Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bansko and Badulla

For one person, living is cheaper in Badulla: $543 a month against $956 in Bansko, rent and utilities included – about $5,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

47

Cost of Living Index in Bansko
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Bansko Living Index
26

Cost of Living Index in Badulla
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Badulla Living Index

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Bansko

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$956

/mo nomad

Badulla

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$543

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bansko 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 Bansko and in Badulla actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $956 in Bansko versus $543 in Badulla.

Bansko $956
Badulla $543

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,467 in Bansko versus $877 in Badulla.

Bansko $1,467
Badulla $877

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,979 in Bansko versus $1,211 in Badulla.

Bansko $1,979
Badulla $1,211

Living in Bansko is roughly 76% more expensive than in Badulla, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bansko 29% lower, Badulla 60% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.66 BGN 15.06

$3.88 LKR 1,287

123.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.94 BGN 78.2

$25.05 LKR 8,298

79.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.78 BGN 15.28

$7.37 LKR 2,442

19.13%

Cappuccino

$2.33 BGN 4.05

$2.55 LKR 844

-8.63%

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

$1.57 BGN 2.74

$0.71 LKR 236

121.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 BGN 1.43

$0.27 LKR 89.5

203.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.68 BGN 2.92

$2.22 LKR 735

-24.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.98 BGN 3.45

$3.07 LKR 1,015

-35.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 BGN 3.00

$1.55 LKR 514

11.61%

White Bread (500g)

$0.80 BGN 1.40

$0.53 LKR 174

50.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 BGN 2.51

$0.60 LKR 199

140.00%

Eggs

$2.36 BGN 4.10

$1.66 LKR 551

42.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.39 BGN 16.34

$13.97 LKR 4,627

-32.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.41 BGN 11.15

$3.56 LKR 1,178

80.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.48 BGN 14.76

$7.62 LKR 2,522

11.29%

Apples (1kg)

$1.31 BGN 2.28

$6.65 LKR 2,202

-80.30%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 BGN 2.82

$0.87 LKR 288

86.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 BGN 3.01

$4.35 LKR 1,440

-60.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.94 BGN 3.38

$1.33 LKR 439

45.86%

Potato (1kg)

$0.94 BGN 1.63

$0.99 LKR 329

-5.05%

Onion (1kg)

$0.76 BGN 1.32

$0.77 LKR 255

-1.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.55 BGN 0.95

$0.87 LKR 287

-36.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 BGN 1.02

$0.45 LKR 151

31.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.25 BGN 5.66

$10.13 LKR 3,354

-67.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.20 BGN 9.05

$12.74 LKR 4,221

-59.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 BGN 1.89

$1.90 LKR 628

-42.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 BGN 2.92

$2.93 LKR 971

-42.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.84 BGN 1.45

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.06 BGN 47.09

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.34 BGN 2.34

$0.38 LKR 125

252.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.65 BGN 1.14

$0.37 LKR 123

75.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.06 BGN 17.51

$0.88 LKR 293

1043.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 BGN 2.57

$1.38 LKR 456

7.25%

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

$29.1K BGN 50.7K

$36.5K LKR 12.1M

-20.19%

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

$20.9K BGN 36.4K

$40.7K LKR 13.5M

-48.62%

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

$92.4 BGN 161

$57.9 LKR 19.2K

59.78%

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

$14.52 BGN 25.26

$4.31 LKR 1,429

236.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$12.32 BGN 21.43

$21.13 LKR 6,998

-41.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.70 BGN 55.2

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.53 BGN 14.84

Cinema Ticket

$5.62 BGN 9.78

$4.49 LKR 1,488

25.17%

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

$230 BGN 401

$38.34 LKR 12.7K

500.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,268 BGN 3,947

$1,205 LKR 399.2K

88.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$30.10 BGN 52.4

$18.44 LKR 6,108

63.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.62 BGN 34.13

$16.32 LKR 5,405

20.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$45.86 BGN 79.8

$80.2 LKR 26.6K

-42.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$47.69 BGN 83.0

$41.30 LKR 13.7K

15.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$518 BGN 902

$76.1 LKR 25.2K

581.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$357 BGN 621

$44.45 LKR 14.7K

703.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$614 BGN 1,069

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$569 BGN 990

$89.9 LKR 29.8K

533.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,191 BGN 2,073

$4,542 LKR 1.5M

-73.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$959 BGN 1,669

$742 LKR 245.8K

29.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,704 BGN 2,965

$224 LKR 74.3K

659.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.99

12.69

-76.44%

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

Last update for Bansko: October 11, 2026

Last update for Badulla: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bansko

$357 37.3%

Badulla

$44 8.2% 87.5% $312

Groceries & Markets

Bansko

$192 20.1%

Badulla

$229 42.2% 19.5% $37

Eating Out

Bansko

$145 15.2%

Badulla

$105 19.3% 27.9% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bansko

$119 12.5%

Badulla

$83 15.3% 30.2% $36

Clothing & Footwear

Bansko

$64 6.7%

Badulla

$70 12.9% 9.1% $5.9

Sport & Entertainment

Bansko

$43 4.5%

Badulla

$9 * 1.7% 79.1% $34

Getting Around

Bansko

$35 3.7%

Badulla

$2.2 * 0.4% 93.6% $33

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $518 in Bansko and $76.1 in Badulla. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bansko pays 659% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $45.00 in Bansko vs $25.00 in Badulla. Groceries flip the comparison at $192 vs $229, with Bansko cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Bansko

🇱🇰 Badulla

🕒 Local time

13:35 1:35 PM

16:05 4:05 PM

2 h 30 min ahead of Bansko

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,000

110,000

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD, EUR to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇬 Bulgarian Lev (лв.)

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

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 BGN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Bansko Badulla 6,830 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Bansko
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

Bansko vs Badulla: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Badulla is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, leisure, and transport. The 76% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 659% higher in Bansko, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $518 in Bansko versus $76.1 in Badulla. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $230 in Bansko versus $38.34 in Badulla. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Badulla – a meal for two runs $25.00 versus $45.00 in Bansko. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $543 in Badulla versus $956 in Bansko, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Badulla but tight or insufficient in Bansko. The gap between the two cities makes Badulla the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Badulla is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Bansko, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Bansko and Badulla 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 Badulla gentler on the wallet – expenses run 76% less than in Bansko. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.