Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Colombo and Decatur, AL

For one person, living is cheaper in Colombo: $804 a month against $1,929 in Decatur, AL, rent and utilities included – about $13,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

39

Cost of Living Index in Colombo
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Colombo Living Index
92

Cost of Living Index in Decatur, AL
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Decatur, AL Living Index

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Colombo

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$804

/mo nomad

Decatur, AL

🇺🇸 United States

$1,929

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Colombo and in Decatur, AL

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $804 in Colombo versus $1,929 in Decatur, AL.

Colombo $804
Decatur, AL $1,929

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,240 in Colombo versus $2,715 in Decatur, AL.

Colombo $1,240
Decatur, AL $2,715

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,675 in Colombo versus $3,500 in Decatur, AL.

Colombo $1,675
Decatur, AL $3,500

Living in Colombo costs roughly 58% less than in Decatur, AL, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Colombo is 41% below, Decatur, AL is 42% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.74 LKR 1,243

$14.73 $14.73

-74.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.72 LKR 8,219

$42.83 $42.83

-42.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.60 LKR 2,529

$12.02 $12.02

-36.77%

Cappuccino

$2.45 LKR 814

$4.44 $4.44

-44.82%

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

$0.68 LKR 227

$1.27 $1.27

-46.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 LKR 89.9

$1.59 $1.59

-83.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.22 LKR 739

$5.10 $5.10

-56.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.07 LKR 1,020

$5.91 $5.91

-48.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 LKR 521

$0.50 $0.50

214.00%

White Bread (500g)

$0.54 LKR 178

$3.10 $3.10

-82.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.80 LKR 266

$2.03 $2.03

-60.59%

Eggs

$1.71 LKR 568

$2.60 $2.60

-34.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.92 LKR 4,628

$7.94 $7.94

75.31%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.78 LKR 1,591

$5.70 $5.70

-16.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.46 LKR 2,481

$12.26 $12.26

-39.15%

Apples (1kg)

$6.40 LKR 2,127

$3.01 $3.01

112.62%

Banana (1kg)

$0.85 LKR 284

$1.80 $1.80

-52.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.26 LKR 1,416

$2.70 $2.70

57.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.33 LKR 443

$1.93 $1.93

-31.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.00 LKR 334

$1.44 $1.44

-30.56%

Onion (1kg)

$0.81 LKR 270

$1.61 $1.61

-49.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 LKR 308

$2.66 $2.66

-65.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.45 LKR 151

$2.19 $2.19

-79.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.33 LKR 3,436

$9.40 $9.40

9.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.87 LKR 4,280

$13.04 $13.04

-1.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.93 LKR 642

$1.72 $1.72

12.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.00 LKR 999

$1.60 $1.60

87.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.18 LKR 59.4

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$5.96 LKR 1,983

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.40 LKR 134

$1.98 $1.98

-79.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.35 LKR 116

$1.34 $1.34

-73.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.94 LKR 312

$20.31 $20.31

-95.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 LKR 438

$1.04 $1.04

26.92%

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

$43.4K LKR 14.4M

$27.4K $27.4K

58.38%

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

$39.7K LKR 13.2M

$27.6K $27.6K

43.92%

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

$58.9 LKR 19.6K

$189 $189

-68.85%

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

$4.20 LKR 1,397

$84.5 $84.5

-95.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.61 LKR 6,855

$74.2 $74.2

-72.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$19.88 LKR 6,613

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.81 LKR 1,933

Cinema Ticket

$4.42 LKR 1,469

$14.86 $14.86

-70.26%

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

$38.13 LKR 12.7K

$1,713 $1,713

-97.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,214 LKR 403.6K

$25.1K $25.1K

-95.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.77 LKR 5,909

$46.48 $46.48

-61.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.62 LKR 5,527

$33.04 $33.04

-49.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.8 LKR 25.9K

$82.2 $82.2

-5.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$42.22 LKR 14.0K

$156 $156

-72.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$586 LKR 194.8K

$987 $987

-40.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$275 LKR 91.5K

$872 $872

-68.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,677 LKR 557.7K

$1,704 $1,704

-1.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$490 LKR 163.0K

$1,336 $1,336

-63.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,636 LKR 1.2M

$1,659 $1,659

119.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,158 LKR 385.1K

$1,681 $1,681

-31.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$259 LKR 86.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.69

6.6

92.27%

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

Last update for Colombo: October 25, 2026

Last update for Decatur, AL: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Colombo

$275 34.2%

Decatur, AL

$872 45.2% 217% $597

Groceries & Markets

Colombo

$235 29.2%

Decatur, AL

$272 14.1% 15.8% $37

Eating Out

Colombo

$103 12.8%

Decatur, AL

$256 13.3% 148% $153

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Colombo

$84 10.4%

Decatur, AL

$348 18% 316% $264

Clothing & Footwear

Colombo

$69 8.6%

Decatur, AL

$143 7.4% 106% $73

Sport & Entertainment

Colombo

$29 3.6%

Decatur, AL

$30 * 1.5% 3.5% $1

Getting Around

Colombo

$8.8 1.1%

Decatur, AL

$8.7 * 0.5% 1.5% $0.1

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 $586 in Colombo and $987 in Decatur, AL. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $25 in Colombo vs $43 in Decatur, AL for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $235 vs $272 per month, with Colombo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇱🇰 Colombo

🇺🇸 Decatur, AL

🕒 Local time

12:34 12:34 PM

01:04 1:04 AM

11 h 30 min behind Colombo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

753,000

77,047

💱 Currency

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

1 USD = 0.896 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to LKR – Sri Lankan Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇰 Sri Lankan Rupee (Rs)

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 333 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 371 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.896 EUR).

USD to LKR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Colombo Decatur, AL 15,190 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Colombo
Decatur, AL

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

Colombo vs Decatur, AL: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Colombo wins on cost – living expenses run 58% lower than in Decatur, AL. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Colombo the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,206 in Colombo and $2,894 in Decatur, AL 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $586 in Colombo versus $987 in Decatur, AL. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $38 in Colombo versus $1,713 in Decatur, AL. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Colombo – a meal for two runs $25 versus $43 in Decatur, AL. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Colombo is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.