Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Polonnaruwa

For one person, living is cheaper in Polonnaruwa: $506 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $15,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
25

Cost of Living Index in Polonnaruwa
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Polonnaruwa Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Polonnaruwa

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$506

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Polonnaruwa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $506 in Polonnaruwa.

Athens $1,775
Polonnaruwa $506

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $821 in Polonnaruwa.

Athens $2,721
Polonnaruwa $821

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $1,136 in Polonnaruwa.

Athens $3,666
Polonnaruwa $1,136

Living in Athens is roughly 251% more expensive than in Polonnaruwa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 31% above, Polonnaruwa is 63% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$4.44 LKR 1,472

275.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$24.02 LKR 7,957

182.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$7.53 LKR 2,495

47.94%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$2.39 LKR 792

68.62%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$0.68 LKR 226

307.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$0.25 LKR 82.6

120.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$2.17 LKR 718

164.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$3.10 LKR 1,026

75.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.56 LKR 516

16.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$0.57 LKR 190

142.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$0.76 LKR 250

268.42%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$1.59 LKR 526

203.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$13.60 LKR 4,505

10.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$4.88 LKR 1,618

117.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$7.63 LKR 2,527

141.55%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$6.68 LKR 2,213

-67.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$0.79 LKR 260

140.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$4.58 LKR 1,517

-70.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.21 LKR 402

73.55%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$1.04 LKR 343

3.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$0.82 LKR 271

36.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$0.87 LKR 288

28.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.43 LKR 143

104.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$10.41 LKR 3,447

-47.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$13.63 LKR 4,515

-25.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$1.98 LKR 657

7.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$3.06 LKR 1,014

-26.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$0.40 LKR 133

1012.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$0.37 LKR 123

175.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$0.87 LKR 288

1844.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.37 LKR 455

64.23%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$36.3K LKR 12.0M

-22.83%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$41.1K LKR 13.6M

-31.33%

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

$205 €182

$53.9 LKR 17.8K

279.87%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$4.26 LKR 1,412

525.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$20.44 LKR 6,770

48.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$4.48 LKR 1,485

132.59%

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

$569 €506

$38.00 LKR 12.6K

1397.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$1,192 LKR 394.8K

955.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$17.97 LKR 5,953

393.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$16.63 LKR 5,508

143.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$79.8 LKR 26.4K

31.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$42.13 LKR 14.0K

187.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

12.69

-64.70%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Polonnaruwa: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Polonnaruwa

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Polonnaruwa

$238 47.1% 23.3% $72

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Polonnaruwa

$108 21.3% 59.9% $160

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Polonnaruwa

$79 15.5% 70% $183

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Polonnaruwa

$70 13.9% 55.9% $89

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Polonnaruwa

$9 * 1.8% 88.1% $66

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Polonnaruwa

$2.3 * 0.5% 95% $43

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $68.0 in Athens vs $24.00 in Polonnaruwa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $238 per month, with Polonnaruwa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇱🇰 Polonnaruwa

🕒 Local time

18:00 6:00 PM

20:30 8:30 PM

2 h 30 min ahead of Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

15,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 331 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD). 1 EUR = 372 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Athens Polonnaruwa 6,620 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

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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

Athens vs Polonnaruwa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Polonnaruwa wins on cost – living expenses run 251% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Polonnaruwa the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $2,662 in Athens and $759 in Polonnaruwa to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $569 in Athens versus $38.00 in Polonnaruwa. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Polonnaruwa – a meal for two runs $24.00 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $506 in Polonnaruwa versus $1,775 in Athens, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Polonnaruwa but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Polonnaruwa the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Polonnaruwa delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $506 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Polonnaruwa hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Polonnaruwa are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Polonnaruwa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 251% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.