ankara or Badulla?
Ankara costs about 154% more than Badulla, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.
How much do you need to earn to live comfortably in Ankara and in Badulla?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,083 per month in Ankara and $820 in Badulla. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Where is rent cheaper, Ankara or Badulla?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Badulla, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $76 there versus $748 in Ankara.
How do dining costs compare in Ankara and in Badulla?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Ankara and $25 in Badulla. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
Are groceries more expensive in Ankara or in Badulla?
Groceries cost about 6% more in Ankara, though the gap depends on what you buy.
Can you live on $1,000/month in Ankara or in Badulla?
A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Badulla, where all-in costs run around $547, than in Ankara at $1,389. In Badulla it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ankara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Which city is better for families?
Families tend to lean toward Badulla – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.
How safe is Ankara compared to Badulla?
Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.
Should I move to Ankara or to Badulla?
If budget matters most, go with Badulla. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Ankara makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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