Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Galle and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Galle: $459 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $21,000 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
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Galle

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$459

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Galle and in Lisbon

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $459 in Galle versus $2,210 in Lisbon.

Galle $459
Lisbon $2,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $748 in Galle versus $3,275 in Lisbon.

Galle $748
Lisbon $3,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,038 in Galle versus $4,341 in Lisbon.

Galle $1,038
Lisbon $4,341

Living in Galle costs roughly 79% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Galle is 66% below, Lisbon is 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.46 LKR 484

$16.65 €14.95

-91.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.83 LKR 7,923

$61.7 €55.5

-61.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.40 LKR 2,459

$11.36 €10.20

-34.86%

Cappuccino

$1.77 LKR 588

$2.97 €2.67

-40.40%

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

$0.67 LKR 222

$2.29 €2.06

-70.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 LKR 89.8

$1.74 €1.56

-84.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.16 LKR 387

$3.40 €3.06

-65.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.47 LKR 488

$3.31 €2.97

-55.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 LKR 545

$1.16 €1.04

41.38%

White Bread (500g)

$0.57 LKR 190

$1.91 €1.72

-70.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.75 LKR 248

$1.51 €1.36

-50.33%

Eggs

$1.64 LKR 546

$4.02 €3.61

-59.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.58 LKR 4,513

$12.94 €11.62

4.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.76 LKR 1,584

$7.77 €6.98

-38.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.46 LKR 2,480

$17.76 €15.95

-58.00%

Apples (1kg)

$6.54 LKR 2,174

$2.30 €2.07

184.35%

Banana (1kg)

$0.73 LKR 243

$1.73 €1.56

-57.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.35 LKR 1,447

$1.86 €1.67

133.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.29 LKR 429

$2.59 €2.33

-50.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.05 LKR 349

$1.82 €1.64

-42.31%

Onion (1kg)

$0.81 LKR 270

$1.97 €1.77

-58.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.92 LKR 306

$1.47 €1.32

-37.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.45 LKR 150

$0.72 €0.65

-37.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.17 LKR 3,382

$6.58 €5.91

54.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.05 LKR 3,010

$5.61 €5.04

61.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.87 LKR 622

$1.36 €1.22

37.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.05 LKR 1,015

$2.14 €1.92

42.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.13 LKR 43.44

$2.33 €2.10

-94.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.29 LKR 96.3

$3.85 €3.46

-92.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.31 LKR 103

$1.07 €0.96

-71.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 LKR 308

$16.46 €14.79

-94.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.38 LKR 460

$2.20 €1.98

-37.27%

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

$42.8K LKR 14.2M

$34.2K €30.7K

25.32%

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

$40.5K LKR 13.5M

$38.7K €34.8K

4.49%

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

$59.0 LKR 19.6K

$161 €145

-63.40%

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

$4.29 LKR 1,426

$18.41 €16.54

-76.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.50 LKR 6,817

$32.74 €29.41

-37.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

Cinema Ticket

$4.46 LKR 1,484

$9.60 €8.62

-53.54%

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

$38.10 LKR 12.7K

$668 €600

-94.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,187 LKR 394.5K

$17.6K €15.8K

-93.26%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$18.31 LKR 6,086

$102 €91.6

-82.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.40 LKR 5,453

$44.46 €39.94

-63.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.4 LKR 26.1K

$98.5 €88.5

-20.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$41.83 LKR 13.9K

$124 €111

-66.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$313 LKR 103.9K

$1,575 €1,415

-80.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.69

3.85

229.61%

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

Last update for Galle: October 24, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Galle

$227 49.4%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 20% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Galle

$84 18.2%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 153% $129

Clothing & Footwear

Galle

$70 15.2%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 138% $96

Eating Out

Galle

$68 14.7%

Lisbon

$243 11% 259% $175

Sport & Entertainment

Galle

$8.9 * 1.9%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 614% $55

Getting Around

Galle

$2.4 * 0.5%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 2578% $61

Accommodation & Living

Galle

- * 0%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

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

Cost Breakdown

Lisbon pays about 5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $24 in Galle vs $62 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $227 vs $272 per month, with Galle cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇱🇰 Galle

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

03:37 3:37 AM

22:07 10:07 PM

5 h 30 min behind Galle

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

100,000

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.7 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to LKR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Galle Lisbon 9,530 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Galle
Lisbon

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 Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Galle is about 79% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 80% lower in Galle. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Childcare runs $38 in Galle versus $668 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Galle – a meal for two runs $24 versus $62 in Lisbon. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $459 in Galle versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Galle but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Galle the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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 – Galle wins on affordability, Lisbon on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.