Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Badulla

For one person, living is cheaper in Badulla: $541 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $20,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
26

Cost of Living Index in Badulla
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Badulla Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Badulla

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$541

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Badulla

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $541 in Badulla.

Lisbon $2,210
Badulla $541

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $870 in Badulla.

Lisbon $3,275
Badulla $870

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,199 in Badulla.

Lisbon $4,341
Badulla $1,199

Living in Lisbon is roughly 308% more expensive than in Badulla, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Badulla is 60% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.95

$3.70 LKR 1,230

350.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$24.42 LKR 8,118

152.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$7.50 LKR 2,492

51.47%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$2.46 LKR 818

20.73%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$0.72 LKR 238

218.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.27 LKR 89.9

544.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$2.22 LKR 738

53.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$3.08 LKR 1,025

7.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.63 LKR 543

-28.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$0.53 LKR 177

260.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$0.62 LKR 206

143.55%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$1.65 LKR 548

143.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$13.58 LKR 4,515

-4.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.98

$3.54 LKR 1,176

119.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

$7.37 LKR 2,451

140.98%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$6.68 LKR 2,222

-65.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$0.81 LKR 268

113.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$4.50 LKR 1,497

-58.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$1.28 LKR 425

102.34%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$1.00 LKR 333

82.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$0.82 LKR 274

140.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.94 LKR 314

56.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.43 LKR 142

67.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$10.29 LKR 3,422

-36.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$12.58 LKR 4,183

-55.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.91 LKR 634

-28.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$2.94 LKR 976

-27.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$0.38 LKR 126

913.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.37 LKR 124

189.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$0.93 LKR 310

1669.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.39 LKR 461

58.27%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$44.4K LKR 14.8M

-23.04%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$40.8K LKR 13.6M

-5.07%

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

$161 €145

$59.2 LKR 19.7K

172.15%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$4.29 LKR 1,425

329.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$20.84 LKR 6,929

57.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$4.52 LKR 1,503

112.39%

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

$668 €600

$37.89 LKR 12.6K

1662.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$1,204 LKR 400.2K

1363.13%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.6

$18.20 LKR 6,052

460.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.94

$16.65 LKR 5,536

167.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$77.4 LKR 25.7K

27.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$41.51 LKR 13.8K

197.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$74.7 LKR 24.8K

2053.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$45.64 LKR 15.2K

2507.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

$90.2 LKR 30.0K

2131.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

$4,517 LKR 1.5M

73.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

$759 LKR 252.4K

502.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$227 LKR 75.5K

593.40%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

12.69

-69.66%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Badulla: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Badulla

$46 8.4% 96.2% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Badulla

$228 42.1% 16.2% $44

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Badulla

$103 19% 57.6% $140

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Badulla

$84 15.6% 60.3% $128

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Badulla

$69 12.8% 58.3% $97

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Badulla

$9 * 1.7% 85.8% $55

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Badulla

$2.2 * 0.4% 96.5% $61

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 $1,608 in Lisbon and $75 in Badulla. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 6.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $24 in Badulla for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $228 per month, with Badulla cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇱🇰 Badulla

🕒 Local time

21:34 9:34 PM

03:04 3:04 AM

5 h 30 min ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

110,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.7 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

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

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).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Badulla 9,540 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Badulla

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

Lisbon vs Badulla: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Badulla is about 76% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 6.9 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $75 in Badulla. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

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

Dining out is cheaper in Badulla – 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 $541 in Badulla versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Badulla but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Badulla 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.

Safety-wise, Lisbon and Badulla are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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