Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Galle and Chengdu

For one person, living is cheaper in Galle: $459 a month against $726 in Chengdu, rent and utilities included – about $3,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

22

Cost of Living Index in Galle
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Galle Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Chengdu
Learn more

Chengdu Living Index

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Galle

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$459

/mo nomad

Chengdu

🇨🇳 China

$726

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Galle and in Chengdu

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

A single person spends $459 per month in Galle vs $726 in Chengdu, rent included.

Galle $459
Chengdu $726

A couple spends around $748 per month in Galle vs $1,170 in Chengdu, rent included.

Galle $748
Chengdu $1,170

A family of three spends $1,038 per month in Galle vs $1,614 in Chengdu, rent included.

Galle $1,038
Chengdu $1,614

Galle is about 37% cheaper than Chengdu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both Galle and Chengdu are more affordable than the global median – Galle 66% lower, Chengdu 47% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.46 LKR 484

$2.92 ¥19.44

-50.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.83 LKR 7,923

$22.28 ¥148

6.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.40 LKR 2,459

$4.85 ¥32.29

52.58%

Cappuccino

$1.77 LKR 588

$3.00 ¥19.95

-41.00%

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

$0.67 LKR 222

$0.51 ¥3.39

31.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 LKR 89.8

$0.26 ¥1.73

3.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.16 LKR 387

$1.51 ¥10.06

-23.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.47 LKR 488

$2.28 ¥15.20

-35.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 LKR 545

$1.85 ¥12.29

-11.35%

White Bread (500g)

$0.57 LKR 190

$1.49 ¥9.89

-61.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.75 LKR 248

$0.99 ¥6.58

-24.24%

Eggs

$1.64 LKR 546

$1.61 ¥10.70

1.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.58 LKR 4,513

$14.31 ¥95.2

-5.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.76 LKR 1,584

$3.64 ¥24.25

30.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.46 LKR 2,480

$11.02 ¥73.4

-32.30%

Apples (1kg)

$6.54 LKR 2,174

$1.90 ¥12.62

244.21%

Banana (1kg)

$0.73 LKR 243

$1.39 ¥9.23

-47.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.35 LKR 1,447

$1.04 ¥6.91

318.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.29 LKR 429

$1.20 ¥7.98

7.50%

Potato (1kg)

$1.05 LKR 349

$0.74 ¥4.91

41.89%

Onion (1kg)

$0.81 LKR 270

$0.69 ¥4.57

17.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.92 LKR 306

$0.64 ¥4.23

43.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.45 LKR 150

$0.58 ¥3.84

-22.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.17 LKR 3,382

$3.69 ¥24.54

175.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.05 LKR 3,010

$4.37 ¥29.09

107.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.87 LKR 622

$0.84 ¥5.58

122.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.05 LKR 1,015

$1.48 ¥9.82

106.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.13 LKR 43.44

$0.29 ¥1.93

-55.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.23 ¥168

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.29 LKR 96.3

$1.33 ¥8.83

-78.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.31 LKR 103

$0.31 ¥2.07

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 LKR 308

$4.37 ¥29.08

-78.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.38 LKR 460

$1.27 ¥8.48

8.66%

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

$42.8K LKR 14.2M

$19.6K ¥130.7K

118.09%

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

$40.5K LKR 13.5M

$18.0K ¥120.1K

124.20%

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

$59.0 LKR 19.6K

$46.65 ¥310

26.47%

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

$4.29 LKR 1,426

$9.40 ¥62.6

-54.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.50 LKR 6,817

$12.87 ¥85.7

59.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.11 ¥180

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.21 ¥74.6

Cinema Ticket

$4.46 LKR 1,484

$6.17 ¥41.03

-27.71%

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

$38.10 LKR 12.7K

$1,161 ¥7,726

-96.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,187 LKR 394.5K

$15.3K ¥101.5K

-92.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$18.31 LKR 6,086

$25.36 ¥169

-27.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.40 LKR 5,453

$27.52 ¥183

-40.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.4 LKR 26.1K

$57.1 ¥380

37.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$41.83 LKR 13.9K

$53.2 ¥354

-21.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$425 ¥2,830

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$231 ¥1,540

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$755 ¥5,027

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$478 ¥3,179

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,476 ¥23.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,845 ¥12.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$313 LKR 103.9K

$1,278 ¥8,504

-75.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.69

3.38

275.44%

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

Last update for Galle: October 24, 2026

Last update for Chengdu: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Galle

$227 49.4%

Chengdu

$195 26.8% 14.2% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Galle

$84 18.2%

Chengdu

$69 9.5% 17.7% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Galle

$70 15.2%

Chengdu

$73 10.1% 5.3% $3.7

Eating Out

Galle

$68 14.7%

Chengdu

$89 12.3% 31.9% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Galle

$8.9 * 1.9%

Chengdu

$39 5.4% 342% $31

Getting Around

Galle

$2.4 * 0.5%

Chengdu

$29 4% 1141% $27

Accommodation & Living

Galle

- * 0%

Chengdu

$231 31.9%

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

Cost Breakdown

Salaries in Chengdu are about 4.1 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $24 in Galle versus $22 in Chengdu. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $227 vs $195 – making Chengdu the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇱🇰 Galle

🇨🇳 Chengdu

🕒 Local time

02:05 2:05 AM

04:35 4:35 AM

2 h 30 min ahead of Galle

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

100,000

20,937,757

💱 Currency

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.7 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇰 Sri Lankan Rupee (Rs)

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 332 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 370 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.7 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 6.65 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.41 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

USD to LKR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Galle Chengdu 3,700 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Galle
Chengdu

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

Galle vs Chengdu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $459 in Galle, $726 in Chengdu – Galle comes out roughly 37% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in leisure.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $689 per month in Galle and $1,090 in Chengdu. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $24 in Galle and $22 in Chengdu. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 14% cheaper in Chengdu – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$1,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $459 in Galle and $726 in Chengdu, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Galle has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $459 in Galle to $726 in Chengdu. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Galle. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chengdu makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.