Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Anuradhapura and Phuket

Name: Phuket
Address: Phuket, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Anuradhapura: $506 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

24

Cost of Living Index in Anuradhapura
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Anuradhapura Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Anuradhapura

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$506

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Anuradhapura and in Phuket

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

A single person spends $506 per month in Anuradhapura vs $1,208 in Phuket, rent included.

Anuradhapura $506
Phuket $1,208

A couple spends around $820 per month in Anuradhapura vs $2,027 in Phuket, rent included.

Anuradhapura $820
Phuket $2,027

A family of three spends $1,134 per month in Anuradhapura vs $2,845 in Phuket, rent included.

Anuradhapura $1,134
Phuket $2,845

Anuradhapura is about 58% cheaper than Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both Anuradhapura and Phuket are more affordable than the global median – Anuradhapura 63% lower, Phuket 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.75 LKR 1,242

$4.40 ฿147

-14.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.57 LKR 8,139

$32.26 ฿1,078

-23.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 LKR 2,490

$8.76 ฿293

-14.16%

Cappuccino

$2.44 LKR 810

$2.83 ฿94.5

-13.78%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.68 LKR 227

$0.90 ฿30.14

-24.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 LKR 89.9

$0.47 ฿15.56

-42.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.23 LKR 738

$2.55 ฿85.2

-12.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.99 LKR 990

$3.83 ฿128

-21.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.61 LKR 534

$1.73 ฿57.7

-6.94%

White Bread (500g)

$0.57 LKR 189

$1.47 ฿49.11

-61.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.81 LKR 269

$1.51 ฿50.6

-46.36%

Eggs

$1.63 LKR 541

$2.17 ฿72.7

-24.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.86 LKR 4,590

$19.70 ฿658

-29.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.92 LKR 1,630

$3.34 ฿112

47.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.26 LKR 2,405

$11.16 ฿373

-34.95%

Apples (1kg)

$6.67 LKR 2,208

$2.85 ฿95.1

134.04%

Banana (1kg)

$0.86 LKR 286

$1.70 ฿56.9

-49.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.46 LKR 1,476

$2.19 ฿73.3

103.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.26 LKR 418

$2.05 ฿68.4

-38.54%

Potato (1kg)

$1.00 LKR 330

$1.45 ฿48.57

-31.03%

Onion (1kg)

$0.83 LKR 274

$1.38 ฿46.16

-39.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 LKR 308

$1.07 ฿35.69

-13.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.43 LKR 142

$0.51 ฿16.91

-15.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.39 LKR 3,441

$4.26 ฿142

143.90%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.07 LKR 4,330

$18.58 ฿621

-29.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 LKR 648

$1.78 ฿59.7

10.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.90 LKR 961

$2.85 ฿95.2

1.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 ฿75.6

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿738

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.40 LKR 134

$3.01 ฿101

-86.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.37 LKR 123

$1.06 ฿35.34

-65.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.88 LKR 292

$3.86 ฿129

-77.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 LKR 443

$1.45 ฿48.45

-7.59%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$43.5K LKR 14.4M

$26.3K ฿879.9K

65.27%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$40.1K LKR 13.3M

$26.9K ฿900.4K

48.75%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$58.5 LKR 19.4K

$96.4 ฿3,221

-39.34%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$4.23 LKR 1,401

$11.04 ฿369

-61.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.09 LKR 6,984

$17.14 ฿573

23.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.2 ฿1,744

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿373

Cinema Ticket

$4.41 LKR 1,460

$7.81 ฿261

-43.53%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$38.06 LKR 12.6K

$556 ฿18.6K

-93.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,224 LKR 405.4K

$11.6K ฿387.0K

-89.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$18.46 LKR 6,115

$64.2 ฿2,146

-71.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.65 LKR 5,515

$28.69 ฿959

-41.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.4 LKR 26.6K

$95.4 ฿3,187

-15.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$41.98 LKR 13.9K

$88.0 ฿2,940

-52.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 ฿24.6K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 ฿15.5K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,095 ฿70.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 ฿40.1K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,488 ฿116.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,523 ฿84.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.69

5.57

127.83%

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

Last update for Anuradhapura: October 18, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Groceries & Markets

Anuradhapura

$237 46.9%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 13.1% $31

Eating Out

Anuradhapura

$103 20.3%

Phuket

$121 10% 17.9% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Anuradhapura

$84 16.6%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 48.7% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Anuradhapura

$71 14%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 75.4% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Anuradhapura

$8.8 * 1.7%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 669% $59

Getting Around

Anuradhapura

$2.3 * 0.5%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 1645% $37

Accommodation & Living

Anuradhapura

- * 0%

Phuket

$462 38.3%

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $25.00 in Anuradhapura versus $32.00 in Phuket. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $237 vs $269 – making Anuradhapura the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇱🇰 Anuradhapura

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

15:50 3:50 PM

17:20 5:20 PM

1 h 30 min ahead of Anuradhapura

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

63,200

79,308

💱 Currency

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to LKR – Sri Lankan Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇰 Sri Lankan Rupee (Rs)

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 331 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD). 1 EUR = 372 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to LKR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Anuradhapura Phuket 1,980 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Anuradhapura
Phuket

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

Anuradhapura vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $506 in Anuradhapura, $1,208 in Phuket – roughly 139% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in leisure.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $759 per month in Anuradhapura and $1,813 in Phuket. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $25.00 in Anuradhapura and $32.00 in Phuket. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 13% more in Phuket, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Anuradhapura, where all-in costs run around $506, than in Phuket at $1,208. In Anuradhapura it covers expenses comfortably, while in Phuket it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Phuket has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $506 in Anuradhapura to $1,208 in Phuket. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Anuradhapura. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Phuket makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.