Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hong Kong and Vellore

For one person, living is cheaper in Vellore: $260 a month against $3,050 in Hong Kong, rent and utilities included – about $33,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

147

Cost of Living Index in Hong Kong
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Hong Kong Living Index
12

Cost of Living Index in Vellore
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Vellore Living Index

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Hong Kong

🇭🇰 Hong Kong (China)

$3,050

/mo nomad

Vellore

🇮🇳 India

$260

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Hong Kong and in Vellore

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

A single person spends $3,050 per month in Hong Kong vs $260 in Vellore, rent included.

Hong Kong $3,050
Vellore $260

A couple spends around $4,786 per month in Hong Kong vs $448 in Vellore, rent included.

Hong Kong $4,786
Vellore $448

A family of three spends $6,522 per month in Hong Kong vs $636 in Vellore, rent included.

Hong Kong $6,522
Vellore $636

Hong Kong costs about 1072% more than Vellore, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Hong Kong sits 126% above the global median, while Vellore is 81% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.37 HK$65.6

$1.31 ₹124

538.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$63.4 HK$497

$6.98 ₹659

808.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.53 HK$51.2

$2.11 ₹199

209.48%

Cappuccino

$5.15 HK$40.33

$2.05 ₹194

151.22%

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

$1.38 HK$10.80

$0.36 ₹33.91

283.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.13 HK$8.86

$0.14 ₹13.24

707.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.73 HK$60.6

$1.55 ₹146

398.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.56 HK$43.62

$3.10 ₹293

79.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.94 HK$23.01

$0.48 ₹45.04

512.50%

White Bread (500g)

$2.41 HK$18.91

$0.58 ₹55.0

315.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.22 HK$17.42

$0.61 ₹57.4

263.93%

Eggs

$3.41 HK$26.73

$0.84 ₹79.1

305.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$23.18 HK$182

$1.92 ₹182

1107.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.67 HK$68.0

$2.40 ₹226

261.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.90 HK$140

Apples (1kg)

$4.21 HK$33.02

$1.62 ₹153

159.88%

Banana (1kg)

$2.58 HK$20.19

$0.71 ₹67.4

263.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.68 HK$36.68

$0.84 ₹79.1

457.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.00 HK$31.33

$0.27 ₹25.21

1381.48%

Potato (1kg)

$3.19 HK$24.98

$0.30 ₹27.87

963.33%

Onion (1kg)

$3.27 HK$25.60

$0.40 ₹37.65

717.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.57 HK$12.29

$0.32 ₹30.37

390.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.71 HK$13.44

$0.26 ₹24.52

557.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.33 HK$105

$1.55 ₹147

760.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.56 HK$122

$3.72 ₹351

318.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.02 HK$15.87

$1.57 ₹148

28.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 HK$17.83

$2.58 ₹244

-11.63%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$5.12 ₹483

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.23 HK$9.67

$0.24 ₹22.70

412.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$87.6 HK$686

$5.11 ₹482

1613.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.76 HK$29.46

$0.44 ₹41.75

754.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.30 HK$10.19

$0.30 ₹28.55

333.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.93 HK$125

$1.05 ₹98.8

1417.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$4.27 HK$33.48

$1.10 ₹104

288.18%

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

$45.0K HK$352.7K

$10.1K ₹949.6K

347.59%

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

$37.6K HK$294.8K

$15.3K ₹1.4M

145.48%

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

$237 HK$1,859

$31.22 ₹2,950

659.71%

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

$15.46 HK$121

$4.04 ₹382

282.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.46 HK$176

$4.02 ₹380

458.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$97.4 HK$764

$8.14 ₹769

1096.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.02 HK$70.7

$4.87 ₹460

85.22%

Cinema Ticket

$12.98 HK$102

$2.43 ₹229

434.16%

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

$1,302 HK$10.2K

$49.06 ₹4,634

2553.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.3K HK$237.2K

$1,444 ₹136.4K

1996.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.0 HK$533

$8.58 ₹810

692.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.80 HK$335

$18.80 ₹1,776

127.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.3 HK$637

$21.74 ₹2,054

274.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 HK$949

$25.51 ₹2,410

374.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,385 HK$18.7K

$56.9 ₹5,376

4090.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,794 HK$14.1K

$31.25 ₹2,952

5639.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,695 HK$44.6K

$169 ₹16.0K

3260.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,786 HK$29.7K

$156 ₹14.8K

2324.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$28.8K HK$226.0K

$1,104 ₹104.3K

2511.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$18.9K HK$147.9K

$676 ₹63.9K

2691.93%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,194 HK$25.0K

$313 ₹29.5K

921.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.89

6.5

-40.15%

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

Last update for Hong Kong: November 2, 2026

Last update for Vellore: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Hong Kong

$1.8K 58.8%

Vellore

$31 12% 98.3% $1.8K

Groceries & Markets

Hong Kong

$407 13.3%

Vellore

$78 29.9% 80.9% $329

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hong Kong

$275 9%

Vellore

$39 15.1% 85.7% $236

Eating Out

Hong Kong

$208 6.8%

Vellore

$57 22% 72.4% $151

Clothing & Footwear

Hong Kong

$141 4.6%

Vellore

$34 12.9% 76.2% $107

Sport & Entertainment

Hong Kong

$123 4%

Vellore

$13 5% 89.5% $110

Getting Around

Hong Kong

$103 3.4%

Vellore

$8 3.1% 92.2% $95

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,385 in Hong Kong versus $57 in Vellore. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Hong Kong are about 10 times higher, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $63 in Hong Kong versus $7 in Vellore. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $407 vs $78 – making Vellore the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇰 Hong Kong

🇮🇳 Vellore

🕒 Local time

14:15 2:15 PM

11:45 11:45 AM

2 h 30 min behind Hong Kong

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,367,900 Capital

186,000

💱 Currency

Hong Kong Dollar HKD $

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

1 HKD = 0.128 USD

1 HKD = 0.114 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.59 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to HKD – Hong Kong Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇰 Hong Kong Dollar ($)

Hong Kong Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 7.84 HKD (1 HKD = 0.128 USD). 1 EUR = 8.8 HKD (1 HKD = 0.114 EUR).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 94.47 INR (100 INR = 1.06 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

USD to HKD in detail →

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Hong Kong Vellore 3,850 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

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Hong Kong
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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

Hong Kong vs Vellore: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,050 in Hong Kong, $260 in Vellore – Vellore comes out roughly 91% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,576 per month in Hong Kong and $390 in Vellore. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Vellore, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $57 there versus $2,385 in Hong Kong.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $63 in Hong Kong and $7 in Vellore. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,050 in Hong Kong and $260 in Vellore. That makes Vellore about 91% cheaper.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Vellore, where all-in costs run around $260, than in Hong Kong at $3,050. In Vellore it covers expenses comfortably, while in Hong Kong it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Vellore – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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