Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Colombo and Dushanbe

For one person, living is cheaper in Colombo: $804 a month against $923 in Dushanbe, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 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
45

Cost of Living Index in Dushanbe
Learn more

Dushanbe Living Index

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Colombo

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$804

/mo nomad

Dushanbe

🇹🇯 Tajikistan

$923

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Colombo and in Dushanbe

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 Dushanbe actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $804 in Colombo versus $923 in Dushanbe.

Colombo $804
Dushanbe $923

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,240 in Colombo versus $1,371 in Dushanbe.

Colombo $1,240
Dushanbe $1,371

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,675 in Colombo versus $1,818 in Dushanbe.

Colombo $1,675
Dushanbe $1,818

Living in Colombo costs roughly 13% less than in Dushanbe, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities sit below the global median: Colombo 41% lower, Dushanbe 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.74 LKR 1,243

$4.85 TJS 44.67

-22.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.72 LKR 8,218

$20.38 TJS 188

21.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.60 LKR 2,528

$5.50 TJS 50.7

38.18%

Cappuccino

$2.45 LKR 814

$1.76 TJS 16.18

39.20%

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

$0.68 LKR 227

$0.61 TJS 5.66

11.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 LKR 89.8

$0.34 TJS 3.13

-20.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.22 LKR 739

$1.21 TJS 11.17

83.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.07 LKR 1,020

$2.43 TJS 22.36

26.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 LKR 520

$1.11 TJS 10.25

41.44%

White Bread (500g)

$0.54 LKR 178

$0.59 TJS 5.46

-8.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.80 LKR 266

$2.39 TJS 22.06

-66.53%

Eggs

$1.71 LKR 568

$1.79 TJS 16.51

-4.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.92 LKR 4,627

$10.89 TJS 100

27.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.78 LKR 1,591

$4.35 TJS 40.09

9.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.46 LKR 2,481

$11.30 TJS 104

-33.98%

Apples (1kg)

$6.40 LKR 2,127

$1.89 TJS 17.46

238.62%

Banana (1kg)

$0.85 LKR 284

$2.81 TJS 25.89

-69.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.26 LKR 1,416

$2.69 TJS 24.82

58.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.33 LKR 443

$1.26 TJS 11.64

5.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.00 LKR 334

$0.62 TJS 5.74

61.29%

Onion (1kg)

$0.81 LKR 270

$0.43 TJS 3.98

88.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 LKR 308

$1.27 TJS 11.71

-26.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.45 LKR 151

$0.64 TJS 5.93

-29.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.33 LKR 3,435

$3.89 TJS 35.89

165.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.87 LKR 4,279

$11.48 TJS 106

12.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.93 LKR 642

$1.45 TJS 13.39

33.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.00 LKR 999

$2.06 TJS 18.99

45.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.18 LKR 59.4

$0.28 TJS 2.58

-35.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$5.96 LKR 1,982

$16.46 TJS 152

-63.79%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.40 LKR 134

$1.10 TJS 10.09

-63.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.35 LKR 116

$0.34 TJS 3.16

2.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.94 LKR 312

$6.47 TJS 59.6

-85.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 LKR 438

$1.15 TJS 10.55

14.78%

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

$43.4K LKR 14.4M

$16.0K TJS 147.0K

172.14%

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

$39.7K LKR 13.2M

$24.3K TJS 223.7K

63.53%

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

$58.9 LKR 19.6K

$68.4 TJS 631

-13.97%

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

$4.20 LKR 1,397

$10.27 TJS 94.7

-59.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.61 LKR 6,854

$17.23 TJS 159

19.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$19.88 LKR 6,611

$44.97 TJS 414

-55.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.81 LKR 1,933

$14.43 TJS 133

-59.74%

Cinema Ticket

$4.42 LKR 1,469

$5.29 TJS 48.75

-16.45%

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

$38.13 LKR 12.7K

$84.7 TJS 781

-54.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,214 LKR 403.5K

$5,754 TJS 53.0K

-78.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.77 LKR 5,908

$24.46 TJS 225

-27.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.62 LKR 5,526

$52.9 TJS 488

-68.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.8 LKR 25.9K

$77.0 TJS 709

1.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$42.22 LKR 14.0K

$56.6 TJS 522

-25.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$586 LKR 194.7K

$633 TJS 5,834

-7.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$275 LKR 91.5K

$350 TJS 3,221

-21.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,677 LKR 557.6K

$889 TJS 8,191

88.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$490 LKR 163.0K

$559 TJS 5,153

-12.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,636 LKR 1.2M

$1,278 TJS 11.8K

184.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,158 LKR 385.1K

$708 TJS 6,521

63.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$259 LKR 86.0K

$434 TJS 4,001

-40.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.69

23.17

-45.23%

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

Last update for Colombo: October 25, 2026

Last update for Dushanbe: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Colombo

$275 34.2%

Dushanbe

$350 37.9% 27.1% $74

Groceries & Markets

Colombo

$235 29.2%

Dushanbe

$215 23.3% 8.4% $20

Eating Out

Colombo

$103 12.8%

Dushanbe

$91 9.9% 11.7% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Colombo

$84 10.4%

Dushanbe

$96 10.4% 14.6% $12

Clothing & Footwear

Colombo

$69 8.6%

Dushanbe

$95 10.3% 36.6% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Colombo

$29 3.6%

Dushanbe

$56 6% 93.4% $27

Getting Around

Colombo

$8.8 1.1%

Dushanbe

$20 2.2% 131% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $586 in Colombo and $633 in Dushanbe. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dushanbe pays 68% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $25 in Colombo vs $20 in Dushanbe for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $235 vs $215 per month, with Dushanbe cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇱🇰 Colombo

🇹🇯 Dushanbe

🕒 Local time

23:49 11:49 PM

23:19 11:19 PM

30 min behind Colombo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

753,000

679,400 Capital

💱 Currency

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

Tajikistani Somoni TJS ЅМ

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.7 EUR

100 TJS = 10.85 USD

100 TJS = 9.72 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TJS, USD, EUR to LKR – Sri Lankan Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇰 Sri Lankan Rupee (Rs)

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 332 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 371 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.7 EUR).

Tajikistani Somoni exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 9.22 TJS (1 TJS = 0.108 USD). 1 EUR = 10.29 TJS (100 TJS = 9.72 EUR).

USD to LKR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Colombo Dushanbe 3,690 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Colombo
Dushanbe

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 Dushanbe: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Colombo wins on cost – living expenses run 13% lower than in Dushanbe. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Colombo the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 40% lower in Colombo. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $586 in Colombo versus $633 in Dushanbe. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Dushanbe pay roughly 8% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in Dushanbe – a meal for two runs $20 versus $25 in Colombo. 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.

It comes down to priorities – Colombo wins on affordability, Dushanbe on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.