Cost of Living Comparison Between Cha-am and Colombo Cost of Living Comparison Between Cha-am and Colombo

😐 Solo nomad: Cha-am is 10.1% more expensive than Colombo without rent, and 29.2% more expensive with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Cha-am is 5.1% cheaper than Colombo without rent, and 18.7% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Cha-am
Colombo
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.10 ฿99.0
$3.93 LKR 1,241
-21.12%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$21.64 ฿692
$24.89 LKR 7,853
-13.06%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.00 ฿288
$8.60 LKR 2,714
4.65%
Cappuccino
$2.04 ฿65.2
$2.63 LKR 830
-22.43%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.63 ฿20.22
$0.69 LKR 219
-8.70%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.42 ฿13.30
$0.40 LKR 127
5.00%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.39 ฿76.6
$2.27 LKR 718
5.29%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.80 ฿121
$3.38 LKR 1,066
12.43%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cha-am
Colombo
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.75 ฿55.8
$1.77 LKR 559
-1.13%
White Bread (500g)
$1.35 ฿43.01
$0.57 LKR 179
136.84%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.28 ฿40.85
$0.83 LKR 262
54.22%
Eggs
$1.84 ฿58.7
$2.12 LKR 668
-13.21%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$13.51 ฿432
$13.85 LKR 4,371
-2.45%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.27 ฿104
$4.64 LKR 1,463
-29.53%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.08 ฿354
$7.98 LKR 2,516
38.85%
Apples (1kg)
$3.03 ฿96.9
$7.39 LKR 2,330
-59.00%
Banana (1kg)
$1.30 ฿41.41
$1.12 LKR 353
16.07%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.89 ฿60.4
$5.65 LKR 1,783
-66.55%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.58 ฿50.5
$1.21 LKR 381
30.58%
Potato (1kg)
$1.69 ฿54.1
$1.15 LKR 362
46.96%
Onion (1kg)
$1.25 ฿40.00
$1.41 LKR 444
-11.35%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.20 ฿38.48
$1.18 LKR 374
1.69%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.46 ฿14.61
$0.61 LKR 191
-24.59%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.72 ฿151
$10.19 LKR 3,214
-53.68%
Wine (Bottle)
$18.93 ฿605
$12.87 LKR 4,061
47.09%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.75 ฿55.9
$2.08 LKR 655
-15.87%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.53 ฿113
$2.93 LKR 925
20.48%
🚌 Getting Around
Cha-am
Colombo
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.95 ฿30.44
$0.19 LKR 58.7
400.00%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$4.93 LKR 1,555
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.06 ฿33.94
$0.38 LKR 121
178.95%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.71 ฿22.69
$0.35 LKR 111
102.86%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.49 ฿112
$0.61 LKR 194
472.13%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.35 ฿43.04
$1.22 LKR 384
10.66%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$19.7K ฿628.3K
$26.8K LKR 8.5M
-26.80%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$21.5K ฿686.3K
$34.6K LKR 10.9M
-37.99%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cha-am
Colombo
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$72.5 ฿2,317
$60.1 LKR 18.9K
20.68%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$12.98 ฿415
$4.36 LKR 1,375
197.71%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$18.57 ฿594
$15.10 LKR 4,763
22.98%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cha-am
Colombo
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$24.49 ฿783
$14.30 LKR 4,513
71.26%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$12.10 ฿387
$7.38 LKR 2,329
63.96%
Cinema Ticket
$7.76 ฿248
$3.34 LKR 1,053
132.34%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cha-am
Colombo
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$137 ฿4,366
$36.76 LKR 11.6K
271.49%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$9,191 ฿293.8K
$445 LKR 140.5K
1963.41%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cha-am
Colombo
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$30.01 ฿960
$27.84 LKR 8,783
7.79%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$19.89 ฿636
$19.75 LKR 6,231
0.71%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$61.5 ฿1,967
$68.3 LKR 21.6K
-9.95%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$44.71 ฿1,429
$38.76 LKR 12.2K
15.35%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cha-am
Colombo
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$463 ฿14.8K
$378 LKR 119.3K
22.56%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$364 ฿11.6K
$175 LKR 55.2K
107.87%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$761 ฿24.3K
$969 LKR 305.6K
-21.41%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$672 ฿21.5K
$366 LKR 115.5K
83.61%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,172 ฿69.4K
$3,718 LKR 1.2M
-41.58%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,468 ฿46.9K
$1,230 LKR 388.0K
19.34%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cha-am
Colombo
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$374 ฿12.0K
$242 LKR 76.4K
54.61%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.45
16.45
-66.87%

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

Last update for Cha-am: April 14, 2026

Last update for Colombo: April 13, 2026

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

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