Cost of Living Comparison Between Colombo and Chiang Mai Cost of Living Comparison Between Colombo and Chiang Mai

🙂 Solo nomad: Colombo is 10.3% cheaper than Chiang Mai without rent, and 15.9% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Colombo is 4.5% cheaper than Chiang Mai without rent, and 11% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.98 LKR 1,235

$2.03 ฿64.3

96.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$25.32 LKR 7,864

$18.59 ฿590

36.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.48 LKR 2,634

$7.48 ฿237

13.37%

Cappuccino

$2.73 LKR 847

$2.00 ฿63.3

36.50%

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

$0.74 LKR 229

$0.85 ฿26.87

-12.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.37 LKR 115

$0.35 ฿11.15

5.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 LKR 748

$2.21 ฿70.2

9.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 LKR 1,028

$3.76 ฿119

-11.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 LKR 528

$1.72 ฿54.5

-1.16%

White Bread (500g)

$0.56 LKR 175

$1.63 ฿51.8

-65.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.83 LKR 257

$1.16 ฿36.75

-28.45%

Eggs

$2.20 LKR 682

$1.98 ฿62.8

11.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.25 LKR 4,426

$15.93 ฿505

-10.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.70 LKR 1,461

$3.17 ฿100

48.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.87 LKR 2,443

$10.90 ฿346

-27.80%

Apples (1kg)

$7.49 LKR 2,327

$2.65 ฿83.9

182.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 LKR 345

$1.22 ฿38.79

-9.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.85 LKR 1,818

$1.70 ฿53.8

244.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.22 LKR 377

$1.59 ฿50.4

-23.27%

Potato (1kg)

$1.10 LKR 341

$1.32 ฿42.00

-16.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.43 LKR 445

$1.17 ฿37.07

22.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 LKR 355

$0.68 ฿21.50

67.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.60 LKR 188

$0.56 ฿17.68

7.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.23 LKR 3,177

$4.51 ฿143

126.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.67 LKR 3,935

$19.07 ฿605

-33.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.09 LKR 649

$1.77 ฿56.2

18.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.94 LKR 913

$3.18 ฿101

-7.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.19 LKR 59.3

$0.96 ฿30.54

-80.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$4.94 LKR 1,533

$18.90 ฿599

-73.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.41 LKR 128

$1.36 ฿43.07

-69.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.35 LKR 110

$1.35 ฿42.89

-74.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.57 LKR 177

$8.03 ฿255

-92.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 LKR 388

$1.24 ฿39.43

0.81%

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

$26.6K LKR 8.3M

$21.2K ฿671.3K

25.79%

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

$35.4K LKR 11.0M

$21.8K ฿690.1K

62.80%

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

$59.5 LKR 18.5K

$71.2 ฿2,260

-16.54%

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

$4.46 LKR 1,385

$14.09 ฿447

-68.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.16 LKR 4,709

$17.47 ฿554

-13.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$14.28 LKR 4,434

$42.07 ฿1,335

-66.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.05 LKR 2,190

$6.88 ฿218

2.47%

Cinema Ticket

$3.38 LKR 1,049

$5.94 ฿188

-43.10%

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

$36.49 LKR 11.3K

$307 ฿9,750

-88.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$444 LKR 138.0K

$14.8K ฿469.3K

-97.00%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.90 LKR 8,666

$55.7 ฿1,766

-49.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.17 LKR 5,955

$26.79 ฿850

-28.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.8 LKR 21.4K

$83.2 ฿2,640

-17.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$38.47 LKR 11.9K

$70.1 ฿2,224

-45.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$372 LKR 115.6K

$427 ฿13.6K

-12.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$177 LKR 54.9K

$237 ฿7,521

-25.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$969 LKR 301.0K

$802 ฿25.4K

20.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$360 LKR 111.8K

$503 ฿16.0K

-28.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,705 LKR 1.2M

$2,061 ฿65.4K

79.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,248 LKR 387.7K

$1,533 ฿48.6K

-18.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$241 LKR 74.7K

$654 ฿20.7K

-63.19%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.45

229.00%

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

Last update for Colombo: March 2, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: March 1, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

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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